Chicago-Kent College of Law

Illinois Institute of Technology, Chicago-Kent College of Law History

Illinois Institute of Technology Chicago-Kent College of Law was established in 1888 and is a private institution. The campus is in an urban area in downtown Chicago. The primary mission of the law school is to provide students with a solid grounding in legal theory and ethics, along with innovative approaches to teaching and skills training. Students have access to federal, state, county, city, and local agencies, courts, correctional facilities, law firms, and legal aid organizations in the Chicago area; the college is located in the Loop, Chicago’s central business district. Facilities of special interest to law students include a state-of-the-art building that houses the law school and the university’s Stuart School of Business. The building features a 3-story atrium, a 5-level library, a technologically advanced courtroom, an auditorium, computer labs, student lounges, and a cafeteria. It also houses a sophisticated computer network with both wireless and hard-wired network connections that allow students to access network resources from almost anywhere in the building. Housing for students is available in nearby urban and suburban neighborhoods, and on-campus housing is available on the university’s main campus. A free shuttle runs between the campuses. All law school facilities are accessible to the physically disabled.

Illinois Institute of Technology, Chicago-Kent College 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 12 credits may be applied. The following joint degrees may be earned: J.D./LL.M. (Juris Doctor/Master of Laws in taxation, financial services, or family law), J.D./M.B.A. (Juris Doctor/Master of Business Administration), J.D./M.E.M. (Juris Doctor/Master of Science in Environmental Management), J.D./M.P.A. (Juris Doctor/Master of Public Administration), J.D./M.P.H. (Juris Doctor/Master of Public Health), and J.D./M.S. (Juris Doctor/Master of Science in financial markets and trading).

Students must take 20 credits in their area of concentration. The Chicago-Kent College of Law offers concentrations in criminal law, environmental law, intellectual property law, international law, labor law, and litigation. The law school offers certificate programs in 7 areas: Environmental and Energy Law, Intellectual Property Law, International and Comparative Law, Labor and Employment Law, Litigation and Alternative Dispute Resolution, Public Interest Law, and Criminal Litigation. In addition, students may take clinical work in areas including criminal, civil, employment discrimination, and others through the Chicago-Kent Law Offices for 3 to 4 credits. One seminar of 2 hours credit is required of all students. Recently offered seminars include Bioethics and the Law, Race-Conscious Remedies, and Current Energy Issues. An Advanced Externship Program places students with public agencies and teaching attorneys in areas such as environmental, bankruptcy, and international. A Judicial Externship program places students in clerkships with federal judges. Students can take Individual Research for 1 credit per semester, working under the supervision of a professor. Special lecture series include the Morris Lecture in International and Comparative Law, the Piper Lecture in Labor Law, and the Green Lecture in Law and Technology. Study abroad is possible through programs in England, Germany, Denmark, France, Norway, China, Mexico, New Zealand, and Switzerland. The college accepts credits from most ABA-accredited law school study-abroad programs. The Academic Support Program is offered to students based on factors including LSAT score, undergraduate and graduate GPA, undergraduate course of study, years out of school, native language, and disabilities. The Office of Student Professional Development assists in the recruitment of minority students and students from historically disadvantaged backgrounds through visits to high schools and colleges, collaboration with college counselors and prelaw advisers, and community outreach. A certificate program for J.D. students in environmental, and energy law includes a series of electives in land use energy, and environmental law as well as interdisciplinary classes in the economic analysis of environmental problems. There are similar certificate programs in other areas. The most widely taken electives are Evidence, Commercial Law Survey, and Business Organizations.

To earn the J.D., candidates must complete 87 total credits, of which 42 are for required courses. They must maintain a minimum GPA of 2.3 in the required courses. The following first-year courses are required of all students: Civil Procedure, Contracts, Criminal Law, Legal Writing I and II, Legislative Process, Property, and Torts. Required upper-level courses consist of Constitutional Law, Legal Writing III and IV, Professional Responsibility, and Seminar. The required orientation program for first-year students is a 3-day program combining introductory programs, library tours, computer training, legal research and writing, and small sessions with current students and faculty.

To graduate, candidates must have a GPA of 2.3 and have completed the upper-division writing requirement and required courses.

