“It is rare to build something that so far exceeds expectations, and this College of Law is one of them,” said Alumna Catherine C. Henson (J.D. ‘89).
Her remarks earned a round of applause at the Georgia State Law College of Law celebration honoring the ten years since the College of Law relocated from the Urban Life Building on Decatur Street to its permanent home at 85 Park Place. To mark the anniversary and celebrate with alumni, faculty, staff and friends of the community, Georgia State Law hosted “Built for Law: Celebrating 10 Years of Impact at 85 Park Place.”
During the celebration, law students offered tours of the building, students from the School of Music provided a jazz soundtrack to back the evening’s conversation, while alumni and faculty reconnected and invited its supporters to leave their own mark on the building for future generations.
Dean Courtney Anderson gives her remarks at the "Built for Law: Celebrating 10 Years of Impact at 85 Park Place" event.
In her remarks, current Dean Courtney Anderson emphasized how the building supports the law school’s mission of accessibility and engagement for the law community. She recalled the process of planning the facility to meet various needs and priorities of students, faculty and staff with purpose and intention, calling out one universal consensus among all: “We all agreed that the top floors with the best views should be given to our students,” she said.
From Vision to Reality
In fall 2015, law students, faculty and staff walked through the doors of the first dedicated building for Georgia State University College of Law — a 200,000-square-foot, LEED Gold-certified building at 85 Park Place in the heart of downtown Atlanta. The move signaled more than a mere change of address, it marked a permanent transformation in the way the College of Law faculty connected with its students and the way its community connected with the city.
When Georgia State Law was founded in 1982, it made its early home in the Urban Life Building, at the corner of Decatur St. and Piedmont Ave in downtown Atlanta. Though Urban Life was less than ten years old at the time, the space allocated for the College of Law was limited, low-ceilinged and, in many places, dimly lit. For three decades, students and faculty made the most of the space, but the college quickly outgrew its capacity.
Former Dean Steven Kaminshine recalled that by the early 2010s, every square inch of the Urban Life Building was spoken for. “We are literally out of space,” he told the SaportaReport in 2013 before the groundbreaking for the new building. Faculty offices were scarce, clinics were squeezed into makeshift spaces and the college strained to accommodate the growth in programs, faculty and students that its reputation demanded.
Ten years later, Kaminshine affirmed that the investment in the building is achieving its purpose. "This building continues to offer unmatched opportunities for growth and progress for this law school that we all dearly love,” he said at the “Built for Law,” celebration. “It has been gratifying to witness, over these past ten years, how much of our aspirations have come to fruition.”
Those efforts took shape through years of advocacy, generous funding and innovative design. In 2013, a $5 million gift from the Robert W. Woodruff Foundation combined with $58.8 million in state bonds pushed the project over the finish line. With design by SmithGroup and Stevens & Wilkinson, and construction led by McCarthy Building Companies, Georgia State Law emerged with not just a new structure, but into a new era.
A Beacon for Innovative Education
Lawyering Foundations Professor Pamela Councill tours the Law Library during the ten-year anniversary event.
The $82.5 million facility included lecture halls, classrooms, legal clinics, conference rooms, a café, and a 230-seat auditorium that doubles as a ceremonial courtroom. The Law Library, spread across the top two floors, and it was intentionally designed as the intellectual and social heart of the school. Atop the building, SSOE and SmithGroup described it as “a lit beacon in the Atlanta setting,” and the library’s flexible layouts, outdoor terraces, and formal reading rooms foster both individual study and collaboration.
This intentional design makes the student experience unforgettable.
Room to Grow
The migration to 85 Park Place did more than provide a little bit of elbow room. With new space for clinics, the college broadened its outreach to underserved Georgians in its commitment to access to justice. Larger, better-equipped classrooms allowed for flexible modality in teaching, and faculty offices embedded on teaching floors created greater accessibility between professors and students.
Equally critical to the college’s mission is its ability to open its doors to the community. The Marjorie & Ralph Knowles Conference Center, named for Georgia State Law’s Dean Emerita, the first female dean of a Georgia law school and her husband, allows the college to host distinguished guests and offer services to state and federal officials. Through these facilities, students are afforded front-row access to the inner workings of the justice system, the advocacy of the legislative process and top legal scholars.
Dean Courtney Anderson welcomed Dean Emeritus Steven Kaminshine and Alumna Catherine C. Henson (J.D. '89) as fellow speakers at the ten-year anniversary event.
The building also houses a state-of-the-art International Arbitration Center, a suite of legal clinics that provide pro bono services to the community and central gathering spaces that encourage interaction between students, faculty and visiting attorneys. A three-level open atrium, named for Alumna Catherine C. Henson (J.D. ’89) and teeming with natural light from a façade of soaring windows, connects the building’s classroom spaces while offering views of Woodruff Park and downtown Atlanta.
"Even though 85 Park Place opened after I graduated, I’ve loved watching how it’s become such a vibrant home for Georgia State Law students,” said Alumna Corrie Thrasher (J.D. ’17) on LinkedIn. “Hearing how later classes have enjoyed the building and the school makes me so proud to be part of this community and excited for the foundation it’s giving to future generations of lawyers.”
Looking Ahead: The Next Ten Years
As the Georgia State Law community celebrates this milestone achievement, the focus shifts to what the next ten years will bring.