By Jerry Crimmins
Law Bulletin staff writer
It has glass walls on three sides, and when the sun comes out, ''it's glorious in here,'' said one admirer the new ceremonial courtroom at Loyola University Chicago School of Law.
The south windows look on Holy Name Cathedral. To the east along Chicago Avenue, you can peek at Lake Michigan, between the tall buildings. To the west is the city.
Giant blinds roll up and down electrically to control sunlight.
At the north end of this grand room is the professor's lectern. Flanking the lectern are large screens for showing computer projections, videos or movies.
Behind the lectern is a 10-by-16 whiteboard, divided into four panels that slide into closets when not needed.
And when the panels are stowed, the judges' bench appears.
The bench, which can seat up to five judges, is flanked by a witness box and a clerk's box.
The judges have at their fingertips the same controls as the lecturer for the twin screens at the front of the room and the twin projectors at the rear.
This state-of-the-art courtroom, two-stories tall and trimmed in cherry wood, opened Jan. 12 for the start of the new semester.
It's located on the 10th and 11th floors of the law school, 25 E. Pearson St.
Associate Dean James J. Faught, who heads the Facilities Committee, said the courtroom - ''glorious'' when sunlit - cost about $750,000.
Loyola made the room two-stories tall so the seats could rise gradually on four tiers, like a theater, Faught said.
The room seats 168 people at fixed desks that run the width, each featuring an outlet for a laptop computer. Also inset in the desks are microphones to allow the students to be heard by the professor and each other. The 70 microphones are placed every two or three seats.
''The courtroom is designed to be the center of law school activities, not only for the training of advocates but also to host the many law programs, conferences and events that occur at the school,'' Loyola said in a statement.
Faught said one of the many features of the courtroom is that the lectern, although it also contains a computer and audiovisual controls, can be moved to several places and still function.
For a class or assembly, the lectern faces the audience. For a trial, it can be rolled into the well of the court and turned to face the bench. For an appellate-type proceeding, it can be moved closer to the bench.
About 150 students and faculty watched the inauguration of President Barack Obama in this room.
A typical class held here, for instance first-year criminal law or first-year constitutional law or federal tax law, has about 70 students, Faught said.
To plan the new room, Faught said he and Loyola officials looked at courtrooms in Chicago law schools as well as at Seattle University School of Law, University of Washington School of Law, University of Denver College of Law and the University of Colorado Law School.
''I'm biased,'' he said regarding Loyola's. ''I think this is the best in the business.''
The courtroom was designed by Thomas Sheehy and Robert J. Hammer of Baranski, Hammer, Moretta & Sheehy Architects and Planners. It was built by b. Stromberg Construction Company Inc.