Rate My Professor Sheldon Kurtz

Sheldon F. Kurtz is the David H. Vernon Professor of Law Emeritus at the University of Iowa College of Law. He received a B.A. from Syracuse University in 1964 and a J.D. summa cum laude from Syracuse University College of Law in 1967. Following his admission to the bar, he practiced law in New York City from 1967 to 1972 before joining the University of Iowa College of Law faculty in 1973. During his tenure, he served as a visiting professor at the University of Virginia School of Law for one year and as Dean of the Florida State University College of Law for two years from 1989 to 1991. He also holds an appointment in the University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine. Professor Kurtz became an emeritus faculty member in 2022 and continues to teach part-time at the College of Law.

Professor Kurtz's research specializations include property law and wills, trusts, and estates. He is the author or co-author of numerous textbooks and treatises, including Cases and Materials on American Property Law (7th ed. 2019, with Herbert Hovenkamp, Carol Necole Brown, and Christopher K. Odinet), The Law of Property: An Introductory Survey (7th ed. 2018, with Herbert Hovenkamp and Thomas P. Gallanis), Principles of Property Law (7th ed. 2016, with Thomas P. Gallanis and Herbert J. Hovenkamp), Kurtz on Iowa Estates (3rd ed. 1995), and Wills, Trusts, and Estates: Including Taxation and Future Interests (5th ed. 2017, with William M. McGovern Jr., David M. English, and Thomas P. Gallanis). Other significant publications include Moynihan’s Introduction to the Law of Real Property (7th ed. 2020) and articles such as The Revised Uniform Residential Landlord and Tenant Act: A Perspective from the Reporters (52 Real Property, Trust and Estate Law Journal 417, 2018, with Alice Noble-Allgire). He received the Burlington Northern Best Teacher Award in 1987 and the Michael J. Brody Award for Faculty Excellence in Service. Professor Kurtz is a Fellow of the American College of Trusts and Estates Counsel and a Life Member of the American Law Institute.