ABA Journal:  Lawmakers who are gathering a “treasure trove” of data about law schools could use the information in congressional hearings, according to a published report.

According to the Wall Street Journal (sub. req.), an unnamed congressional staffer says senators are “strongly considering” hearings. “Congressional hearings, were they to happen, wouldn’t necessarily lead to legislation,” the story says. “But they would represent the most aggressive congressional move yet into the controversy over law-school transparency.”

Critics say law schools are misleading prospective students about how hard it is for law grads to find jobs. The ABA Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar, which accredits law schools, has also been targeted for publicizing statistics about the percentage of law grads that obtain jobs, without specifying whether the employment is full- or part-time, or even whether it’s practicing law. The section is planning to collect and publish more detailed information in the future.

ABA Journal:  Would-be law lawyers in Mississippi are bucking the trend and applying to law schools in about the same numbers as last year.

Nationwide, law school applications are down by about 10 percent, the Jackson Clarion Ledger reports, citing information from the Law School Admission Council. But law schools at the University of Mississippi and Mississippi College aren’t seeing any decline.

Application numbers at both schools are on track with last year, when applications increased despite the economic downturn.

ABA Journal:  The University of Illinois acknowledged Monday that its law school reported and/or published inaccurate admissions data in six of the last 10 years.

The university, in a prepared statement (PDF), said it had determined that Paul Pless, the law school’s former assistant dean for admissions and financial aid, who resigned last week, was solely responsible for the inaccuracies.

It also found that the law school lacked adequate controls to prevent, deter and detect such actions, a situation that it said it is taking steps to correct.

Tax Prof Blog:  The November 2011 issue of the National Jurist includes a ranking of the 60 Best Value Law Schools, based on tuition, average student indebtedness, two-year average bar passage rate, and two-year employment rate.  Here are the Top 20…