Kellye Testy

Kellye Testy was the 14th dean and the first woman to lead the University of Washington School of Law, a post she held from 2009-2017. She now serves as the president and CEO of the Law School Admissions Council (LSAC). Testy focuses her research and writing on contracts, corporate governance, business entities, leadership, and access to justice. She is known throughout academic and legal communities for her dedication to the rule of law and its commitment to justice and equality.

Named the nation’s second most influential leader in legal education in 2017 by the National Jurist, Testy served as the president of the American Association of Law Schools (AALS) in 2016; with her presidential theme “Why Law Matters,” focused on how the law plays a critical role in setting the foundation for justice and human prosperity. She also co-chaired the AALS Section for the Law School Dean and served on the Committee on Audit and Association Investment Policy, the AALS Executive Committee, and as a member of the 2009 Planning Committee for the Conference on Business Associations. In addition to her work with the AALS, Testy has served on the Board of Governors of the Society of American Law Teachers as well as several committees of the ABA Section on Legal Education.

Her numerous honors and awards include the President’s Award from the Washington Bar Association, the Washington State Trial Lawyers Public Justice Award, a Puget Sound Business Journal’s Woman of the Year award, and three Outstanding Teacher Awards. She has also received awards from Washington Women Lawyers and King County Women Lawyers.

Testy graduated summa cum laude from the Indiana University School of Law at Bloomington, where she was editor-in-chief of the Indiana Law Journal, John H. Edwards University Fellow, Chancellor’s Scholar, and member of the Order of the Coif. During law school, she worked for Kirkland & Ellis in Chicago, and after graduation, she clerked for Judge Jesse E. Eschbach, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit. At the end of her clerkship in 1992, she joined the Faculty of Seattle University Law School and became its dean in 2005.