Illinois Institute of Technology, Chicago-Kent College of Law Unique Programs

Library

The law library contains 550,789 hard-copy volumes and 145,312 microform volume equivalents, and subscribes to 2500 serial publications. Such on-line databases and networks as CALI, CIS Universe, DIALOG, Dow-Jones, Infotrac, Legal-Trac, LEXIS, LOIS, NEXIS, OCLC First Search, RLIN, WESTLAW, Wilsonline Indexes, Internet, EPIC, ProQuest, Illinet, and Lexis Congressional are available to law students for research. Special library collections include a depository of federal documents, a special collection on law and the aging, as well as international organization documents (UN, EU, GATT, among others). The library’s 9 group study rooms have new lecterns and historic photos of CK law school sports teams from the early 20th century. The ratio of library volumes to faculty is 7545 to 1 and to students is 565 to 1. The ratio of seats in the library to students is 1 to 2.

Special Consideration

The law school recruits minority and disadvantaged students through minority student law days, direct mail, and events sponsored by minority law student groups. Chicago-Kent also hosts the PreLaw Undergraduate Scholars program (PLUS), a rigorous 4-week summer program that is designed to provide undergraduate students with a taste of the law school experience. The program is primarily directed at undergraduate students from disadvantaged groups that are underrepresented in the legal profession. 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 have a letter of good standing from the dean of their law school and 1 letter of recommendation.

Illinois Institute of Technology, Chicago-Kent College of Law Admissions

In the fall 2007 first-year class, 3534 applied, 1212 were accepted, and 319 enrolled. Forty-four transfers enrolled. The median LSAT percentile of the most recent first-year class was 87; the median GPA was 3.6 on a scale of 4.0. The highest LSAT percentile was 99.

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 March 1. Applicants should submit an application form, LSAT results, transcripts, a personal statement, and a nonrefundable application fee of $60. One academic letter of recommendation is preferred. Admitted applicants must submit a nonrefundable seat deposit, payable in 2 installments in April and June. Notification of the admissions decision is on a rolling basis. The latest acceptable LSAT test date for fall entry is February. The law school uses the LSDAS.

Illinois Institute of Technology, Chicago-Kent College of Law Financial Aid

About 76% 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 $38,452; maximum, $74,116. Awards are based on need and merit. Required financial statement is the FAFSA. The aid application deadline for fall entry is April 15. Special funds for minority or disadvantaged students are available. First-year students are notified about their financial aid application 2 to 3 weeks from the time the Financial Aid Office receives a Student Aid Report. Students must then complete loan applications in a timely fashion to receive funds by the start of classes.

Illinois Institute of Technology, Chicago-Kent College of Law Students

About 48% of the student body are women; 19%, minorities; 6%, African American; 8%, Asian American; 5%, Hispanic; and 1%, Native American. The majority of students come from the Midwest (80%). The average age of entering students is 24; age range is 19 to 69. About 41% of students enter directly from undergraduate school, 12% have a graduate degree, and 59% have worked full-time prior to entering law school. About 10% drop out after the first year for academic or personal reasons; 90% remain to receive a law degree.

Students edit the Chicago-Kent Law Review, which is published 3 times a year, the Journal of Intellectual Property, the Employee Rights and Employment Policy Journal, the Journal of International and Comparative Law, and the Seventh Circuit Review. The student newspaper is The Commentator. The Moot Court Honor Society, which enters its members in more than 10 intercollegiate competitions annually, sponsors the Ilana Diamond Rovner Appellate Advocacy Competition. First-year students compete in the Charles Evans Hughes Moot Court Competition. The College of Law’s more than 30 law student organizations plus local chapters of national associations, and campus organizations include the Environmental Law Society, International Law Society, the Intellectual Property Law Society, the Society of Women in Law, Asian-Pacific American, Black, and Hispanic-Latino Law Students Associations, Association of Trial Lawyers of America, Phi Alpha Delta, and National Lawyers Guild.

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. For part-time students, courses are offered both day and evening and must be completed within 6 years. New full- and part-time students are admitted in the fall. There is an 8-week summer session. Transferable summer courses are offered.