A Notre Dame law professor has been named dean of the USC School of Law.

Walter F. "Jack" Pratt Jr., who also is a former executive associate dean of the University of Notre Dame Law School, will join the University July 1.

President Sorensen said Pratt's appointment comes at a critical time for USC's law school and will bring a renewed sense of energy and optimism to the law school and its building campaign.

"Jack Pratt has the character, the leadership skills, and the qualities to inspire confidence and optimism on the part of USC's faculty, staff, students, and alumni," Sorensen said. "He is a scholar in every sense of the word, and I am confident that he will be a strong leader and ambassador for USC's law school and its capital campaign for a new building."

Pratt joined the University of Notre Dame Law School faculty in 1986. During his tenure, he also was co-director of the Notre Dame London Law Centre and as associate dean for academic affairs. Before joining Notre Dame, Pratt was on the law faculty at Duke University.

A Jackson, Miss., native, Pratt earned his bachelor's degree magna cum laude in history from Vanderbilt University, his doctorate in politics from Oxford University, and his law degree from Yale University, where he was article and book review editor of the Yale Law Journal. After graduation, he clerked for Judge Charles Clark, U.S. Court of Appeals, Fifth Circuit, and for Chief Justice Warren Burger. He is a contributor to several texts on law and is the author of two books, including The Supreme Court Under Edward Douglass White, 1910-1921, published by USC Press in 1999. He is a Rhodes Scholar and a member of Phi Beta Kappa.

Mark Becker, USC provost and co-chair of the search committee for a law dean, commended the search committee members for working expeditiously and for their recommendation.

"The committee is to be commended for conducting this search in a timely manner and for demonstrating the highest levels of professionalism in every aspect of their work," Becker said. "The search for a dean can be arduous and requires a significant commitment on the part of search committee members. This committee worked diligently during a very busy time in the academic year, a true sign of their dedication to the law school and to the University. It is gratifying to see the hard work of the committee pay off with the recruitment of an outstanding candidate such as Professor Pratt."

Pratt will succeed Philip Lacy, who has served as interim dean since Jan. 1.

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