Law Schools

Northwestern Law Prof Sues School Over Subpar Salary

First rule of keeping a tax professor on staff -- don't play with their money.

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Northwestern University, ChicagoNorthwestern sits comfortably in the T14 when it comes to prestige and academic excellence. But how does it rank with its staff? Philip Postlewaite is suing the school after working there for 42 years, alleging age discrimination. His ledger shows that the school’s appreciation isn’t matching up with its compensation — and he thinks his age has something to do with it. From Reuters:

A longtime Northwestern law professor has sued the university for age discrimination, alleging his salary is lower than faculty colleagues with significantly fewer years of teaching experience.

Philip Postlewaite, 78, filed his lawsuit in a Chicago federal court on Tuesday, claiming that he has been awarded “substantially” lower increases to his base pay than have less experienced faculty colleagues since 2013 when he declined a buyout offer.

Postlewaite said in his complaint that his base salary this year was $7,000 below the law school’s median of $289,224 and $55,000 below the top 25% of salaries, which was $337,256. Those figures were obtained from Northwestern, the complaint said.

Leave it to a tax professor to know when something isn’t adding up!

His complaint alleges that the school is prioritizing younger professors rather than rewarding dedicated professors who have stayed with the school. Besides this, both Northwestern and Postlewaite have kept their case commentary close to their chests.

Northwestern Law Professor Sues School, Claims Age Discrimination [Reuters]

Chris Williams became a social media manager and assistant editor for Above the Law in June 2021. Prior to joining the staff, he moonlighted as a minor Memelord™ in the Facebook group Law School Memes for Edgy T14s.  He endured Missouri long enough to graduate from Washington University in St. Louis School of Law. He is a former boatbuilder who cannot swim, a published author on critical race theory, philosophy, and humor, and has a love for cycling that occasionally annoys his peers. You can reach him by email at cwilliams@abovethelaw.com and by tweet at @WritesForRent.

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