The Dean Search Committee at the St. Thomas School of Law has selected four candidates for the St. Thomas School of Law dean. Last year’s dean, Thomas Mengler, stepped down after 10 years at the helm; he will become the president of St. Mary’s University in San Antonio.

Each candidate will give a presentation in the Schulze Hall Auditorium on the St. Thomas Minneapolis campus. The candidates come from various universities across the United States.

Patrick Borchers, vice president for academic affairs and professor of law at Creighton University, will present at 5 p.m., Sept. 10. Borchers served as the School of Law dean for eight years at Creighton University and is an expert on conflict of laws. During his time at Creighton, there was an increase in fundraising and student scholarships.

David Caudill, professor of law at Villanova University and the first Arthur M. Goldberg Family Chair, will present at 5 p.m., Sept. 13. Caudill was a professor at the Washington and Lee Law School for 16 years. Professor Caudill’s focuses are on law and science studies, law and literature, and sports and entertainment law.

Ruth Okediji, William L. Prosser professor of law at the University of Minnesota, will present at 5 p.m., Sept. 20. Okediji is a leader on international intellectual property law, which deals with patents and copyrights and is recognized worldwide as one of the foremost experts on international intellectual property law and international economic regulation. She is the author of five books and has been a part of task forces on five continents.

Robert Vischer, associate dean for academic affairs and professor of law at St. Thomas School of Law will present at 5 p.m., Sept. 24. Prior to St. Thomas, Vischer was an Assistant Professor of Law at St. John’s University Law School (NY), a fellow at St. John’s Vincentian Center for Church and Society, and visiting research scholar at Blackfriars Hall and Oxford University. His focuses are on the conscience, religious liberty and the public sphere.

Check TommieMedia for more coverage of the St. Thomas School of Law dean decision.

Laura Landvik can be reached at land7854@stthomas.edu.