Raising the Bar for the School of Law

Brian Shannon teaches law. He makes sure citizens know the law. He even suggests improvements for the law.

Shannon enjoys teaching because he is impressed with the work ethic of students at the Texas Tech.

“I try to teach students how to be prepared to practice law with honor and integrity,” Shannon said. “Our students, especially the first-year students who come from all different backgrounds, come in excited and eager to learn. They work so hard. That always impresses me.”

Recently having finished six years of service as the associate dean for academic affairs of the School of Law, Shannon is also the president-elect of the Lubbock County Bar Association, which assists with the local justice system and helps citizens know their legal rights.

Being involved with the bar association allows Shannon to keep in contact with many of his former students and strengthen the connection between practicing lawyers, the Lubbock court system, and the School of Law.

“We are pleased that the School of Law has had such a great relationship with our local attorneys and courts, and I’m honored to continue that relationship,” Shannon said.

Shannon is also heavily involved in organizations dealing with law as it relates to people with disabilities. He serves on the Texas Governor’s Committee on People with Disabilities and is the board chair for the Lubbock Regional Mental Health Mental Retardation Center. He regularly attends conferences as far away as Italy to speak about how people with mental illness charged with non-violent crimes could be legally diverted from the criminal justice system and into treatment centers. He is the author of multiple publications and co-authored a book entitled “Texas Criminal Procedure and The Offender with Mental Illness: An Analysis and Guide” with Daniel Benson, professor of law at Texas Tech. Shannon and Benson are hard at work on a new edition of that book, which is being funded through a grant from the Texas Bar Foundation.

“I’m in a position to serve others,” Shannon said. “That’s the nice thing about being a professor. We’re expected to teach and research, but we’re also expected to engage in service for the community. It’s a great way to combine all of my interests.”

While Shannon is either teaching or serving the law community, he always follows his words of wisdom to students in his classes.

“We’ll work hard, but we’ll have fun while we do it,” he said.

Story produced by the Office of Communications and Marketing, (806) 742-2136.