#103 The Law Librarian Redesigning Legal Education From the Inside

Kenton Brice sits at the center of what he calls "a massive Venn diagram"—law libraries, legal technology, higher education, and the practicing bar—and from that unique vantage point, he sees something most people miss: law schools have zero incentive to change. With three powerful forces keeping the status quo locked in place (U.S. News rankings, ABA accreditation, and unlimited student loans), traditional legal education persists even as the profession transforms around it.

In this episode of Lawyers Who Learn, host David Schnurman explores Kenton's vision for reimagining legal education at the University of Oklahoma College of Law, where he directs the law library and runs the Digital Initiative—a 12-year experiment in building technology competencies outside the required curriculum. Through Tuesday and Thursday lunch-and-learns, conference trips, and hands-on workshops, Kenton prepares students for a profession where managed service organizations are disrupting traditional firm structures and AI is forcing a complete rethinking of legal service delivery.

The conversation moves from practical questions about preserving legal materials in a digital age to provocative ideas about trashing the bar exam entirely. His blueprint for building a law school from scratch prioritizes design-oriented curiosity over doctrinal mastery, AI-infused hybrid learning over traditional lectures, and two years of intensive study over three years of diminishing returns.

But Kenton's real passion emerges in his vision for the "holistic lawyer." Beyond competencies and technology, he wants lawyers who see themselves as protectors of democracy, not just service providers. When 78% of people can't access the civil justice system and a single mother facing eviction can't find representation, Kenton asks the fundamental question: can we make money and serve people at the same time? His answer, drawn from his men's reading group discussions of Man's Search for Meaning and his weekend woodworking projects, is an emphatic yes—if we're willing to reimagine the profession entirely.