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Immediately following his graduation from Syracuse University Law School, Professor Kurtz joined the New York law firm of Nixon, Mudge, Rose, Guthrie, Alexander and Mitchell where he specialized in property law. Two years later, however, he joined the law firm of Cleary, Gottlieb, Steen and Hamilton in order to practice estate planning. In 1973, he joined The University of Iowa College of Law Faculty. Since then, he has been teaching at the College of Law, except for a one year visiting professorship at the University of Virginia Law School and a two year stint as Dean of the Florida State University College of Law.
Professor Kurtz teaches the first year Property Law course as well as upperclass courses on Trusts and Estates and Health Law. He, together with Professor Hovenkamp, another member of the law school faculty, have co-authored one of the leading casebooks on property law used in American legal education, American Property Law (West Publishing Company, 3rd ed. 1999). Most recently Professor Kurtz authored Introduction to the Law of Real Property (3rd. ed. 2002). Professor Kurtz pioneered a model legislative drafting seminar in which up to 16 students in a year-long seminar draft model legislation dealing with surrogate parenthood, aid-in-dying, and the procurement of human organs for transplantation. These statutes have all been published in one of the student-run journals at the College of Law. Professor Kurtz also teaches a unique medical seminar for law students in which up to 8 law students spend one week at The University of Iowa Hospital and Clinics observing and discussing the delivery of health care.
Professor Kurtz's research interests have focused not only on property and health law issues but on estate planning as well. In addition to publishing numerous articles on estate planning, he is the author or co-author of numerous books, including the most widely used treatise on Iowa probate law (Kurtz on Iowa Estates, 3rd Edition, 1995) and the only comprehensive student treatise on the law of wills and trusts (Wills, Trusts and Estates, 2d. ed. West Publishing Company, 2001).
Professor Kurtz has frequently worked with the probate committee of the Iowa Bar in drafting legislative reform proposals. He has worked with other groups on reform of the Iowa Anatomical Gift Act. He is a member of the American Law Institute and the American Society of Law, Medicine and Ethics. He was recently appointed a Commissioner on Uniform State Laws for the State of Iowa. He also chairs the Multistate Essay Drafting Committee of the National Conference of Bar Examiners which drafts the essay examination for a number of states and is a member of the Property Section of the Multistate Bar. Professor Kurtz has been an active member of the law school and University community. In addition to his frequent service on the law school's appointments and curriculum committees, he has served the University in a variety of capacities. During the 1995-96 academic year he served as President-elect of the University Faculty Senate and during the 1996-97 academic year he was the President of the University Faculty Senate.
Professor Kurtz is a member of the Iowa bar. |
