flexiblefullpage
billboard
interstitial1
catfish1
Currently Reading

First look: University of Utah's ‘teaching hospital for law’

First look: University of Utah's ‘teaching hospital for law’

University breaks ground on law school building designed to facilitate new approaches to legal education.


By BD+C Editors | June 7, 2013
The University of Utah broke ground today on its cutting-edge College of Law building, which will facilitate new approaches to legal education based on more hands-on learning and skills training.
 
“With this new building, the College of Law will advance its mission to establish a ‘teaching hospital for law’-- an innovative vision for the future of legal education,” said University of Utah President David W. Pershing. “Expanded and improved facilities will enable a variety of educational tracks aimed at improving the human condition, including global justice and the evolving field of biolaw.”
 
Designed by VCBO Architecture (architect of record) and SmithGroupJJR (design architect), the facility will feature a library integrated throughout the building, state-of-the-art training facilities, spaces for collaborative research, advanced but flexible learning technology, practice courtrooms and a top-floor conference center. By providing a wide array of flexible spaces for small group training, the building efficiently provides more space-per-student, bringing it in line with peer institutions.
 
 
 
All images © VCBO/SMITHGROUP JJR Architecture and the College of Law
 
 
 
“This building will fulfill the educational needs of tomorrow’s lawyers while serving the broader Utah legal community and the community at large,” said Bob Adler, interim dean of the S. J. Quinney College of Law. “We are committed to using the facility in ways that will better prepare skilled attorneys and problem-solving leaders.”
 
The College of Law faculty plans to use the new building to expand its already substantial commitment to community service and community-engaged learning. University of Utah law students provided almost 50,000 hours of volunteer pro bono and clinical service during the 2012-13 academic year. The new building will enable the school to continue this tradition by providing facilities for direct client interaction.
 
The new building is designed to achieve LEED platinum certification, the highest designation using Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design standards and will provide accessibility for a full range of disabilities. Located at the southwest corner of campus across from the Stadium TRAX station, the building will establish a welcoming gateway for visitors to the campus.
 
To date, the building has received generous support from the S.J. and Jessie E. Quinney Foundation, the University of Utah, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and the Alternative Visions Fund of the Chicago Community Trust as well as a growing number of law firms and individual donors.
 
 
 
The $4.5 million donation from the Alternative Visions Fund is dedicated specifically to taking the facility’s sustainable features to the next level. Among the attributes made possible through this donation are an innovative cooling system using groundwater from near the building site, recycling and reuse of building grey water to flush toilets and for other non-potable uses, on-site and off-site solar power generation, electric car charging stations and more.
 
Big-D Construction will begin work on the new, 155,000-square-foot building on June 17, and the building is expected to be ready for the 2015-16 academic year.
 
All plans courtesy VCBO Architecture

Related Stories

| Feb 23, 2011

Green building on the chopping block in House spending measure

Bryan Howard, Legislative Director of the U.S. Green Building Council, blogs about proposed GOP budget cuts that could impact green building in the commercial sector.

| Feb 23, 2011

Architecture Billings hold steady after two months of improving conditions

After showing positive momentum during the fourth quarter of 2010, the Architecture Billings Index (ABI) slipped almost four points in January. The January ABI score was 50.0, which is down from a reading of 53.9 the previous month, but still reflects stable demand for design services. Any score above 50 indicates an increase in billings.

| Feb 22, 2011

LEED Volume Program celebrates its 500th certified Pilot Project

More than 500 building projects have certified through the LEED Volume Program since the pilot launched in 2006, according to the U.S. Green Building Council. The LEED Volume Program streamlines the certification process for high-volume property owners and managers, from commercial real estate firms, national retailers and hospitality providers, to local, state and federal governments.

| Feb 22, 2011

HDR Architecture names four healthcare directors

Four senior professionals in HDR Architecture’s healthcare program have been named Healthcare directors.

| Feb 15, 2011

Iconic TWA terminal may reopen as a boutique hotel

The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey hopes to squeeze a hotel with about 150 rooms in the space between the old TWA terminal and the new JetBlue building. The old TWA terminal would serve as an entry to the hotel and hotel lobby, which would also contain restaurants and shops.

| Feb 15, 2011

New Orleans' rebuilt public housing architecture gets mixed reviews

The architecture of New Orleans’ new public housing is awash with optimism about how urban-design will improve residents' lives—but the changes are based on the idealism of an earlier era that’s being erased and revised.

| Feb 15, 2011

LAUSD commissions innovative prefab prototypes for future building

The LA Unified School District, under the leadership of a new facilities director, reversed course regarding prototypes for its new schools and engaged architects to create compelling kit-of-parts schemes that are largely prefabricated.

| Feb 15, 2011

New 2030 Challenge to include carbon footprint of building materials and products

Architecture 2030 has just broadened the scope of its 2030 Challenge, issuing an additional challenge regarding the climate impact of building products. The 2030 Challenge for Products aims to reduce the embodied carbon (meaning the carbon emissions equivalent) of building products 50% by 2030.

boombox1
boombox2
native1

More In Category

Great Solutions

41 Great Solutions for architects, engineers, and contractors

AI ChatBots, ambient computing, floating MRIs, low-carbon cement, sunshine on demand, next-generation top-down construction. These and 35 other innovations make up our 2024 Great Solutions Report, which highlights fresh ideas and innovations from leading architecture, engineering, and construction firms.




halfpage1

Most Popular Content

  1. 2021 Giants 400 Report
  2. Top 150 Architecture Firms for 2019
  3. 13 projects that represent the future of affordable housing
  4. Sagrada Familia completion date pushed back due to coronavirus
  5. Top 160 Architecture Firms 2021