Law School Fails In Effort to Get Top Legal Scholar

A Stanford University law professor has accepted a tenured position at New York University, despite the Law School's long-term efforts to have him join its faculty.

Anthony G. Amsterdam, a 45-year-old expert in constitutional and criminal law, will join the N.Y.U. faculty as a tenured professor in September, Norman Redlich, dean of the school, said yesterday.

"We would have loved to have him," Alan M. Dershowitz," professor of Law, said yesterday, adding that talks with Amsterdam "never came to the point of negotiations."

Laurence H. Tribe, professor of Law, said yesterday the Law School sought for a long time to attract Amsterdam to the faculty. "There is nothing new or special in Harvard's desire to get Amsterdam." Tribe added.

Albert M. Sacks, dean of the Law School, refused to comment yesterday on whether the school made any formal offer to Amsterdam but said. "There was an interest among many people at Harvard in having him on the faulty."

Amsterdam was unavailable for comment yesterday. But Dershowitz said of Amsterdam's decision. "He did not want to come to Boston. He wanted to live in New York."

"Amsterdam is an able scholar and a dynamic litigator." Tribe said, adding. "He would probably benefit any faculty."

Redlich refused to comment yesterday on Amsterdam's salary, but there have been reports that Amsterdam will join the faculty in a tenured position paying $65,000 to $75,000 annually.