Academics
In addition to the J.D., the law school offers the LL.M. and S.J.D. Students may take relevant courses in other programs and apply credit toward the J.D.; a maximum of 6 credits may be applied. The following joint degrees may be earned: J.D./M.A. (Juris Doctor/Master of Arts in Afro-American studies, American Indian studies, and urban planning), J.D./M.B.A. (Juris Doctor/Master of Business Administration), J.D./M.P.H. (Juris Doctor/Master of Public Health), J.D./M.P.P. (Juris Doctor/Master of Public Policy), and J.D./M.S.W. (Juris Doctor/Master of Social Welfare).
The School of Law offers concentrations in corporate law, criminal law, entertainment law, environmental law, family law, intellectual property law, international law, labor law, litigation, media law, securities law, sports law, and tax law. Academic specializations include critical race studies, public interest law and policy, business law and policy, entertainment and media law, and law and philosophy. In addition, more than 20 clinics are offered to advanced students; examples are Capital Punishment Clinic, Immigration Clinic, and Sports and the Law. Credit ranges from 4 to 6 units. Seminars are offered to advanced students, and credit ranges from 2 to 4 units; seminars include, among others, Music and Industry Law, International Human Rights, and National Security in the Information Economy. Full-time externships are offered to students in the fourth or fifth semester and are worth 13 units-11 units for the placement and 2 units for a related seminar or tutorial taught by a faculty member. Students can work as extern law clerks to a federal judge or in a government agency, public interest law firm, or nonprofit agency. There are also a growing number of placements abroad. Directed research, for which students must produce original scholarship of publishable quality, is worth 1 to 5 units. Special lecture series include International Law Speaker Series, Animal Law Speaker Series, and Sexual Orientation Law Speaker Series. Students may study abroad at foreign programs offered by ABA-approved law schools. The academic support program includes study groups led by academically successful second- and third-year students, exam workshops for the large first-year courses, academic counseling, and student mentoring. There are special sections in Constitutional Law, Community Property, and Wills and Trusts all aimed at helping develop exam-taking skills. Minority programs include Asian/Pacific Islander Law Students Association (APILSA), Black Law Students Association (BLSA), La Raza Law Students Association (La Raza), Native American Law Students Association (NALSA), and South Asian Law Students Association (SALSA). The most widely taken electives are Evidence, Constitutional Criminal Procedure, and Business Associations.
To earn the J.D., candidates must complete 87 total credits, of which 35 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, Constitutional Law I, Contracts, Criminal Law, Lawyering Skills, Property, and Torts. Required upper-level courses consist of Professional Responsibility and upper-division writing. The required orientation program for first-year students is a 2-day program designed to acquaint first-year students with classmates, professors, and deans and with the study of law and how to handle a variety of administrative tasks. It incorporates workshops, panels, and group discussions and sessions with law faculty.
To graduate, candidates must have a GPA of 2.0 and have completed the upper-division writing requirement, the first-year curriculum, 6 semesters of residence credit in regular session, and a course of study in professional responsibility.