New York, United States, Jan. 17, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Brooklyn Law School, in collaboration with Deloitte Risk & Financial Advisory (Deloitte*) and John P. Oswald ’84, chairman and CEO of Capital Trust Group and a member of the Law School’s Board of Trustees, held its 11th annual “Business Boot Camp,” in January during the 2023-2024 winter break. The four-day intensive course is designed to help law students enhance their business and financial skills in sessions developed and taught by top business and legal industry professionals, as well as the Law School’s corporate and business law faculty and graduates.
“Law schools are well known for training students to think like lawyers, but there are times when practicing lawyers need to reach outside the traditional legal toolkit and think like a businessperson, and that is where our Business Boot Camp comes in,” said Boot Camp co-founder Michael Gerber, Brooklyn Law School Professor of Law and internationally recognized expert in bankruptcy law. “The intensive course introduces students – even those who have never studied business, finance, or economics – to the vocabulary and frameworks they can use to help clients. Additionally, the program offers key insight into topics that are particularly relevant to today’s global business leaders, such as Generative AI and fintech concepts, including blockchain and digital assets.”
Designed to complement and enhance Brooklyn Law School’s corporate, commercial, and tax law courses, the Business Boot Camp syllabus is modeled in-part on training that Deloitte has provided to first-year associates at major law firms. The curriculum traces the evolution of a hypothetical business from its founding and initial capitalization to its initial public offering and acquisition of another company. The course is designed to help students better understand and support clients’ business objectives before they launch their legal careers. In addition to sessions focused on developing business plans, budgeting, financing, accounting, valuation, and cryptocurrency, Business Boot Camp also covers softer skill development inclusive of developing client and industry relationships, as well as building leadership capabilities.
“The Business Boot Camp is unique in its combination of the insights of seasoned legal academics with leading practitioners at the frontiers of business innovation. It helps students build fundamental knowledge and skills to evaluate new business opportunities, but also, crucially, the entrepreneurial orientation they need to understand and advance a client’s business objectives. We see the long-standing Business Boot Camp offered by Brooklyn Law School and Deloitte as a model for future collaboration in legal education,” said David Meyer President, Joseph Crea Dean, and Professor of Law at Brooklyn Law School.
Along with Oswald ’84 and Gerber, other Brooklyn Law School Boot Camp presenters included program co-founders Frederick Curry III ’03, Deloitte Risk & Financial Advisory Anti-Money-Laundering and Sanctions Client Leader and Principal, Deloitte Transactions and Business Analytics LLP; and, Anthony Campanelli, a Deloitte Risk & Financial Advisory Partner in the Forensic & Financial Crime practice, Deloitte Financial Advisory Services LLP.
“The Boot Camp program explores the evolving role of an attorney and the skills critical for success, including those of financial acumen, technology, leadership, and networking. We hope that the students who’ve attended these sessions over the past 11 years have felt more prepared to face ongoing developments in areas like globalization, artificial intelligence, legal technology and regulatory compliance,” said Campanelli.
During the January 2024 Business Boot Camp, more than 80 Brooklyn Law School alumni, including partners in major law firms, CEOs, and general counsels of established companies and startups, shared their experiences as successful practitioners and entrepreneurs during interactive breakout sessions. The January 2024 Boot Camp concluded with a Q&A session with David Barse ’87, founder and CEO of XOUT Capital and DMB Holdings.
Since its launch in 2013, hundreds of students have completed Brooklyn Law School’s Business Boot Camp, for which they earn one credit.
About Brooklyn Law School
Founded in 1901, Brooklyn Law School offers a vibrant intellectual community emphasizing teaching excellence, leading-edge scholarship, and an innovative academic program designed to prepare students for public service, business, and private practice, nationwide and across the globe. It is an independent institution, unaffiliated with any university or college, and the only law school in Brooklyn. The Law School offers J.D. options that include a traditional 3-year program and an extended part-time 4-year program. Visit Brooklyn Law School at www.brooklaw.edu
*Please see www.deloitte.com/us/about for a detailed description of their legal structure.
- Brooklyn Law School’s 11th Annual Business Boot Camp