Cornell University Provost Don M. Randel announced April 9 that Lee E. Teitelbaum, an expert in family law who currently is the Alfred C. Emery Professor of Law at the University of Utah College of Law, has accepted Cornell's invitation to be the next dean of Cornell Law School. Teitelbaum, whose formal title at the Law School will be the Allan R. Tessler Dean, will assume his duties as the 14th dean of the Law School on July 1.

He will replace Charles Wolfram, who has been interim dean since July 1998. Wolfram plans to retire from the Law School after 18 years of service when he steps down from the deanship this summer.

"We are extremely pleased that Lee Teitelbaum will be joining us," said Cornell President Hunter Rawlings. "His combination of exceptional scholarship and leadership experience make him an exciting choice for us, and we have already heard a great deal of enthusiasm about his appointment. We look forward to having him at Cornell."

"Dean Teitelbaum's appointment will surely mark the beginning of a new and even more distinguished chapter in a distinguished history for the Law School," added Randel.

Teitelbaum graduated magna cum laude from Harvard College and is a 1966 graduate of Harvard Law School. He also received an LL.M from Northwestern University Law School in 1968. A prolific scholar, he has written four books and numerous articles on family law and related topics and currently is co-editing a collection of writings with the working title Family Law in Action.

At the University of Utah College of Law, he was dean (1990--98) and associate dean for academic affairs (1987--90), in addition to holding a tenured faculty position at the college for 14 years. He is a fellow of the American Bar Association, a board member of the Law and Society Association and currently serves on the Association of American Law Schools' executive committee.

Teitelbaum says of his new appointment: "I'm excited -- and flattered -- to have been selected as the Law School's next dean. It is a wonderful opportunity to take part in the development of one of the country's great law schools at one of its great universities."

"I couldn't be happier with the selection of Lee Teitelbaum as the next dean of our magnificent Law School," said Wolfram. "He brings a wealth of experience and fabulous credentials, and I can say without hesitation that he will arrive to a unanimously warm welcome here at the school. We extend a spirited Cornell greeting to Lee and Herta Teitelbaum as they make their transition to the East. They will be a wonderful addition to the Law School, Cornell and Ithaca communities."