Concord Law School of Kaplan University, the nation’s leading online law school, celebrated the graduation of 57 students on Saturday at the Skirball Cultural Center in Los Angeles. The graduating class of engineers, doctors, patent agents, educators and other professionals included 37 graduates of the juris doctor program and 20 who earned an executive juris doctor degree. Degrees were conferred by Concord’s Dean Emeritus Barry Currier.

In a speech to the graduates Professor Steve Nickles, C.C. Hope Chair in Financial Services and Law at Wake Forest University, said: “You are the right people at the right time to lead and take full advantage of the revolution in law.” He went on to cite other experts who, like he, are predicting a need for more legal hybrid lawyers with multidisciplinary backgrounds, entrepreneurial instincts, and technological savvy that may eventually displace traditional lawyers. Nickles pointed out that we now have in place the technological infrastructure to revolutionize access to legal information and vastly facilitate legal services for consumers.

“Steve Nickles has a passion for teaching, has long advocated for the use of technology in law school programs, and is one of this country’s most outstanding business and commercial law academicians. We were thrilled to have him as our graduation speaker,” Currier said. “Steve is also involved in Concord’s newly launched online Small Business Practice LL.M. program, the first-of-its-kind focused on the challenges of start-up enterprises and small businesses, which we believe responds to a real need in the profession.”

About Concord Law School

Concord Law School was founded in 1998 and today has 1,500 students across the country and around the world. Since Concord’s first graduating class in November 2002, more than 1,200 students have completed the JD and EJD programs. The formal merger of Concord into Kaplan University in the fall of 2007 made Concord the first online law school to be part of a regionally accredited institution of higher education. Kaplan University is accredited by The Higher Learning Commission (www.ncahlc.org) and a member of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools. Concord is also accredited by the Accrediting Commission of the Distance Education and Training Council, a nationally recognized accrediting agency. Additionally, Concord is an institutional member of the Council for Higher Education Accreditation and the International Association of Law Schools.

Concord Law School of Kaplan University is part of Kaplan Higher Education, which serves more than 119,000 students through more than 70 campus-based schools across the United States and abroad. Kaplan Higher Education schools offer a spectrum of academic opportunities, from certificates and diplomas to graduate and professional degrees. Kaplan Higher Education is part of Kaplan, Inc., a leading international provider of educational and career services for individuals, schools and businesses. Kaplan, Inc. is a subsidiary of The Washington Post Company (NYSE: WPO), and its largest and fastest-growing division. For more information, visit info.concordlawschool.edu.

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