School of Law

University of Georgia, School of Law History

University of Georgia School of Law was established in 1859 and is a public institution. The 1289-acre campus is in a small town 65 miles northeast of Atlanta. Students have access to federal, state, county, city, and local agencies, courts, correctional facilities, law firms, and legal aid organizations in the Athens area. Students also have access to the facilities of the University of Georgia. Facilities of special interest to law students are the Dean Rusk Center for International and Comparative Law, the Institute for Continuing Legal Education, and the Institution for Continuing Judicial Education. Housing for students is available on campus for single students in residence halls; students with a spouse and/or children may live in University Village, an on-campus apartment complex. About 99% of the law school facilities are accessible to the physically disabled.

University of Georgia, School of Law Academics

In addition to the J.D., the law school offers the LL.M. Students may take relevant courses in other programs and apply credit toward the J.D.; a maximum of 6 credits may be applied. The following joint degrees may be earned: J.D./M.B.A. (Juris Doctor/Master of Business Administration), J.D./M.Ed. (Juris Doctor/Master of Education in sports studies), J.D./M.H.P. (Juris Doctor/Master of Historic Preservation), J.D./M.P.A. (Juris Doctor/Master of Public Administration), and J.D./M.S.W. (Juris Doctor/Master of Social Work).

The School of Law offers concentrations in corporate law, criminal law, entertainment law, environmental law, family law, intellectual property law, international law, juvenile law, labor law, litigation, sports law, tax law, and torts and insurance. The clinics offered to students include the Criminal Defense Clinic, the Prosecutorial Clinic, and the Land Use Clinic, all of which have varying credit amounts. Seminars, worth 2 credits, and supervised research and independent projects worth a maximum of 4 credits are also open to upper-level students. Students may intern with the Civil Externship Clinic, the Public Interest Practicum, and the Global Internship Program. The Dean Rusk Center for International and Comparative Law provides research programs. Field work opportunities for students includes Equal Justice Foundation Fellowships. Study- abroad programs may be undertaken with permission and include Georgia Law at Oxford, Brussels Seminar on Law and Institutions of the European Union and Community, and Georgia Law Summer Program in China. Several tutorial and mentoring programs are offered for no credit. The most widely taken electives are Constitutional Law I and II, Evidence, and Federal Income Tax.

To earn the J.D., candidates must complete 88 total credits, of which 33 are for required courses. They must maintain a minimum GPA of 2.0 in the required courses. The following first-year courses are required of all students: Civil Procedure, Contracts and Sales, Criminal Law, Legal Research and Writing, Property, and Torts. Legal Profession is a required upper-level course. The required orientation program for first-year students is a 2-day program that provides an introduction to the school’s activities, programs, and requirements; to the case method and legal study; and to new and returning students.

To graduate, candidates must have a GPA of 2.0 and have completed the upper-division writing requirement.

University of Georgia, School of Law Unique Programs

Library

The law library contains 370,000 hard-copy volumes and 504,653 microform volume equivalents, and subscribes to 7223 serial publications. Such on-line databases and networks as CALI, CIS Universe, Legal-Trac, LEXIS, LOIS, NEXIS, WESTLAW, Wilsonline Indexes, and more than 100 others are available to law students for research. Special library collections include complete English and Canadian law collections and a European Community depository library. Recently, the library updated furnishings, task lighting, computer power outlets at every seat, and wireless Internet. The ratio of library volumes to faculty is 10,000 to 1 and to students is 552 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 means of the Candidate Referral Service of Law Services, LSAC Law Forums, and campus visitations. Requirements are not different for out-of-state students. Transfer students must have one year of credit, have attended an ABA-approved law school, and transfer from an AALS member school. A copy of the LSDAS Law School Report, a law school transcript, a dean’s certification letter, and 2 letters of recommendation must be submitted.

University of Georgia, School of Law Admissions

In the fall 2007 first-year class, 2449 applied, 550 were accepted, and 222 enrolled. Nine transfers enrolled. The median LSAT percentile of the most recent first-year class was 90; the median GPA was 3.67 on a scale of 4.3. The lowest LSAT percentile accepted was 40; the highest was 99.

Applicants must take the LSAT. Graduates of unaccredited schools are also considered. Minimum acceptable GPA is 2.0 on a scale of 4.0. 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 nonrefundable application fee of $30, 2 letters of recommendation, and a statement indicating the applicant’s reasons for obtaining a legal education. Notification of the admissions decision is from October through August. The latest acceptable LSAT test date for fall entry is February. The law school uses the LSDAS.

University of Georgia, School of Law Financial Aid

About 82% of current law students receive some form of aid. Awards are based on need and merit. Required financial statement is the FAFSA. Check with the school for current deadlines. First-year students are notified about their financial aid application on or about March 1 for academic scholarships and on or about June 1 for need-based aid.

University of Georgia, School of Law Students

About 49% of the student body are women; 20%, minorities; 14%, African American; 3%, Asian American; 2%, Hispanic; and 9%, multiracial and unknown. The majority of students come from the South (90%). The average age of entering students is 24; age range is 21 to 47. About 46% of students enter directly from undergraduate school, 6% have a graduate degree, and 54% have worked full-time prior to entering law school. About 5% drop out after the first year for academic or personal reasons; 95% remain to receive a law degree.

Students edit the Georgia Law Review, Georgia Journal of International and Comparative Law, and Journal of Intellectual Property Law. Annually, moot court teams participate in 8 moot court competitions, including the National and the Phillip C. Jessup Moot Courts and the ABA National Moot Court competitions. Other competitions are the American Trial Lawyers Association and National Mock Trial competitions. Law student organizations include the Christian Legal Society, Jewish Law Students Association, and Federalist Society. There are local chapters of Black Law Students Association, Phi Alpha Delta, and ABA-Law Student Division. Campus clubs and other organizations include Equal Justice Foundation, Women Law Students Association, and Student Bar Association.

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