School of Law

Gonzaga University, School of Law History

Gonzaga University School of Law was established in 1912 and is a private institution. The 94-acre campus is in an urban area 1<1/2> miles from downtown Spokane. The primary mission of the law school is to preserve and develop a humanistic, Catholic, and Jesuit legal education. Students have access to federal, state, county, city, and local agencies, courts, correctional facilities, law firms, and legal aid organizations in the Spokane area. Facilities of special interest to law students include the Chastek Law Library, the Foley Library Center, computer labs, the Rudolf fitness center, and the McCarthy Arena. Housing for students consists of apartments, often within a 10-block radius of the law school. About 90% of the law school facilities are accessible to the physically disabled.

Gonzaga University, School of Law Academics

The following joint degrees may be earned: J.D./M.Acc. (Juris Doctor/Master of Accounting), J.D./M.B.A. (Juris Doctor/Master of Business Administration), and J.D./M.S.W. (Juris Doctor/ Master of Social Work).

The School of Law offers concentrations in environmental law, public interest law, and business law. In addition, upper-level students, who have completed or are enrolled in 60 credits, may participate in both in-house and outplacement clinics for up to 10 credits. Various 2-credit upper-level seminars are offered, including those on the First Amendment, and International Human Rights, Ethical Problems in the Representation of Children, Death Penalty, and Employment Discrimination. Internships are available when 60 credits have been completed. Directed research programs, worth 1 or 2 credits, must be supervised by a faculty member. Special lecture series include the William O. Douglass Lecture, Paul and Lita Luvera Lecture, International Law Symposium, public Issues and various law forums. There is a summer law program in Florence, Italy. Tutorial programs are available at a student’s request. The Academic Resource Program provides tutorial assistance to participating first-year students. The Student Bar Association sponsors group tutorials for all first-year courses. Minority programs are sponsored by the Multicultural Law Caucus, Black Law Students Association, Hispanic Law Caucus, and Sexual Orientation Diversity Alliance. Special interest group programs include the Public Interest Law Project, Street Law, Property Law Interest Group, and Criminal Defense Law Caucus. The most widely taken electives are Environmental Law, Tax Law, and International Law.

To earn the J.D., candidates must complete 90 total credits, of which 44 are for required courses. They must maintain a minimum GPA of 2.2 in the required courses. The following first-year courses are required of all students: Civil Procedure I and II, Constitutional Law I, Contracts I and II, Criminal Law, Legal Research Writing I and II, Property I and II, and Torts I and II. Required upper-level courses consist of a public service requirement, Constitutional Law II, Criminal Procedure, Evidence, Legal Writing and Research III and IV, and Professional Responsibility. The required orientation program for first-year students consists of 3 days of introduction to the legal system, introduction to the law, and information regarding Gonzaga.

In order to graduate, candidates must have a GPA of 2.2, 90 credit hours, and 30 hours of public service.

Gonzaga University, School of Law Unique Programs

Library

The law library contains 162,720 hard-copy volumes and 135,221 microform volume equivalents, and subscribes to 2482 serial publications. Such on-line databases and networks as CALI, CIS Universe, DIALOG, Infotrac, Legal-Trac, LEXIS, LOIS, NEXIS, OCLC First Search, WESTLAW, Wilsonline Indexes, OCLC, Internet, LexisNexis Congressional, Checkpoint, Hein Online, and LLMC-Digital are available to law students for research. Special library collections include ABA Archives; American Indian Selected Publications; Canon Law Materials; Federal Legislative Histories; Hein’s American Law Institution Publications; Hein’s Legal Thesis and Dissertations; Karol Llewellyn Papers; Scrapbooks of the Honorable Richard Guy; selected Nineteenth Century treatises; LLMC Digital; U.S. Law week (web access); Shepard’s Public Access; United Nations Treaty Collection On-line; Washington Supreme Court and Court of Appeal briefs; Federal Depository Library. Recently, the library was moved to a facility containing 41,189 square feet of space with 507 seats for library users. The facility is part of the law school building completed early in 2000. Sound proofing was added to reduce noise levels. The ratio of library volumes to faculty is 4282 to 1 and to students is 288 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 targeted mailings, phonathons, on-line chat rooms, scholarships, law school forums and fairs, alumni referrals, pre-law advisers, open houses, campus visits, and intentional recruiting at historically diverse colleges and universities. A recent law school graduate is hired full-time to focus on minority recruiting. 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 are accepted on a space available basis and must be in good standing and eligible to return to their previous law school.

Gonzaga University, School of Law Admissions

In the fall 2007 first-year class, 1631 applied, 741 were accepted, and 207 enrolled. Six transfers enrolled. The median LSAT percentile of the most recent first-year class was 60; the median GPA was 3.34 on a scale of 4.0. The lowest LSAT percentile accepted was 44; the highest was 90.

Applicants must have a bachelor’s degree and take the LSAT. The most important admission factors include academic achievement, letter of recommendation, and general background. No specific undergraduate courses are required. Candidates are not interviewed.

The application deadline for fall entry is April 15. Applicants should submit an application form, LSAT results, transcripts, TOEFL for international applicants, a nonrefundable application fee of $50, 2 letters of recommendation, a resume, LSDAS report, and personal statement. Notification of the admissions decision is after January 1. The latest acceptable LSAT test date for fall entry is February. The law school uses the LSDAS.

Gonzaga University, School of Law Financial Aid

About 94% 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 $29,155; maximum, $44,787. Awards are based on need and merit. Required financial statement is the FAFSA. The aid application deadline for fall entry is February 1. Special funds for minority or disadvantaged students include scholarships. First-year students are notified about their financial aid application within one month of acceptance if FAFSA is complete.

Gonzaga University, School of Law Students

About 42% of the student body are women; 9%, minorities; 1%, African American; 4%, Asian American; 3%, Hispanic; and 1%, Native American. The average age of entering students is 25; age range is 20 to 41. About 14% drop out after the first year for academic or personal reasons; 86% remain to receive a law degree.

Students edit the Gonzaga Law Review, Gonzaga Journal of International Law, a journal specializing in international law, business, political, and socioeconomic issues (website www.law.gonzaga.edu/), and the student newspaper, The Advocate. Moot court competitions include the National Appellate Advocacy, Jessup Cup, and National Moot Court. Teams also take part in the Negotiation, National Trial, Client Counseling, Admiralty, Tax, Saul Lefkowitz, and Giles Rich Patent competitions. Law student organizations, local chapters of national associations, and campus organizations include the Women’s Law Caucus, International Law Society, Multicultural Law Caucus, Student Bar Association, Gonzaga Public Interest Law Project, Environmental Law Caucus, Phi Alpha Delta, Phi Delta Phi, and Alpha Sigma Nu.

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 2 5-week summer session. Transferable summer courses are offered.