Stanford Law School

Stanford University, Stanford Law School History

Stanford Law School was established in 1893 and is a private institution. The 6109-acre campus is in a suburban area 35 miles south of San Francisco. The primary mission of the law school is to be a national and world leader in the education of lawyers and in the expansion of legal knowledge through research with the ultimate aim of improving the legal orders of the domestic and global communities. Students have access to federal, state, county, city, and local agencies, courts, correctional facilities, law firms, and legal aid organizations in the Stanford area. Housing for students is guaranteed to all new students who apply for housing by a specified date and are willing to live anywhere on campus. Law students are given priority for Crothers Hall. All law school facilities are accessible to the physically disabled.

Stanford University, Stanford Law School Academics

In addition to the J.D., the law school offers the LL.M., S.J.D., and M.L.S., J.S.M. Students may take relevant courses in other programs and apply credit toward the J.D.; a maximum of 15 semester units may be applied. The following joint degrees may be earned: J.D./M.A. (Juris Doctor/Master of Arts with Johns Hopkins University), J.D./M.B.A. (Juris Doctor/Master of Business Administration), J.D./M.P.A. (Juris Doctor/Master of Public Administration with Princeton University), J.D./M.S. (Juris Doctor/Master of Science in Interdisciplinary Graduate program in Enviroment and Resourses), and J.D./Ph.D. (Juris Doctor/Doctor of Philosophy in Economics, Sociology, Biology, Bioengineering, Enviroment and Resourses, Psychology, Health Research and Policy, History).

The Stanford Law School offers concentrations in corporate law, criminal law, entertainment law, environmental law, family law, intellectual property law, international law, juvenile law, labor law, litigation, maritime law, media law, securities law, sports law, tax law, and torts and insurance. In addition, the law school offers courses with clinical components from 2 to 7 units of credit in a variety of areas. A variety of seminars, worth 2 to 3 units, is offered to upper-level students each year. Externships, from 4 to 10 units of credit, are offered to upper-level students each year, typically in the Bay area. The law school offers 3 types of directed research comprising from 2 to 13 units of credit. This is an opportunity for students beyond the first-year program in law to research problems in any field of law. A wide variety of lecture series are sponsored by both the law school and its student organizations. The law school also offers foreign study options with a number of schools. The most widely taken electives are Evidence, Corporations, and Tax.

To earn the J.D., candidates must complete 86 total credits, of which 28 are for required courses. The following first-year courses are required of all students: Civil Procedure, Constitutional Law, Contracts, Criminal Law, Legal Research and Writing, Property, and Torts. The required orientation program for first-year students is a 2-day program that includes introductions to policies, programs, and resources.

In order to graduate, candidates must have completed the upper-division writing requirement and at least 1 advanced course that contains 1 or more units of ethics instruction, and a course comprising substantial instruction in professional skills.

Stanford University, Stanford Law School Unique Programs

Library

The law library contains 543,405 hard-copy volumes and 87,641 microform volume equivalents, and subscribes to 7301 serial publications. Such on-line databases and networks as CALI, CIS Universe, DIALOG, Infotrac, Legal-Trac, LEXIS, LOIS, NEXIS, OCLC First Search, RLIN, WESTLAW, and Wilsonline Indexes, and plus extensive other sources via local and national networks are available to law students for research. Special library collections include U.S. government documents and California state documents. Recently, the library reclassified the Library of Congress titles and renovated the Reading Room. The ratio of library volumes to faculty is 11,562 to 1 and to students is 1018 to 1. The ratio of seats in the library to students is 1 to 1.

Special Consideration

The law school recruits minority and disadvantaged students by attending law forums and Law Days, and making individual school visits. Requirements are not different for out-of-state students. Transfer students must have one year of credit and have attended an ABA-approved law school.

Stanford University, Stanford Law School Admissions

In the fall 2007 first-year class, 4159 applied, 396 were accepted, and 170 enrolled. Twelve transfers enrolled. The median GPA of the most recent first-year class was 3.86.

Applicants must have a bachelor’s degree and take the LSAT. No specific undergraduate courses are required. Candidates are not interviewed.

The application deadline for fall entry is February 1. Applicants should submit an application form, LSAT results, transcripts, a personal statement, a nonrefundable application fee of $70, 2 letters of recommendation, and a statement of good standing from the undergraduate dean. Notification of the admissions decision is on a rolling basis. The latest acceptable LSAT test date for fall entry is December. The law school uses the LSDAS.

Stanford University, Stanford Law School Financial Aid

About 80% of current law students receive some form of aid. The maximum annual amount of aid from all sources combined, including scholarships, loans, and work contracts, is $60,616. Awards are based on need. Required financial statements are the FAFSA and Need Access Form. The aid application deadline for fall entry is March 15. First-year students are notified about their financial aid application upon receipt of the Need Access and FAFSA analyses.

Stanford University, Stanford Law School Students

About 43% of the student body are women; 31%, minorities; 7%, African American; 12%, Asian American; 11%, Hispanic; and 1%, Native American. The average age of entering students is 24; age range is 21 to 35. About 35% of students enter directly from undergraduate school and 21% have a graduate degree.

The primary law review is the Stanford Law Review. Students also edit the Environmental Law Journal, Stanford Journal of Law, Business and Finance, Stanford Journal of Civil Rights and Civil Liberties, and Stanford Technology Law Review. The Kirkwood Moot Court Competition is held in May each year. All first-year students participate in a noncompetitive moot court program in the spring semester as part of their mandatory legal research and writing course. Law student organizations include Stanford Law Students Association. Local chapters of national associations include American Constitution Society and Federalist Society.

The law school operates on a traditional semester basis. Courses for full-time students are offered days only and must be completed within 7 semesters. There is no part-time program. New students are admitted in the fall. There is no summer session. Transferable summer courses are not offered.