Lawrence Gene Sager (born 1941) is a former dean of the

University of Texas School of Law The University of Texas School of Law (Texas Law) is the law school of the University of Texas at Austin. Texas Law is consistently ranked as one of the top law schools in the United States and is highly selective—registering the 8th lowest ac ...

. He holds the Alice Jane Drysdale Sheffield Regents Chair. Sager, who joined the Law School faculty in 2002, is the 13th dean in the Law School's 123-year history. He is best known for his theory of underenforcement. Sager graduated from

Pomona College Pomona College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Claremont, California. It was established in 1887 by a group of Congregationalists who wanted to recreate a "college of the New England type" in Southern California. In 1925, it became ...

in 1963 and from the

Columbia Law School Columbia Law School (Columbia Law or CLS) is the law school of Columbia University, a private Ivy League university in New York City. Columbia Law is widely regarded as one of the most prestigious law schools in the world and has always ranked i ...

in 1966. He taught for more than 25 years at

New York University School of Law New York University School of Law (NYU Law) is the law school of New York University, a private research university in New York City. Established in 1835, it is the oldest law school in New York City and the oldest surviving law school in New ...

, where he was instrumental in transforming the NYU faculty into one of the best in the nation. At Texas, he has also been deeply involved with the Law School's successful faculty recruitment efforts, which include luring corporate law expert Bernard Black from

Stanford Law School Stanford Law School (Stanford Law or SLS) is the law school of Stanford University, a private research university near Palo Alto, California. Established in 1893, it is regarded as one of the most prestigious law schools in the world. Stanford La ...

in 2004 and health law scholar William Sage from

in 2006. He served as chair of the Law School's Appointments Committee during the 2005–06 academic years. Sager has also taught as a visiting professor at

Harvard Law School Harvard Law School (Harvard Law or HLS) is the law school of Harvard University, a private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest continuously operating law school in the United States. Each class ...

Princeton University Princeton University is a private university, private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the List of Colonial Colleges, fourth-oldest ins ...

Boston University School of Law Boston University School of Law (Boston Law or BU Law) is the law school of Boston University, a private research university in Boston, Massachusetts. It is consistently ranked among the top law schools in the United States and considered an eli ...

UCLA School of Law The UCLA School of Law is one of 12 professional schools at the University of California, Los Angeles. UCLA Law has been consistently ranked by '' U.S. News & World Report'' as one of the top 20 law schools in the United States since the inception ...

, and

University of Michigan Law School The University of Michigan Law School (Michigan Law) is the law school of the University of Michigan, a Public university, public research university in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Founded in 1859, the school offers Master of Laws (LLM), Master of C ...

. Sager is the author of two books: ''Justice in Plainclothes: A Theory of American Constitutional Practice'' (Yale University Press, 2004) and, with Christopher Eisgruber, ''Religious Freedom and the Constitution'' (Harvard University Press, 2007).

Controversy

Sager rose to prominence as a legal scholar while teaching at the New York University (NYU) School of Law. Along with NYU's

John Sexton John Edward Sexton (born September 29, 1942) is an American lawyer, academic, and author. He is the Benjamin F. Butler Professor of Law at New York University where he teaches at the law school and NYU's undergraduate colleges. Sexton served as t ...

, Sager has been credited as one of the chief architects of New York University Law School's precipitous rise in the national rankings during the 1990s. Sager joined the University of Texas at Austin (UT) School of Law faculty in 2002 and was appointed as a dean in 2006. In 2006, Sager was appointed as a dean of the law school. In writing about Sager,

Ronald Dworkin Ronald Myles Dworkin (; December 11, 1931 – February 14, 2013) was an American philosopher, jurist, and scholar of United States constitutional law. At the time of his death, he was Frank Henry Sommer Professor of Law and Philosophy at New Yo ...

said: "Sager is subtle, fast and deep . . . You should hire him." During his tenure, Sager "made important advancements" including raising nearly $80 million in donations, hiring 16 tenure and tenure-track faculty members, establishing a dual-degree program with a Mexican law school and launching a scholarly center focusing on global energy, environmental and arbitrational issues." Sager resigned from his post in December 2011 after being asked to resign by then-University of Texas President

William Powers Jr. William Charles Powers Jr. (May 30, 1946 – March 10, 2019) was an American attorney, academic, and university administrator who served as the 28th president of the University of Texas at Austin, becoming the second-longest serving president in ...

While Powers did not specify the exact reasons for requesting Sager's resignation, the ''Texas Tribune'' reported that "at the center of the conflict" was a forgivable loan/deferred compensation program under which Dean Sager had been awarded a $500,000 payment from the University of Texas Law School Foundation without the knowledge of school administrators. (The program had been created by the foundation in 2003 while Powers were to Dean of the Law School, but reportedly subject to different processes. According to a subsequent report, the program in general was "a highly effective and sensible recruiting and retention tool" for top faculty.

Practical jokes

Sager was the subject of several well-publicized practical jokes during his time as dean, including a 2009 April Fool's Day prank in which the Student Bar Association at the University of Texas sent out an email purporting to be from Sager in which "Sager" claimed he was retiring from the law school to raise emus in the Texas hill country. The Student Bar Association also opened up an Etsy shop under Sager's name.

References

External links

Lawrence Sager Appointed as Dean of UT Austin School of Law Press ReleaseUniversity of Texas School of Law Profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sager, Lawrence Deans of law schools in the United States Columbia Law School alumni New York University faculty University of Texas at Austin faculty Living people 1941 births Pomona College alumni