Graduation Requirements
Method of Instruction
The educational program of the law school is designed to equip its graduates to render the highest quality of legal services, while instilling a sense of professional responsibility. Students are trained in the analysis and solution of legal problems by the application of logical reasoning. The course of study is not designed to teach legal rules, but rather to provide a foundation for the application and analysis of the law and the development of professional skills. The traditional case method of instruction is used in many courses. However, clinical education and courses devoted to various professional skills are increasingly prominent. The full-time faculty is augmented by a number of adjunct faculty members, lawyers, and judges, who offer courses in their areas of expertise. An excellent faculty offers a curriculum that is well balanced in theoretical and practical courses and carefully selected to prepare the graduate for the successful practice of law.
General Requirements
The 86 semester hours necessary for graduation must include the successful completion of the following courses and requirements:
| LAWR599, Appellate Advocacy | 2 sem. hrs. |
| LAWR598, Lawyering Skills III | 2 sem. hrs. |
| LAWR605, Professional Responsibility | 2 sem. hrs. |
Additional Requirement: Upper-Level Writing Requirement (ULWR)
During the second or third year of law school, the student must complete satisfactorily a substantial paper which requires in-depth research and rigorous analysis of a specific area of law and evidences a sophisticated knowledge of the law, including larger issues concerning the impact of the law on various parts of society, and future directions the law may take. This requirement may be fulfilled by an independent research paper meeting these goals, a paper prepared for a seminar course designated as approved for this requirement, or by publication of an article in the journal of an American Bar Association accredited law school.
The notation "Meets upper-level writing requirement" appears after the description of some of these courses. Other courses will occasionally be structured in a format so as to meet the requirement. The list of courses offered, published each year by the law school, indicates all the courses offered that year through which this requirement can be satisfied.