Academics
In addition to the J.D., the law school offers the LL.M. The following joint degrees may be earned: J.D./M.A. (Juris Doctor/Master of Arts in communication, counseling, divinity, government, management, journalism), J.D./M.B.A. (Juris Doctor/Master of Business Administration), and J.D./M.Div. (Juris Doctor/Master of Divinity).
Students must take 12 to 15 credits in their area of concentration. The School of Law offers concentrations in corporate law, and litigation. Each student must complete one of the following tracks: Virginia, General Practice, Dispute Resolution, Business and Transactional Law, Public Law, Academic, or Honors. In addition, third-year students may participate in the Family Mediation Clinic for 2 credits and the Litigation Clinic for 3 credits. Second- or third-year students may take any seminar offered, including Race and the Law for 3 credits, Crime and Punishment for 2 credits, Gender and the Law for 3 credits, and Elder Law for 3 credits. Internships are available as research assistants or law clerks for public interest law firms, local legal aid offices, prosecutors’ and public defenders’ offices, and the court system. Research programs include Advanced Legal Research and Writing, Academic Legal Scholarship, and Independent Studies. Independent Studies may be taken for 1 to 2 hours of credit each. Practical experience may also be gained through externships, for a maximum of 5 hours of credit, in an approved study program with a public interest firm or judicial officer, or with a federal/state prosecutor or public defender. A variety of distinguished guests come to campus each year to address the law school community. These have included Justices Scalia and Thomas of the U.S. Supreme Court, Chief Justice Leroy Hassell of the Virginia Supreme Court, Solicitor General Paul Clement, Dr. Robert P. George of Princeton University, and Chuck Rosenberg, the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia. Study abroad includes a summer session in Strasbourg, France which emphasizes international human rights and jurisprudence, for a total of 6 credits, and a summer session in Haifa, Israel, which emphasizes biblical law, Qur’anic law, and the modern Israeli legal system, for a total of 3 credits. A mandatory summer academic success program is offered to select admits. The program is not for credit. The School of Law has an active Black Law Students Association (BLSA) and has hosted several BLSA events. The most widely taken electives are Remedies, UCC II, and UCC III.
To earn the J.D., candidates must complete 90 total credits, of which 59 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: Christian Foundations of Law, Civil Procedure I and II, Contracts I and II, Legal Research and Writing I and II, Property I and II, and Torts I and II. Required upper-level courses consist of Business Associations, Constitutional Criminal Procedure, Constitutional Law I and II, Criminal Law, Evidence, Family Law, Law and Professional Responsibility, and UCC I. Clinical courses are offered but not required.The required orientation program for first-year students is a 4-day program including a legal study skills workshop covering preparation for class, case briefing, outlining, and exam preparation and taking, and an administrative orientation covering law school policies and procedure.
In order to graduate, candidates must have a GPA of 2.0, have completed the upper-division writing requirement, and an upper-division oral skills requirement.