Plans for University of Delaware law school put on hold

University of Delaware officials have suspended plans to create an elite law school.

The university’s Board of Trustees made the decision Tuesday. The board had approved a law school feasibility study and business plan in December, and hoped to enroll a class of 200 students by 2015.

But university President Patrick Harker asked the board to terminate plans for the law school because he said fundraising needs for the project would be too monumental right now.

Based on the four-month analysis, school officials determined the need for a law school was there, but the money was not.

“Our feasibility study projections show continued growth in the number of students bound for law school and growth in the number of legal-sector jobs,” said university spokesperson Meredith Chapman. “However, current financial realities and assumptions led us to terminate further active consideration of this initiative.”

The school already has several large initiatives underway, including many building projects and a plan to transform the former Newark Chrysler plant into a science and technology campus.