School of Law

Saint Thomas University, School of Law History

Saint Thomas University School of Law was established in 1984 and is a private institution. The campus is in a suburban area 15 miles northwest of downtown Miami. The primary mission of the law school is to provide a personalized, value-oriented legal education to a diverse student body, including those from groups traditionally underrepresented by and within the legal profession. Students have access to federal, state, county, city, and local agencies, courts, correctional facilities, law firms, and legal aid organizations in the Miami Gardens area. Housing for students include on-campus dorms and a variety of off-campus housing, located within a few miles of the campus. All law school facilities are accessible to the physically disabled.

Saint Thomas University, School of Law Academics

In addition to the J.D., the law school offers the LL.M., S.J.D., BA/JD Environmental Justice, and JSD Intercultural Human Rights. The following joint degrees may be earned: J.D./M.B.A (Juris Doctor/Master of Business Administration in international business), J.D./M.B.A. (Juris Doctor/Master of Business Administration in sports administration), J.D./M.S (Juris Doctor/Master of Science in marriage and family), J.D./M.S. (Juris Doctor/Master of Science in Sports Administration), and J.D/M.B.A (Juris Doctor/Master of Business Administration in Accounting).

The law school sponsors two in-house full year clinics: Immigration Clinic (6 credits each semester) and Tax Clinic (4 credits each semester). The law school offers a wide range of 2 credit seminars available to upper-class students, including Church-State Relation, Comparative Law, Cyberlaw, Exploring Principles of Earth Jurisprudence, Environmental Law, Genetics and the Law, Health Law Policy, Land Use Planning, Rule of Law, Sixth Amendment in Modern Jurisprudence, and Women and the Law. The law school’s Clinical Program includes internships in the Appellate Litigation (full year, 4 credits each semester), Bankruptcy Clinic (4 credits per semester), Civil Practice (4 or 12 credits per semester), Criminal Practice (12 credits per semester), Elder Law (4 credits per semester), Family Court (full year – 4 credits each semester), Florida Supreme Court (12 credits per semester), Judicial (4 credits per semester), and the Pax Romana United Nations Clinic (12 credits per semester). A lecture series every fall features presentations geared primarily to first-year students on effective note taking, time management and student strategies, stress management, the importance of writing well, and effective exam preparation. St. Thomas sponsors a month-long summer-abroad program in Spain. In addition, upper-class students may take up to 7 credits in an ABA-accredited summer-abroad program sponsored by law schools other than St. Thomas. Legal fraternities and other student organizations offer lecture series, mentoring programs, and other projects. The most widely taken electives are Family Law, White Collar Crime, and Law and Literature.

To earn the J.D., candidates must complete 90 total credits, of which 60 are for required courses. They must maintain a minimum GPA of 2.5 in the required courses. The following first-year courses are required of all students: Advanced Legal Research and Writing, Civil Procedure I and II, Contracts I and II, Criminal Law, Legal Analysis, Writing, and Research, and Torts I and II. Required upper-level courses consist of Agency and Partnership, Appellate Advocacy, Constitutional Law I and II, Corporations, Criminal Law, Criminal Procedure I, Evidence, Professional Responsibility, Property I and II, Senior Writing Requirement, and Wills and Trusts. All students must take clinical courses. The required orientation program for first-year students is a 2-day program during which students register, are introduced to legal research and writing, learn how to brief a case, meet faculty, administration, and staff, and learn about student organizations.

In order to graduate, candidates must have a GPA of 2.5, have completed the upper-division writing requirement, and study law in residence for 96 weeks, pursue the entire study of law as a full-time student for 6 semesters or the equivalent, the last 2 of which must be at St. Thomas, complete 40 hours of pro bono work, pass a competency exam, satisfy the Senior Writing Requirement, and complete six credits of Professional Skills Courses.

Saint Thomas University, School of Law Unique Programs

Library

The law library contains 330,143 hard-copy volumes and 1,251,432 microform volume equivalents, and subscribes to 2976 serial publications. Such on-line databases and networks as CALI, CIS Universe, DIALOG, Legal-Trac, LEXIS, LOIS, Mathew Bender, NEXIS, OCLC First Search, WESTLAW, and Wilsonline Indexes are available to law students for research. Recently, the library made available a wireless network with capacity for 1054 connections. The ratio of library volumes to faculty is 12,228 to 1 and to students is 528 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 through recruiting at various historically black colleges and universities, and direct mail to target population using Candidate Referral Service (CRS). Requirements are not different for out-of-state students. Transfer students must have one year of credit, have a minimum GPA of 2.65, have attended an ABA-approved law school, and have a letter of good standing.

Saint Thomas University, School of Law Admissions

In the fall 2007 first-year class, 2712 applied, 1235 were accepted, and 228 enrolled. Four transfers enrolled. The median LSAT percentile of the most recent first-year class was 40; the median GPA was 3.08 on a scale of 4.0. The lowest LSAT percentile accepted was 11; the highest was 92.

Applicants must have a bachelor’s degree and take the LSAT. Minimum acceptable LSAT percentile is 15 and minimum acceptable GPA is 2.0 on a scale of 4.0. The most important admission factors include LSAT results, academic achievement, and general background. No specific undergraduate courses are required. Candidates are not interviewed.

The application deadline for fall entry is May 1 spring entry is November 1. Applicants should submit an application form, LSAT results, transcripts, a personal statement, a nonrefundable application fee of $60, and 1 letter of recommendation. Notification of the admissions decision is on a rolling basis. The latest acceptable LSAT test date for fall entry is June. The law school uses the LSDAS.

Saint Thomas University, School of Law Financial Aid

About 86% of current law students receive some form of aid. The average annual amount of aid from all sources combined, including scholarships, loans, and work contracts, is $34,347; maximum, $47,762. Awards are based on need and merit. Required financial statement is the FAFSA. The aid application deadline for fall entry is May 1 Spring entry is on a rolling basis. First-year students are notified about their financial aid application at time of acceptance.

Saint Thomas University, School of Law Students

About 53% of the student body are women; 47%, minorities; 9%, African American; 4%, Asian American; 31%, Hispanic; and 6%, international students and those with unknown ethnic group. The majority of students come from Florida (59%). The average age of entering students is 25; age range is 20 to 54. About 66% of students enter directly from undergraduate school, 5% have a graduate degree, and 34% have worked full-time prior to entering law school. About 21% drop out after the first year for academic or personal reasons; 79% remain to receive a law degree.

Students edit the St. Thomas Law Review, Intercultural Human Rights Law Review and the newspaper Plead the Fifth. Moot court competitions include the Phillip Jessup International Law Moot Court, National Entertainment Law Moot Court, and the National Labor Law Moot Court. Other competitions include the American Bar Association National Trial Tournament, the American Trail Lawyers Association National Trial Tournament, the National Trial Advocacy Competition, and the Frederick Douglass Trial Advocacy Competition. Student organizations include the Caribbean Association of Law Students, St. Thomas More Catholic Law Society, and Tax Law Society. Local chapters of national associations include the American Bar Association/Law Student Division (ABA/LSD), Asian Pacific American Law Student Association (APALSA), and Black Law Student Association (BLSA). Campus clubs and organizations include the Entertainment and Sports Law Society, Florida Association for Women Lawyers (FAWL), and Cuban American Bar Association (CABA), Law Student Division.

The law school operates on a traditional semester basis. Courses for full-time students are offered both day and evening and must be completed within 5 years. There is no part-time program. New students are admitted in the fall and spring. There is a 7- week summer session. Transferable summer courses are offered.