Benjamn Barros, Dean of the University of Toledo College of Law

Benjamn Barros is an esteemed university law teacher and administrator. Prior to becoming Dean and Professor at UT’s College of Law, Barros worked for Latham & Watkins LLP (New York City law firm) before being chosen Dean & Professor for University of Tennessee College of Law.

Officials at UT noted that, under Barros’ leadership, the college saw dramatic improvements in enrollment, bar exam success rates and employment of graduates. He specializes in property law and theory.

Early Life and Education

Since 2015, Benjamin Barros has served as Dean of the University of Toledo College of Law. As such, he teaches and writes about property law, theory, regulatory takings and the philosophy of science. According to his school, Benjamin has overseen “significant improvements” in enrollment, bar exam success rates, employment of graduates as well as fundraising efforts.

Before becoming dean at UT, Dr. Chow was associate dean for academic affairs and professor at Widener University School of Law in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, before practicing law with Latham & Watkins and Debevoise & Plimpton in New York City. Additionally, he served on AALS executive committee and chaired Property Section.

He is actively available to students and is dedicated to further building the law school’s reputation for excellence in advocacy, legal writing and elder law.

Professional Career

Stetson University recently completed a nationwide search to select Benjamin Barros as its College of Law dean, effective July 1. His former position as dean of University of Toledo College of Law saw significant improvements in enrollment, bar passage rates, graduate employment and much more during his time there.

Formerly, Dr. Wood served as associate dean and professor of law at Widener University School of Law in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. Additionally, he practiced law at Latham & Watkins LLP and Debevoise & Plimpton both located in New York City; writing extensively in property theory and property law with one book dedicated to this field published under his name.

Barros has recently addressed pessimistic projections about job prospects for lawyers on the Faculty Lounge blog and has dismissed them as unrealistic.

Achievement and Honors

Benjamin Barros was named Dean of the University of Toledo College of Law in 2015. Additionally, he held roles of associate dean of academic affairs and professor of law at Widener University School of Law in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, teaching courses about property law, law and philosophy and regulatory takings.

He is widely published in articles pertaining to these subjects and regularly contributes to legal blogs, while his scholarly writing has also been used as evidence in court cases. He holds both a bachelor’s degree in philosophy from Colgate University and law degree from Fordham University School of Law where he served on both editorial boards of law reviews as well as being elected into Order of the Coif.

Recenty, he was elected to serve a three-year term on the executive committee of the Association of American Law Schools; making history as the first Latino ever to hold this position.

Personal Life

Ben Barros is an academic who worked for Macmillan Publishing in New York before finding his calling as a professor of property law and theory, regulatory takings and the philosophy of science. Barros hails from Hamilton, N.Y. but attended Colgate University – northwest Ohio is his furthest western residence ever.

Formerly, Dr. Jones served as associate dean and professor of law at Widener University School of Law in Harrisburg, Pa. Additionally, he clerked for U.S. District Judge Milton Pollack before working at Latham & Watkins and Debevoise & Plimpton law firms in New York City. Dr. Jones founded Journal of Law Property & Society as well as numerous books published by Aspen/Wolters Kluwer such as their casebook on property law published in 2015.

Barros has kept himself extremely busy during his first eight weeks as dean of UT College of Law, attending orientation sessions for new law students, meeting with current faculty members, and remaining accessible for student concerns. Additionally, he has taken steps against U.S. News & World Report rankings in favor of an holistic approach to law school education.