V O L . X X I X N O. V I P H O T O / T I M G R E E N WAY
INDUSTRY LEADER OF THE
YEAR / HIGHER EDUCATION
Leigh Saufley
Dean, University of Maine School
of Law
As much as Leigh Saufley
loved being a judge, the
former Justice of Maine's
Supreme Judicial Court
couldn't be happier
leading the University of
Maine School of Law. By
choice, she does so from a
second-floor office rather
than with faculty on the
fifth floor so that she
can be near the student
services suite and where
students gather.
S
aufley led the $13.5 million
effort to move the law school
from an outdated build-
ing on the USM campus to a newly
refurbished downtown building that
will double as a recruiting tool to
find students and faculty. From the
school's modern new Old Port home,
she is forging new ties with the busi-
nesses community and expanding
experiential learning opportunities
for students not just close to home
but also in rural Maine, through the
Rural Lawyers Fellowship Program
and new Rural Practice Clinic in
Fort Kent.
Mainebiz: What does it mean to be
in this new location?
Leigh Saufley: e new location is
everything we had hoped for and
more. ere's government, there's
courts, there are lots of waterfront
businesses, but the thing that has sur-
prised me the most is that it's already
a community. e folks who have
Leigh Saufley, dean of Maine
Law, led the law school's move
to new quarters that will serve
as a recruiting tool for faculty
and students.
M A R C H 2 0 , 2 0 2 3 18
From judge to dean
Maine Law with an entrepreneurial bent
Maine's former Chief Justice Leigh Saufley leads
B y R e n e e C o r d e s
University of Maine
School of Law
207.780.4355 / mainelaw.maine.edu
300 Fore St., Portland
What it does: Maine's public and
only law school; part of the
University of Maine System.
Founded: 1962.
Student body: 252 Juris Doctor
students, plus five additional
students pursuing a Master of
Law (L.L.M.) or Doctor of Juridical
Science (JSD) degree.
