The American Bar Association-Law Student Division has named Northeastern University School of Law the 1999 Judy M. Weightman Memorial Public Interest School of the Year Award in recognition of the school’s dedication and service to the public interest.

The prestigious award recognizes the School of Law’s outstanding leadership in pro bono, volunteer programs, clinics, public interest student organizations and loan forgiveness programs. The award also recognizes the school’s student, faculty and administration participation in public service and overall commitment to public interest work. The award was named in memory of Professor Weightman, a leading activist and humanitarian who was a member the law faculty of the University of Hawaii.

Northeastern University School of Law is well known for its public interest mission. It is the only law school in Massachusetts that requires students to complete a public interest requirement in order to graduate, and, on average, approximately 85% of each class completes a public interest co-op (internship). In general, graduates of the law school enter public service positions a rate that is five times the national average for all law school graduates.

The mission of the Law Student Division is to be the national forum for law students across the country. Established in 1968, the division strives to further the purposes and goals of the American Bar Association, particularly to promote full and equal participation in the profession by minorities and women; to represent law students in the ABA and to represent the ABA to law students; to help shape the policies and priorities that affect legal education; and to create a deliberative forum for the exchange and expression of law student views and a voice to advocate those views. Today, the division represents more than 45,000 law students across the country from 181 ABA-approved law schools.