Thomas M. Cooley Law School Law School

Thomas M. Cooley Law School, Thomas M. Cooley Law School Law School History

Thomas M. Cooley Law School was established in 1972 and is a private institution. The campus is in a suburban area at 3 campuses: Lansing, Grand Rapids, and Auburn Hills. The primary mission of the law school is to integrate the study of law with practical experience in government, business, and the courts. Students have access to federal, state, county, city, and local agencies, courts, correctional facilities, law firms, and legal aid organizations in the Lansing area. An extensive externship program provides access to national lawyers’ networks. Facilities of special interest to law students include a legal research library at each campus and an Academic Resource Center. Housing for students includes university apartments, condos, and private houses. All law school facilities are accessible to the physically disabled.

Thomas M. Cooley Law School, Thomas M. Cooley Law School Law School 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 9 credits (MPA, MBA) may be applied. The following joint degrees may be earned: J.D./M.B.A. (Juris Doctor/Master of Business Administration) and J.D./M.P.A. (Juris Doctor/Master of Public Administration through partnership with Western Michigan University).

The Thomas M. Cooley Law School offers concentrations in corporate law, environmental law, international law, litigation, general practice, solo and small firm, administrative law, constitutional law, and civil rights. In addition, in-house clinics include the Sixty Plus Elder Law Clinic, Estate Planning Clinic, Public Defender Clinic, Innocence Project, and Domestic Violence Clinic for 3 to 6 credits. Practice seminars are conducted in alternate dispute resolution, appellate practice, and civil procedure, worth 2 to 3 credits. Research and Writing, Advanced Research and Writing, and Law Practice courses provide training in brief writing and oral argument conducted before sitting Circuit Court judges. Directed Studies allow independent research and writing projects. Cooley has an extensive third-year externship program, which places senior students in work settings for 1 or 2 terms throughout the Unite States. Special lecture series include the Krinock Lecture and professionalism lectures. The winter term offers study abroad in Australia and New Zealand; the summer term offers Canadian courses in Toronto. Through the Student Tutorial Services, upper-class students help new students form study groups. Faculty members may offer special seminars on study techniques. The Academic Resource Center provides free assistance for any student requesting it, including Testing Seminars, practice exams, individual counseling, and study skills seminars. Minority programs include BALSA, APALSA, Hispanic Law Society, African Legal Scholars Association, Gay Rights Alliance, and Native American Law Students Association. Bar preparation programs are available for all students as is a Professional Portfolio Program. The most widely taken electives are Law Practice, Trial Workshop, and Family Law.

To earn the J.D., candidates must complete 90 total credits, of which 63 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 I and II, Contracts I and II, Criminal Law, Criminal Procedure, Introduction to Law I, Professional Responsibility, Property I and II, Research and Writing, and Torts I and II. Required upper-level courses consist of Advanced Writing, Business Organizations, Constitutional Law I and II, Evidence, Remedies, Secured Transactions, Taxation, and Wills, Estates, and Trusts. All students must take clinical courses. The required orientation program for first-year students is a 2-day orientation program prior to the start of the first semester.

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

Thomas M. Cooley Law School, Thomas M. Cooley Law School Law School Unique Programs

Library

The law library contains 577,975 hard-copy volumes and 132,377 microform volume equivalents, and subscribes to 5004 serial publications. Such on-line databases and networks as CALI, LEXIS, Mathew Bender, NEXIS, OCLC First Search, and WESTLAW are available to law students for research. Special library collections include a depository for U.S. government documents, a full set of Michigan Supreme Court records and briefs, and a Congressional Information Service Microfiche library. There are new library facilities at the Grand Rapids and Auburn Hills campuses housing special collections in tax and intellectual property. The ratio of library volumes to faculty is 6351 to 1 and to students is 160 to 1. The ratio of seats in the library to students is 1 to 4.

Special Consideration

The law school recruits minority and disadvantaged students through recruitment travel and by attending law forums and job fairs. Requirements are not different for out-of-state students. Transfer students must have one year of credit, have a minimum GPA of 2.0, and have attended an ABA-approved law school. Students can transfer up to 30 credits for classes in which they have received a grade of C or better. They must be in good standing at their last school. Qualifying school is available to promising candidates who do not meet standard admissions criteria.

Thomas M. Cooley Law School, Thomas M. Cooley Law School Law School Admissions

In the fall 2007 first-year class, 4978 applied, 3699 were accepted, and 1580 enrolled. Fifteen transfers enrolled. The median GPA of the most recent first-year class was 3.03 on a scale of 4.0. The lowest LSAT percentile accepted was 79; the highest was 96.

Applicants must take the LSAT. Minimum acceptable GPA is 2.0 on a scale of 4.0. The most important admission factors include GPA, LSAT results, and character and fitness to practice law. No specific undergraduate courses are required. Candidates are not interviewed.

The application deadline for fall entry is open. Applicants should submit an application form, LSAT results, and transcripts. New students pay a $25 nonrefundable enrollment fee upon acceptance. 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.

Thomas M. Cooley Law School, Thomas M. Cooley Law School Law School Financial Aid

About 92% 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 $18,500. Awards are based on need and merit. Required financial statement is the FAFSA. The aid application deadline for fall entry is rolling. Special funds for minority or disadvantaged students include Rosa Parks and Martin Luther King, Jr. scholarships. Both are awarded based on need and merit. First-year students are notified about their financial aid application at time of acceptance.

Thomas M. Cooley Law School, Thomas M. Cooley Law School Law School Students

About 48% of the student body are women; 21%, minorities; 10%, African American; 5%, Asian American; 5%, Hispanic; and 4% foreign nationals. The average age of entering students is 29; age range is 20 to 62. About 21% drop out after the first year for academic or personal reasons; 79% remain to receive a law degree.

Students edit the Cooley Law Review, the Thomas M. Cooley Journal of Practical and Clinical Law, the newspaper the Pillar, and the Benchmark, a magazine published each trimester. The Law School competes in the Frederick Douglass Moot Court, Chicago Bar Association Moot Court, and State of Michigan Moot Court. Other competitions include Environmental Law Moot Court, Evans Competition, National Trial Competition, NACDL, Criminal Justice Trial Advocacy Competition, and Client Counseling Competition. Law student organizations, local chapters of national associations, and campus organizations include the Black Law Students Association, the Criminal Law Society, the ABA-Law Student Division, Phi Delta Phi, International Law Society, ATLA, and Sports Law Club.

The law school operates on a traditional semester basis. Courses for full-time students are offered day, evening, and weekends and must be completed within 5 years. For part-time students, courses are offered day, evening, and weekends and must be completed within 6 years. New full- and part-time students are admitted in the fall, winter, and summer. There is a 15-week summer session. Transferable summer courses are offered.