August 19, 2005
Student Parking Lawsuit Dismissed; Law School Pleased With Settlement
Dean Rudolph C. Hasl has announced that the law school has reached a favorable resolution of a lawsuit filed last September by a neighbor concerned about students parking on nearby streets.
The law school and the neighbor reached an amicable settlement agreement this week that calls for the school to provide enrollment and parking information to the neighbor each academic semester or term for the next two years. In return, the neighbor has dismissed the lawsuit, with prejudice.
“It could not have been a more favorable resolution,” according to Hasl, whose appointment as dean of the law school began on July 1. “The settlement calls for us to provide our neighbor with information about parking and enrollments.”
This is the second positive outcome for the law school this year regarding students parking on public streets adjacent to the law school. In February, some neighbors asked the City of San Diego to revoke the law school’s conditional use permit because of parking concerns, but the hearing officer found that the school was in full compliance with all conditions of the permit. The permit was amended, however, to tie enrollment to the amount of off-street parking to be provided by the law school, starting with the fall semester in 2006.
“We now look forward to continuing our efforts to build a positive relationship with our neighbors and the community and to help them realize what a valuable asset Thomas Jefferson School of Law is to the community,” said Hasl. “We also will continue to remind our students and staff to be courteous of our neighbors by using our off-street parking options whenever possible.” In addition to the parking spaces on its own property, the law school has contracted for additional off-street parking in the Old Town area.
Thomas Jefferson School of Law, an American Bar Association accredited school, has about 800 students registered for the fall 2005 semester. Many of the law school’s more than 5,000 alumni live and work in San Diego, including District Attorney Bonnie Dumanis and several Superior Court judges.