Dear LMU Community:
I am pleased to announce that Brietta Clark, J.D., will be the next Fritz B. Burns Dean of LMU Loyola Law School, where she has served as interim dean since July 16, 2023. Dean Clark is a respected and prominent legal educator who exemplifies the university’s mission. Her extensive academic leadership and teaching experience, coupled with her proven ability to build meaningful relationships among the various law school constituencies, make her the ideal candidate to lead the law school as it continues to enhance its visibility and advance its strategic priorities.
Dean Clark, the 19th dean of the law school, is the first woman and Black person to hold the position in the law school’s history. She is a nationally recognized expert in health law and bioethics, using her extensive experience to elevate the law school’s curriculum, guide students and alumni on their career paths, and influence the public discourse through her scholarship, public service, and media commentary. Dean Clark is LMU Loyola Law School’s J. Rex Dibble Fellow and one of five authors on the ninth edition of “Health Law: Cases, Materials, and Problems” (2022, West Academic Publishing), the leading health law casebook in American law schools. She is a sought-after speaker for nationwide conversations on health care regulation and reform, having provided community education on national health reform and health-related state initiatives and serving as a peer reviewer for esteemed publications, including the American Journal of Law and Medicine, the American Journal of Public Health, and the New England Journal of Medicine.
Since joining the law school faculty in 2001, Dean Clark has been instrumental in developing and implementing the law school’s strategic vision. She served in numerous leadership roles in addition to interim dean, including associate dean for faculty from 2015-2020. Dean Clark also served as the co-chair of the Law School Strategic Planning Committee and chaired the Tenure Review Committee and Tenure-Track Appointments Committee, helping to develop equitable practices in the recruitment and professional development of outstanding and diverse faculty. Demonstrating her commitment to increasing access to legal education and advancing our diversity, equity, and inclusion goals, in her six months as interim dean, she has already raised more than $6.3 million, including a $5 million gift to the Bill and Gail Robinson Scholarship Fund and a $740,000 gift to the Sharon Sanner Muir and Samuel J. Muir Endowed Scholarship.
Throughout her career, Dean Clark’s research and public service have focused on inequity in the U.S. health care delivery and financing system, especially its effects on vulnerable populations. She has written and provided testimony about the role that the law plays in shaping health care access and quality. She has also assisted legal organizations working to preserve access to essential health care services. Dean Clark currently serves as a member of the Children’s Hospital Los Angeles Foundation Board of Trustees and the Foundation Board’s Advocacy Committee.
Prior to joining the law school, Dean Clark practiced in the Los Angeles office of Sidley, Austin, Brown & Wood, specializing in health care transactions and regulatory compliance. She earned her B.A. from the University of Chicago and her J.D. from the USC Gould School of Law, where she was also a post-graduate research fellow.
I thank our search committee (listed below), co-chaired by Tina Choe, Dean of the Frank R. Seaver College of Science and Engineering, and Justin Levitt, Professor of Law and Gerald T. McLaughlin Fellow, for conducting a rigorous and comprehensive search that yielded a competitive and outstanding candidate pool. I also thank the broader LLS community, including faculty, staff, students, and alumni, for their valuable input and contributions during the search. Their professionalism and engagement provided me with invaluable insights during the decision-making process.
I am grateful that LMU Loyola Law School is under the direction of a leader as knowledgeable, talented, and creative as Brie. Beyond her professional qualifications, her abundant energy, empathy, and enthusiasm bring added intangible attributes to the dean’s office, and I look forward to a dynamic collaboration.
With enthusiasm and gratitude,
Thomas Poon, Ph.D.
Executive Vice President and Provost
Professor of Chemistry
Search Committee
- Dean, LMU Loyola Law School
Co-Chairs
- Tina Choe, Dean, LMU Frank R. Seaver College of Science and Engineering
- Justin Levitt, Professor of Law and Gerald T. McLaughlin Fellow
Members
- Elizabeth Bluestein, Associate Clinical Professor of Law and Executive Director, Loyola Social Justice Law Clinic
- Myla Bui, Professor of Marketing
- Aimee Dudovitz, Clinical Professor of Law
- George Fatheree, LMU Board of Trustees, Law School Liaison
- Jordan Golden, President, Day Student Bar Association
- Erin Hanson, Associate Vice President, Donor Relations and Stewardship
- Brian Kabateck, LMU Board of Trustees; Chair, LMU Loyola Law School Board of Directors
- Sascha Macias, President, Evening Student Bar Association
- Kaiponanea Matsumura, Professor of Law and William M. Rains Fellow
- Julia Mendoza, Associate Professor of Law
- Jannell Lundy Roberts, Associate Dean of Enrollment Management
- David Sapp, Vice Provost for Academic Affairs and Dean of Graduate Studies
- John Sebastian, Vice President for Mission and Ministry
Ex Officio
- Nancy Pluzdrak, Vice President for Human Resources
- Trevor Wiseman, Associate Vice President for Operations and Strategy