In Thomas Mengler’s nine years as dean of the University of St. Thomas School of Law, Faculty has more than doubled, the student body has become increasingly national, and the School of Law has reached a fundraising total of $100 million.

Dean Mengler was instrumental in the School of Law receiving ABA accreditation in February 2006, the earliest possible time. He also managed the completion and opening of the 158,000 square-foot law building in downtown Minneapolis, and under his direction the building has become an important destination for the Twin Cities’ bench and bar.  Under Mengler's leadership, the outstanding faculty recently ranked 38th for scholarly impact.

Mengler became the second dean at the University of St. Thomas School of Law in June 2002. He joined St. Thomas after serving for nine years as dean of the University of Illinois College of Law. During Mengler’s tenure as dean of the University of Illinois College of Law, the law school was consistently ranked among the top 25 law schools in the nation.

Mengler’s scholarly interests are in the fields of civil procedure, federal courts jurisdiction, and complex litigation. He co-drafted the federal statute on supplemental jurisdiction, and his writings on this statute were recently cited in the U.S. Supreme Court decision, Exxon v. Allapattah Services.

A native of Chicago, Mengler received a B.A. in philosophy from Carleton College, and an M.A. in philosophy and a J.D. from the University of Texas at Austin. At the University of Texas School of Law, Mengler served as research and note editor of the Texas Law Review. In 1981, he clerked for Judge James Logan of the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. Following his clerkship, he worked as an associate for the Washington, D.C., firm of Arnold & Porter and later as an assistant attorney general for the state of Texas.