Professor Jill Wieber Lens grew up in Wisconsin and attended the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where she became a lifelong Wisconsin Badgers fan. She also found time to graduate with honors in political science and the liberal arts. She then attended the University of Iowa College of Law, where she served as Note & Comment Editor of the Iowa Law Review. Professor Lens graduated law school with highest honors, received the West Publishing Company Award for Outstanding Scholastic Achievement, and is a member of the Order of the Coif.

In the fall of 2010, Professor Lens joined the Baylor faculty as an Assistant Professor. She teaches Torts I, Torts II, Products Liability, and Appellate Advocacy & Procedure. Her primary research interests relate to punitive damages. She has published numerous articles on the constitutionality of the damages and limitations on the damages based in tort law. She has also published articles addressing the role of compensatory damages in tort law, and the use of expert testimony within professional negligence claims.

Before joining Baylor, she practiced commercial and appellate litigation at a mid-sized firm in St. Louis, Missouri. Teaching was in the back of her mind, but she also thought it was important to actually practice law first. After four years of practicing, Professor Lens accepted a position as a Visiting Assistant Professor at the University of Louisville Brandeis School of Law. Living in Louisville also gave her the chance to attend the Kentucky Derby, which she recommends.

Professor Lens met her husband, Josh, in law school. Josh also works for Baylor University, as a Director of Compliance for the Athletics Department. They welcomed their first child, Hannah, in the summer of 2012.

Download High-Res Photo

Jill Wieber Lens

Assistant Professor of Law

Courses Taught
Torts I
Torts II
Products Liability
Appellate Advocacy & Procedure

Email: Jill_Lens@baylor.edu
Phone: 254.710.3985

Publications

Using Injunctive Relief to Bypass Punitive Damages' Due Process Problem (In Progress).

Justice Holmes's Bad Man and the Depleted Purposes of Punitive Damages, 101 KY.L.J. (forthcoming 2013).

Procedural Due Process and Predictable Punitive Damage Awards, 2012 BYU L. REV. 1 (2012), reprinted in DEF.LAW.J. (forthcoming 2013).

Punishing for the Injury: Tort Law-Based Limitations on Punitive Damages, 39 HOFSTRA L. REV. 595 (2011).

Honest Confusion: The Purpose of Compensatory Damages in Tort and Fraudulent Misrepresentation, 59 U. KAN. L. REV. 231 (2011).

The (Overlooked) Consequence of Easing the Prohibition of Expert Legal Testimony in Professional Negligence Claims, 48 U. LOU. L. REV. 53 (2009), reprinted in DEF. LAW J., VOL. 60, NO. 1, at 103 (Feb. 2011).