What happened
Case Western Reserve University School of Law has launched a Cybersecurity and Data Privacy specialization within its Compliance and Risk Management (CRM) Program, designed to prepare law students for the legal and regulatory challenges tied to digital risk, privacy, and security. The specialization expands the school’s CRM offerings, complementing tracks in healthcare, business finance, intellectual property, and environmental regulation.
Who is affected
Law students and early‑career legal professionals, especially those interested in technology, data protection, and regulatory compliance, are the primary audience. The program was developed by faculty, including Eric Chaffee (director of the Compliance Risk Management and Financial Integrity Institute), Raymond Ku, and Matthew Salerno, with institutional support from Dean Paul Rose.
Why CISOs should care
- CISOs increasingly interact with legal teams on regulatory compliance, breach response, privacy policy and contractual risk, areas where legal and security domains intersect.
- There is a growing demand for lawyers who understand cybersecurity risk, compliance obligations and data protection frameworks, a gap this specialization aims to help fill.
- Graduates versed in both legal and technical risk landscapes can be valuable partners to security leadership, potentially improving corporate risk posture and governance strategies.
3 practical actions for CISOs
- Engage with local law schools: Partner with programs like this to offer guest lectures, workshops or internships that help shape future legal compliance talent.
- Align training with compliance needs: Work with HR and legal leadership to design cross‑disciplinary upskilling programs that pair legal privacy fundamentals with cybersecurity practice.
- Track recruiting pipelines: Build relationships with graduates of cybersecurity legal specializations for roles in privacy compliance, risk advisory or security governance.