CU Law Profiles
Faculty Profile

Jane Thompson

CU Law Library, Faculty Services

You may also visit my faculty home page.

Hometown

Excelsior Springs, Missouri (near Kansas City)

Hobbies, Sports, or Extracurricular Passions

Movies, contemporary art, music (rock, blues, classical), theater

Favorite Book

The House of Mirth by Edith Wharton; A Perfect Spy by John LeCarre; Rabbit, Run by John Updike; The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien

Favorite Movie

Lawrence of Arabia, Chinatown, Vertigo, The Third Man, Dr. Strangelove, Manhattan, The Conversation, The Graduate, It?s a Mad Mad Mad Mad World, The Player, Dark City, Mulholland Drive, Some Like It Hot, The Searchers, Reds, Nosferatu, Modern Times, The General, Blade Runner, Bullitt, The Hustler, Apocalypse Now, Mary Poppins, 8 ½, The Passion of Joan of Arc, 2001: A Space Odyssey, The Apartment, Rear Window, This is Spinal Tap, Metropolis, The Last Waltz, Stop Making Sense, Network, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, To Kill a Mockingbird, The Ice Storm, The House of Mirth, The Wizard of Oz, Goldfinger, The Big Lebowski, Zero Effect, Fanny and Alexander, Ben-Hur, The Seven Samurai, Nashville

What were you doing before you came to the University of Colorado Law School?

I worked as a law librarian for Denver District Court and DU Law Library, and then as a transactional attorney.

What is one interesting, fun, or offbeat thing you have done in your lifetime?

I acted in community and high school theater and took a college course in oral interpretation. Favorite productions: Alice in Wonderland, Up the Down Staircase, A Thousand Clowns, I Never Saw Another Butterfly, and Barefoot in the Park.

What do you consider to be one of your biggest accomplishments?

Becoming a Westerner. I moved to Colorado from Missouri in 1977 and have never regretted it. I love the natural beauty and independent spirit of the West.

What do you like most about Boulder?

(About Denver, not Boulder) I love the cultural opportunities in Denver?a particularly lively small theater and arts community.

What do you like least about Boulder?

(About Denver, not Boulder) It seems like such a ?new? town architecturally compared to my Kansas City roots.

Favorite Place To Eat Out in Boulder

Trattoria Stella or Julia Blackbird?s New Mexican Café in northwest Denver, or The Imperial or New Saigon in central Denver

Why did you decide to become a professor?

I was a Poli Sci major in college and worked at the DU Law Library as a workstudy student while I was getting my M.A. in Librarianship at DU. I got hooked on the diversity of law librarianship and had fabulous mentors, Sue Weinstein and Barbara Bintliff.

What do you like most about teaching at CU?

I love higher education: so many interesting and committed people searching for new ideas and ways of approaching old issues. I have been at CU Law since 1987 and have seen many wonderful students, faculty, and staff come and go. I like that law is always evolving, always interesting. I love helping the faculty stay on top of new developments in the law, and I?m proud that I work at a law library that is open to the public.

What area of law are you most interested in and why?

I am a research librarian and lecture in legal research to law classes (e.g., legal writing, advanced legal research, international law, tax law) and research assistants. I like that I jump from topics like intellectual property to tax, health, international, or constitutional law all in the course of one day. When I started as a librarian in 1977, there were no online catalogs or databases, no Internet, and no wordprocessing programs or computers. The world of librarianship is completely different today from when I started out, and it?s really exciting.

Are you involved with any student organizations?

No, but I try to support their fundraising activities. Student organizations give law students an opportunity to connect with like-minded people who demonstrate their commitment to a cause or program. It makes law school more relevant and more fun.

What piece of advice would you give a student about surviving being a 1L?

Get enough sleep and exercise, and get into a study group to help you make sense of what you?re reading

What piece of advice would you give a student about getting the most out of law school?

Take advantage of special events and speakers hosted by the law school and student organizations

What piece of advice would you give a 1L or 2L as they choose their 2L and 3L courses?

Get a well-rounded legal education. Take a course that pushes the envelope for you personally, and get a practical grounding in a subject by taking a clinical course.

What are the top three reasons that you think a prospective student should choose CU Law?

1. quality and size of the faculty and student body

2. location in scenic Colorado and connection to a major research university

3. relative affordability

What piece of advice would you give a prospective student about choosing a law school?

Find a great public law school that caters to your passions and interests

Is there anything else you would like to add?

I love it here! They have to drag me away every night?.