The recent global recession, new technology and many other factors have changed the job market and work environments for attorneys. The pessimistic outlook on the value of the JD is reflected in a 43 percent decline in law school applicants since 2006. It is a moment of transformational change, calling for leadership as in many nonprofit, government and business communities.

The scholarly view of leadership—a social-influence process through which emergent coordination and change are constructed—recognizes this moment as an opportunity to assess and develop individuals and institutions alike. In law schools the focus should be on three things: Designing a lawyer-leader curriculum for each degree program; developing faculty members as leaders; and nurturing a collaborative school culture which emphasizes leadership.

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Engaging tenured and non-tenure-track law professors equally in this work is one effective way to promote trust, collaboration and innovation across faculty ranks. Schools may draw upon the work of Deborah Rhode (author of Lawyers as Leaders), two-time dean Jeswald Salacuse (author of Leading Leaders: How to Manage Smart, Talented, Rich, and Powerful People), John Heinz and others for insights that are specific to the legal community. Ultimately, however, schools and professional communities will be breaking new ground on our understanding and development of lawyer-leaders and law professor-leaders. They must therefore look for other relevant scholarly expertise.