School of Law

Regent University, School of Law History

Regent University School of Law was established in 1986 and is a private institution. The 80-acre campus is in a suburban area 7 miles southeast of Norfolk, Virginia. The primary mission of the law school is to train lawyers to participate effectively and professionally in the private and public sectors of this nation while affirming their understanding of the relationship between Christian principles and the practice of law. Students have access to federal, state, county, city, and local agencies, courts, correctional facilities, law firms, and legal aid organizations in the Virginia Beach area. Facilities of special interest to law students include a 134,000-square-foot law center equipped with the latest technology in audiovisual equipment, such as cameras for simultaneous broadcasting. There is also a 350-seat moot court/city council chamber. Housing for students consists of university-owned and operated apartments. All law school facilities are accessible to the physically disabled.

Regent University, School of Law 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.

Regent University, School of Law Unique Programs

Library

The law library contains 137,365 hard-copy volumes and 335,777 microform volume equivalents, and subscribes to 4636 serial publications. Such on-line databases and networks as CALI, DIALOG, Dow-Jones, Infotrac, Legal-Trac, LEXIS, LOIS, NEXIS, OCLC First Search, WESTLAW, AccessUN, Arbitration Law OnLine, Halsbury’s Laws Direct, HeinOnline, IndexMaster, Lawyers Weekly USA Online, Legal Scholarship Network (LSN), LexisNexis US Serials Set Digital Collection, LLMC-Digital, Making of Modern Law, Legal Treatises 1800-1926, RIA Checkpoint, Treaties and International Agreements Online, Virginia Lawyers Weekly Online, and Virginia Supreme Court Records and Briefs. are available to law students for research. Special library collections include the Founders Collection, John Brabner-Smith Library and Papers, Ralph Johnson Bunche Library, Mary Elizabeth Menefee Collection of Law & Film, First Amendment & Civil Rights Collection, and Early American Political Sermons. Recently, the library installed a new enhanced service desk. The ratio of library volumes to faculty is 4737 to 1 and to students is 299 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 recruitment travel, referrals, CRS mailings, and special scholarships. Requirements are not different for out-of-state students. Transfer students must have one year of credit, have a minimum GPA of 2.3, and have attended an ABA-approved law school.

Regent University, School of Law Admissions

In the fall 2007 first-year class, 619 applied, 332 were accepted, and 153 enrolled. One transfer enrolled. The median GPA of the most recent first-year class was 3.3.

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

The application deadline for fall entry is June 1. Applicants should submit an application form, LSAT results, transcripts, a personal statement, a nonrefundable application fee of $50, and 3 letters 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.

Regent University, School of Law Financial Aid

About 84% 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 $32,000; maximum, $42,012. Awards are based on need and merit, along with leadership and public interest awards. Required financial statement is the FAFSA. The aid application deadline for fall entry is July 1. Special funds for minority or disadvantaged students consist of law school grants and scholarships available to qualified students who desire to serve in the minority community.

Regent University, School of Law Students

About 49% of the student body are women; 14%, minorities; 6%, African American; 4%, Asian American; 2%, Hispanic; and 2%, Native American. The average age of entering students is 25; age range is 19 to 58. About 7% drop out after the first year for academic or personal reasons; 93% remain to receive a law degree.

Students edit the Regent University Law Review, Regent University Journal of International Law, and the student newspaper, High Flyer. Moot court competitions for students include the ABA National Appellate Advocacy Competition, and the William B. Spong, Jr. Memorial Moot Court Competition at William and Mary. Other competitions include ABA Negotiations Competition, sponsored by the ABA-Law Student Division, the Robert Mehrige, Jr. National Environmental Law, sponsored by the University of Richmond, and the John O. Gibbons Criminal Procedure Moot Court Tournament. Law student organizations, local chapters of national associations, and campus organizations include the Student Bar Association, Moot Court Board, Alternative Dispute Resolution, Client Counseling Board, Christian Legal Society, Federalist Society, The American Inns of Court, Regent Students for Life, International Law Society, and Sports and Entertainment Law Society.

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. For part-time students, courses are offered days only and must be completed within 6 years. New full- and part-time students are admitted in the fall. There is a 7- week summer session. Transferable summer courses are not offered.