Academics
In addition to the J.D., the law school offers the LL.M., S.J.D., and M.J. Students may take relevant courses in other programs and apply credit toward the J.D.; a maximum of 9 credits may be applied. The following joint degrees may be earned: J.D./M.A. (Juris Doctor/ Master of Arts in political science), 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 corporate law, criminal law, family law, international law, juvenile law, labor law, litigation, tax law, health law, and public interest law. With the exceptions of health law, tax law, and child law, none of the concentrations are formalized. In addition, clinical legal experience is gained through the Loyola University Community Law Center, the Federal Tax Clinic, the Child Law Clinic, the Business Law Clinic, and the Elder Law Clinic. Seminars, of which there are a variety, are offered for 2 to 3 credit hours. Second- and third-year law students receive 3 hours credit for teaching a course called Street Law in Chicago-area high schools. Externships are available every semester; supervised experience is offered in judicial, criminal, corporate, health law, child law, and government for 2 or 3 credit hours. Individualized research projects, under the supervision of a faculty member, are available every semester for 1 to 2 hours of credit. Special lecture series include the Philip H. Corboy Lecture, the Wing-Tat Lee Lecture on international and comparative law, the Christopher T. Hurley Lecture, and the Law and Literature Lecture. Study-abroad programs include the Rome Program and the Beijing Program. Rome and Beijing are each 4- to 5-week summer programs offering 4 or 5 elective courses for 2 credits each. There is a 2-week London Advocacy Program and a Chile immersion program. Loyola’s Academic Enhancement Program is conducted during the spring semester. The voluntary program provides extensive tutoring and faculty mentors to students who fall within the lower 20% of the first-year class. The Child Advocacy Program utilizes interdisciplinary instruction and field experience to train students to become child advocates. The Public Interest Law Program provides law students with opportunities to explore public interest law through the legal clinic. The most widely taken electives are Evidence, Sales, and Secured Transactions.
To earn the J.D., candidates must complete 86 total credits, of which 30 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, Constitutional Law I, Contracts, Criminal Law, Legal Research, Legal Writing I and II, Perspective elective, Property I, and Torts. Required upper-level courses consist of Advocacy, Constitutional Law II, and Professional Responsibility. The orientation program for first-year students is mandatory.
To graduate, candidates must have a GPA of 2.0 and 86 hours that fulfill all required courses.