The Charleston School of Law, the nation’s only unaffiliated for-profit law school, has taken a big step forward in transforming into a nonprofit institution.
The school is required to get permission from the American Bar Association’s (ABA) Council on Legal Education and Admission to the Bar before it can make any “substantive change,” which includes a change of control or ownership, according to a press release.
J. Edward Bell III, the law school’s president, this week announced the long-sought council’s long-sought permission, which is termed “acquiescence” in legal jargon, for Charleston’s ABA-accredited school to convert to nonprofit status. Bell also is a co-owner of the Charleston City Paper.
“Converting our school to a nonprofit has been a key goal of mine since I became president in 2015,” Bell said. “I am thrilled that the ABA has acquiesced in the conversion and grateful to everyone at the law school who worked hard on our application.
“Converting to nonprofit status is an instrumental step towards our goal of establishing a permanent home on the Charleston peninsula, which will be for the continued betterment of the community we serve.”
Two more approvals required
Getting permission from the ABA was a huge step forward for the law school to become a nonprofit. Next, it will now file an application for a new license with the S.C. Commission on Higher Education (CHE), the state licensing authority. In addition, Charleston Law will begin the process of securing the approval of the U.S. Department of Education (USDE).
According to a release, conversion to nonprofit status will involve the current owners of the law school donating the school to an existing nonprofit, the Charleston School of Law Foundation, Inc.
“The owners have pledged not to take any money from the transaction. Instead, they will be donating the law school in its entirety to the Foundation,” the release said.
The school officially filed an application in October 2023 with the ABA Council seeking acquiescence in the conversion from for-profit to not-for-profit status. Larry Cunningham, the school’s provost and dean, testified before the council in February 2024 about the application.
“This is a significant moment in the history of our young law school,” Cunningham said. “Becoming a nonprofit is in the best interests of students, alumni, faculty, staff and the community.
“We are grateful to the ABA for giving careful consideration to our application. We look forward to showing other regulators, including the CHE and USDE, that conversion will only strengthen the law school.”
The Charleston School of Law, one of only two law schools in South Carolina, was founded in 2002 with its first classes held in the fall of 2004. Today with hundreds of graduates, it is nationally recognized for its student-centric culture and its commitment to teaching the practice of law as a profession with a goal of providing public service. Learn more: Charleston School of Law.
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