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Joan Ruhtenberg, ’80, clinical professor of law emerita at the IU Robert H. McKinney School of Law, died on March 4, 2022. A memorial service will take place April 29.

Professor Ruhtenberg directed IU McKinney’s legal writing program from 1981 until 2014.

An honors graduate of the Mississippi University for Women, Professor Ruhtenberg earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in English. She went on to study Latin languages and literature at the University of Colorado and took graduate studies in composition and rhetoric at the College of William and Mary, and in English at IUPUI. Along the way, she taught history, Latin, and English in Colorado and Virginia.

In a 2017 article for the McKinney Lawyer alumni magazine, Professor Ruhtenberg recalled that she “had been thinking about going to law school ever since high school. When I finally did it, I loved it.”

During law school, she served as an articles editor for the Indiana Law Review and was
a clerk-intern for the Honorable James E. Noland, United States District Judge for the Southern District of Indiana, and for the Honorable Webster L. Brewer of Marion County, Indiana, Superior Court.

Upon graduating magna cum laude from IU McKinney, Professor Ruhtenberg was hired by the law school as a legal writing instructor during the 1980-81 academic year. She was named director of the legal writing program the next year, and, under her leadership, the IU McKinney legal writing program was repeatedly recognized nationally for its excellence. In addition to teaching and directing the program, Professor Ruhtenberg also co-authored the second, third, fourth and fifth editions of A Practical Guide to Legal Writing & Legal Method.

“Professor Ruhtenberg’s legacy of excellence in teaching legal writing lives on in the law school legal communications program and in the many McKinney alumni who she taught and influenced,” said Karen E. Bravo, dean of the law school and the Gerald L. Bepko Professor of Law.

“Like me, many of our grads were fortunate to be taught by Joan Ruhtenberg and owe much to her gifted teaching and caring mentorship for our success in law school and professional careers,” said Cynthia Adams, vice dean and clinical professor of law. “A doyenne of legal writing and critical thinking, Joan was instrumental in developing our Legal Communication Analysis (LCA) program into the nationally ranked program it is today.”

James Dimitri, IU McKinney clinical professor of law and a member of the LCA faculty, noted that she was known as a colleague and mentor who cared deeply for her students. “Joan’s pivotal role in shaping her students into trusted practitioners cannot be overstated,” he said.

Clinical Professor of Law Joel Schumm was among Professor Ruhtenberg’s many students at IU McKinney. “Joan is a big reason why I’m teaching legal writing today,” he said. “I still have a binder of her handouts and hand-written comments—sometimes in red—on my papers. Her wisdom was timeless, and she generously mentored me and many others who served as tutors and later adjunct professors in a program that she directed and nurtured for decades.”

In gratitude and admiration for Professor Ruhtenberg and her impact on law school education and on his own career, IU McKinney Adjunct Professor Michael Mullett, ’82, and his wife, Patricia N. March, created the Joan M. Ruhtenberg Scholarship for Achievement in Life and Legal Writing, an endowed scholarship.

Now in its 24^th year, the scholarship is awarded to a student who demonstrates excellence in legal writing, qualifies for financial assistance, and who has overcome obstacles to be admitted to the law school. Nearly 30 IU McKinney Law students have received support from the scholarship.

Professor Ruhtenberg is survived by her children, Maria Ruhtenberg and Vess Ruhtenberg, and her grandchildren, Hannah, Jackson, and Berlin. A Celebration of Life will be held at the Gothic Chapel at Crown Hill Funeral Home & Cemetery at 11 a.m. on April 29. For more information, please visit https://www.dignitymemorial.com/obituaries/indianapolis-in/joan-ruhtenberg-10617064

Should you wish to make a gift in memory of Prof. Ruhtenberg, please give online here by clicking on the red Give Now button. Once there, go to the area with the pencil and type “Joan M. Ruhtenberg Scholarship for Achievement in Life and Legal Writing” and click on the + sign to add your gift to this scholarship. Please click next to complete your gift and follow the instructions. If you have questions, please contact Nan Edgerton, Assistant Dean for Development, at nanedge@iu.edu or 317-274-8147.