National recognition honors educators, administrators, and researchers advancing the future of legal education

The National Law Review (NLR) and Wickard today announced the 2026 Top 50 Legal Innovators in Academia, a national recognition honoring the educators, administrators, researchers, and academic leaders shaping the future of legal education.

The 2026 class recognizes individuals developing innovative programs, conducting impactful research, modernizing curricula, launching new centers and initiatives, and preparing students for the evolving demands of the legal profession. Honorees span law schools and legal organizations across the country and reflect a broad range of contributions — from curricular and institutional innovation to scholarship, technology, and new models of professional training.

Selection Process

Honorees were chosen through an independent Selection Committee process. A total of 76 eligible nominees advanced to committee review, where each was evaluated on three equally weighted criteria — Innovation, Impact, and Overall Recommendation — on a five-point scale. Reviewer scores were aggregated to produce each nominee's final rating, and results were reviewed for conflicts, incomplete evaluations, and ties before the 50 honorees were finalized.

Ten Selection Committee members submitted final evaluations: Sara Miro, Neel U. Sukhatme, Andrew Woolf, Bridget Mary McCormack, Phil Saunders, Judge Joshua Deahl, Stephanie Goutos, Robert Ambrogi, Darby Dickerson, and Evan J. Shenkman.

As part of NLR's and Wickard's "Commitment to Integrity," there was no fee to submit a nomination, and selection was not tied to sponsorship, advertising, or any other paid or non-paid relationship with NLR or Wickard. Neither organization held voting or selection rights in the Committee's decision-making process, and NLR personnel, Wickard personnel, and Committee members were ineligible for recognition.

About the 2026 Honorees

The 50 honorees — presented alphabetically in the full announcement — include law school deans, professors, clinical directors, and legal-technology innovators recognized for work spanning AI and the law, legal writing and pedagogy, access to justice, legal research infrastructure, and interdisciplinary legal scholarship.

Read the full list of honorees and their achievements here: The 2026 Top 50 Legal Innovators in Academia