The first legal institution in America, the Litchfield Law School, opened informally in 1773. Tappy Reeve opened a law firm, where he instructed his brother-in-law in legal practice. After proving his worth as a skilled teacher, a growing number of aspiring lawyers sought his tutoring. Reeve formalized his curriculum, moved out of his firm and in to a schoolhouse. The school closed its doors in 1833 after matriculating nearly 1,000 students.
In the early 1800s, Princeton University was known as the College of New Jersey. The prestigious school tried opening a law school in 1824, but before the law school could open its doors, two hired legal professors passed away and several more declined the position. Despite a lack of funding by the parent university, the school finally held its first courses, but could not sustain the financial burden. The law school officially closed in 1855.
Connecticut resident, journalist and recognized orator John Fowler opened the New York State and National Law School in 1849. Located in Saratoga County, the school was one of very few formal legal training institutions. Even though the school was admired for its quality (presidents Martin van Buren and John Tyler were featured speakers), the school closed, purportedly for financial reasons. Though its exact closure date is unknown, the State and National Law School some time in the 1860s.
The Woodrow Wilson School of Law opened in Atlanta, Ga., in the early 20th century. The school faced great opposition in its efforts to achieve American Bar Association accreditation. In 1981, the school discontinued its attempts and closed, leaving its lucrative assets to Georgia State University. Georgia State University was petitioning for its own law school, and remains accredited today.
Northrop University is primarily remembered as as first-class aviation training institution. Throughout the 20th century, the school introduced other programs, including a law school. In the 1990s, severe financial concerns and suspicion of unethical activity caused the school to initially cut back on most of its programs (including the law school), and eventually shut down even its popular aviation technical programs.
The National University system, established in 1971, is the second-largest higher education institution in California, and the 12th-largest in America. Located in San Diego, the school is currently gaining recognition for its commitment to diversity and military-friendly environment. Despite today's positive outlook, however, the school closed its law school in 2001 after facing millions of dollars of debt and several lawsuits.
The Barkley School of Law, located in Paducah, Ky., faced extreme financial hardships, causing an unavoidable closing in 2008. The school's financial situation was so dire that the law library couldn't afford the electric bill. Between lawsuits, rapidly dropping enrollment numbers and unsuccessful bids for ABA accreditation, the school discontinued its accreditation attempts and refunded tuition fees to its students, amounting to roughly $250,000.
The New College School of California finally shut down in 2008, but not until after it abruptly ceased paying professors (who taught despite the lack of pay). The school faced immense financial hardships and declining enrollment from which it simply could not recover. The Western Association of Schools and Colleges placed the law school on probation before its staff valiantly tried --- without a paycheck --- but failed to recover.