Richard Morgan has been the dean of UNLV's William S. Boyd School of Law since its creation. He said Monday he plans to retire next year after a decade of leading the school. Photo by Christine H. Wetzel.

The man who has been dean of the William S. Boyd School of Law at UNLV since its inception announced Monday that he would retire next year after a decade at the helm.

Richard Morgan, who will turn 62 when he retires June 30, is largely credited for the school's successes, including being ranked in the top 100 law schools in the nation in 2005 by U.S. News & World Report.

"Of the 180 deans across the country, I know probably 100 of them. I think Dick is as good a dean as I've seen," Nevada System of Higher Education Jim Rogers said.

Morgan said he planned to spend 10 years overseeing the school when he was hired in 1997 and plans to fulfill that agreement.

"I've been a law school dean for 20 years, believe it or not, which is quite unusual," Morgan said Monday. He was a law school dean at Arizona State University and the University of Wyoming before joining the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.

Morgan has three grandchildren he plans to spend more time with. He said he wants to pursue some of his hobbies, including skiing, and is considering taking a part-time job in the private sector.

"I view it as a very positive development," Morgan said. "For the law school, I think that it's a positive thing as well. I think getting some new energy and new leadership is a good thing."

University officials and those in the community had nothing but kind words for Morgan.

"He personifies the finest ingredients that an attorney and instructor in law should have," UNLV adjunct professor and attorney Bob Faiss said.

"He is just the best, and I think his deanship has been superb," former UNLV President Carol Harter said.

Much of Morgan's success has been attributed to his aggressiveness in attracting faculty.

"I don't think he's allowed in Arizona, Florida or Missouri, for raiding faculty there. We joke about that," Harter said.

"He put that faculty together pretty much single-handedly," Rogers said. "What he's done is be able to build as good a faculty as there is."

The law school was ranked 90th in the country last year, according to U.S. News & World Report, seven years after the school started accepting students. But it fell out of the magazine's rankings this year.

The school was accredited by the American Bar Association on its first attempt.

"I think he's just done a marvelous, marvelous job," said U.S. District Court Chief Judge Philip Pro, who testified before the American Bar Association on the school's behalf in 2000. Pro said Morgan had such a strong showing in front of lawyers and deans during the two hearings that "half of them wanted to go work for him right away."

One of the public benefits of the school is that has provided "a scholarly analysis of Nevada legal issues that were lacking before," Pro said.

The school also has developed a substantial legal library, Pro said.

Morgan does not see himself as the only reason the school has been successful, and he cites millions of dollars in contributions the school has received from Rogers, William Boyd, the gaming executive who is the school's namesake, and Michael Saltman, a local developer, among others.

Officials agree that UNLV President David Ashley will be able to attract a pool of worthy replacements for Morgan when Ashley starts a search committee.

"It's going to be a good job for any dean who wants to come in," Rogers said.

Morgan said that when he started, he hoped to establish a "really good law school."

"I can honestly say I accomplished the goals with a hell of a lot of help from other people."