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USD Appoints Stephen C. Ferruolo Dean of the Law School

San Diego (June 1, 2011) – Stephen C. Ferruolo has been appointed as dean of the University of San Diego School of Law. He will assume his duties on August 1, 2011.

"[Ferruolo] is a rare combination—an attorney who has practiced law extensively at the highest levels and who also has a deep understanding of academic excellence and students' needs," said Dr. Julie H. Sullivan, provost and executive vice president of the university. "He is ideally suited both to enhance our impact on the region and to further the Law School's national reputation for scholarly and educational quality."

In 2007, Ferruolo became the founding partner and chair of the San Diego office of Goodwin Procter LLP, an international firm with 850 attorneys in nine offices in the United States, Asia, and Europe. In addition to his continued service as chair of the office, Ferruolo has been a member of the firm-wide executive committee since 2009.

Before graduating with honors from Stanford Law School in 1990, Ferruolo had already become an accomplished scholar and teacher. He was a Rhodes Scholar at Oxford University, earned his Ph.D. in History at Princeton University, and served on the faculties at Bennington College and Stanford University. His book on the origins of the university, published by Stanford University Press in 1985, has been widely cited and remains the authoritative work in the field.

"I see joining the USD School of Law as dean as a fulfillment of my two previous careers, first as a teacher-scholar and then as a business lawyer," said Ferruolo. "I understand the important mission of the university, and I know that I will enjoy participating in and facilitating the faculty's scholarly and teaching mission. I will also seek to draw on my 20-plus years in legal practice to lead the efforts of the law school to better prepare students for the evolving demands of the legal marketplace."

Ferruolo's practice has focused on transactional work, with a special emphasis on corporate finance and governance and mergers and acquisitions. Much of his practice has involved representing technology and life science companies, in San Diego as well as nationally and internationally. Earlier this year, Ferruolo was elected vice chairman of BIOCOM/San Diego, the largest regional life sciences association in the world, which represents more than 550 member companies. From 2003 to 2011, he served as vice president and general counsel of BIOCOM. Ferruolo believes his experience will enhance the law school's expanding relationship with the business community in San Diego and throughout the Southwest.

"Under the very capable leadership of Dean Kevin Cole, the USD School of Law has made significant strides in recent years in seeking to prepare its students to serve the legal needs of the tech and life science industries," Ferruolo said. He cited recent faculty hiring in patent and business law and the school's new Corporate Counsel Internship Program. He also pointed to the school's environmental and energy law program, with a focus on climate issues, and the school's Technology Entrepreneurship Law Clinic, which pairs students with established local practitioners to help start-ups with corporate, intellectual property and employment legal needs. The Clinic is a collaboration with CONNECT, widely regarded as the world's most successful regional program linking inventors and entrepreneurs with the resources they need for commercialization of products. Ferruolo has been active in CONNECT since the mid 1990s.

Ferruolo believes that the strength of USD's faculty and curriculum across a range of fields, including public law and legal theory, positions the school well to prepare graduates to meet the evolving challenges of legal practice. "I strongly believe that legal education must combine academic rigor and critical thinking along with practical professional training. Our goal has to be to produce lawyers who understand the law in its most complete sense, who are inspired to use that legal understanding to serve the public interest, broadly defined and in whatever role best suits them, and who will have successful and satisfying careers as lawyers."

Prior to joining Goodwin Procter in 2007, Ferruolo was a partner and co-chair of the Corporate/VLG Practice Group at Heller Ehrman LLP in its Palo Alto and San Diego offices. At Heller Ehrman, he also served terms on the firm's Policy Committee and Compensation Committee and served as the Co-Chair of the Life Sciences Practice Group.

Ferruolo is a 1971 graduate of the College of Social Studies at Wesleyan University. Upon graduation from Stanford Law School, Ferruolo clerked for the Honorable Bruce M. Selya of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit. He has been a member of the Board of Directors of the San Diego Opera since 2007.

Ferruolo succeeds Kevin Cole, who is currently completing his sixth year as dean and tenth year as an administrator at the school. Cole, who has been on the faculty since 1987, will return to the classroom and teach in the areas of criminal law and procedure, evidence and professional ethics. He announced his plans to step down as dean in late spring 2010 to permit the school sufficient time to conduct its national search for his replacement.

To schedule an interview with Dean Ferruolo, please e-mail Ashley Vitale or call (619) 260-4097.

About the University of San Diego School of Law

The University of San Diego School of Law is a center of academic excellence focused on preparing its students for legal practice in the new century. One of the most selective law schools in the country, the School of Law’s nationally recognized faculty create a demanding, yet welcoming environment that emphasizes individualized education. USD law school graduates consistently score higher than the state average on the California Bar Exam and go on to practice law throughout the country and abroad, forming an influential network of alumni. USD School of Law is one of only 81 law schools in the country to have a chapter of the Order of the Coif, the most distinguished rank of American law schools. The school is accredited by the American Bar Association and is a member of the Association of American Law Schools. Founded in 1954, the law school is part of the University of San Diego, a private, nonprofit, independent, Roman Catholic university chartered in 1949.