Dean Johnson Ranks No. 1 Among Nation's Most-Cited Immigration Law Scholars

Dean Kevin R. Johnson has been recognized as the most-cited immigration law scholar in the United States, according to University of Chicago Law School Professor Brian Leiter’s scholar rankings in that area of law, released Oct. 28.

The rankings are based on number of citations to tenured faculty scholarship in law journals from 2016-2020. Leiter also recognized Professor Gabriel “Jack” Chin among highly cited scholars who work partly in immigration law.

Earlier this week, Leiter included Johnson and Chin on his list of highly cited scholars who work partly in critical theories of law. In September, Leiter ranked Professor William S. Dodge No. 15 among most-cited international law and security scholars and recognized Chin among highly cited scholars who work partly in criminal law and procedure.

In August, UC Davis Law’s faculty placed 22nd on the Leiter list of “Top 50 Law Faculties in Scholarly Impact, 2021” -- up a spot since 2018, the last time rankings were compiled.

Kevin R. Johnson is the law school’s dean, Mabie-Apallas Professor of Public Interest Law and professor of Chicana/o studies at UC Davis. He is an internationally recognized scholar in the fields of immigration law and policy, refugee law, and civil rights.