College of Law
Graduate
Dean: Erin O'Hara O'Connor; Associate Deans: Shawn Bayern, Nancy L. Benavides, Jessica Dworkin, Debra Henley, Jeffrey Kahn, David E. Landau, Catherine Miller, Erin Ryan, Manuel Utset, Kelli Alces Williams; Assistant Deans: Karusha Sharpe, Glenda L. Thornton; Director of Business Law Programs: Alva Smith; Assistant Dean of Development: Hovik Arakelian; Director of the Research Center: Elizabeth Farrell Clifford
The Florida State University College of Law's highly accomplished and accessible faculty delivers a program with a liberal-arts orientation designed to produce well-rounded and effective lawyers.
U.S. News & World Report (2022) ranks the College of Law as the forty-seventh best law school in the nation. Florida State's environmental program is ranked the nation's twenty-first best. National Jurist magazine ranks Florida State the nation's eighth "Best Value" law school. According to a 2018 study of law faculty scholarly impact, our faculty is number one in Florida and twenty-ninth nationally.
Florida State University College of Law students have extremely strong credentials. The current student body represents 42 U.S. states, 38 countries, and 299 colleges and universities. The 2022 entering class has a median LSAT of 165 and a median GPA of 3.83. Students continue to succeed after they enroll in our school. Since 2010, the Moot Court Team has won first place in thirty-eight national competitions and in one international competition. In 2020, for the ninth time since 2008, Florida State's Student Bar Association received the National Achievement Award which honors the best SBA in the nation, from the Law Student Division of the American Bar Association. Our Black Law Students Association (BSLA) has been named National Chapter of the Year four times since 2011.
The law school places great value on close working relationships among students and faculty. Students consistently say that the accessible faculty of experts is what makes their law-school experience outstanding. The dynamic faculty is comprised of nationally and internationally recognized scholars who make it a priority to be available to students inside and outside of the classroom. Many of our law professors have worked at prestigious national law firms. The faculty is very much at "the cutting edge." They are productive and successful, and want students to be, too.
Florida State University offers law students a wealth of legal employment opportunities. The unique legal opportunities that accompany being in a state capital are invaluable. The experiences that FSU Law students have in Tallahassee and around the globe translate into careers all over the world. Tallahassee is home to more than 500 law firms and numerous government agencies. The Florida State University College of Law is just steps away from the state capitol, the Florida Supreme Court, and the United States District Court for the Northern District of Florida. In their second and third years of law school, students have ample opportunity to work part-time in private law firms, with trial or appellate courts, at the Florida Legislature, for government agencies, or at public interest organizations.
Florida State University College of Law graduates are highly valued in the legal marketplace. Florida State consistently has one of the best job placement rates in Florida and the region. The College of Law alumni network is a primary reason why our graduates fare so well in the legal job market. Alumni are extremely engaged in helping to connect students with job opportunities. From practicing attorneys to judges to business and government leaders, alumni frequently appear as guest lecturers or adjunct professors. Many come to campus or engage by videoconference technology to provide job search and career advice to students. Many host receptions in their communities to help students network. More than 1,000 alumni have specifically volunteered to serve as Career Mentors, helping students with job placement in Florida and around the world.
The College of Law offers unique programs to undergraduates interested in attending law school. Under a 3+3 Accelerated Bachelor's/JD Program, students attending one of our six partner institutions who meet certain admission requirements can complete a bachelor's degree and a law degree in six years rather than the traditional seven, saving a year of time and costs. Undergraduate students who gain admission into the JD program through the 3+3 program will follow the usual prescribed course of study for full-time, first-year law students. Upon successful completion of the first year of law school, the thirty credits earned will be counted toward the undergraduate degree, sufficient to complete university requirements for the bachelor's degree. The Juris Doctor degree will be awarded upon successful completion of the required minimum eighty-eight total course credits in the law school (including the thirty hours earned as part of the 3+3 program) and all other JD graduation requirements.
The Donald J. Weidner Summer for Undergraduates program is the largest of its kind and has become a model for other law schools in the nation. Each year, approximately sixty undergraduate college students are chosen to participate in this month-long program that exposes students to the law school experience. During the program, undergraduates attend daily classes taught by law-school professors and writing instructors. Lectures familiarize students with the functions of the American legal system and the process by which conflicts are resolved. Writing workshops help students develop their writing and communication skills. In addition to classes, the program hosts guest lecturers from the legal community and includes observation of courtroom proceedings and visits to local law firms. The Florida State University College of Law provides room and board, course materials, and a $500 stipend to all participants. Students are responsible for their travel to and from Tallahassee. For more information about this program, please contact the Office of Student Advancement at (850) 644-7338 or send an email to summerprogram@law.fsu.edu.
The College of Law also offers an honors program to Florida State University undergraduates. Each year, a select number of Honors Program undergraduate students are invited to apply to the Florida State University Honors Legal Scholars Program. This competitive program provides honors students the opportunity to become members of the law school community as undergraduate students. As a member of the Honors Legal Scholars Program, students have the unique opportunity to meet and interact with College of Law faculty members and administrators, observe law classes, attend law school events and lectures, and gain valuable information and insight into law school and the legal profession. Upon completion of their bachelor's degrees, these scholars will receive automatic admission to the FSU College of Law, provided that they complete and submit an FSU law school application; have an LSAT score of 161 or higher, or a Verbal GRE score of 160 or higher, and an undergraduate GPA of at least 3.75; and have a record that reflects the fitness of character to study law. For more information about this honors program, please contact the Admissions Office at (850) 644-3787 or admissions@law.fsu.edu.
Curriculum and Special Programs
The College of Law's three-year curriculum for the Juris Doctor (JD) degree is rich and diverse; it begins with traditional courses and expands to include the latest in theoretical and interdisciplinary analyses. The school has especially strong programs in environmental law, international law, business law, and criminal law, civil rights law, and family law, with certificate programs in the first three areas.
The College of Law has four student-edited journals and trial and appellate advocacy teams. The journals include the Florida State University Law Review, the Journal of Land Use & Environmental Law, the Journal of Transnational Law & Policy, and the FSU Business Review. The College of Law's advocacy teams are regionally and nationally competitive.
The College of Law offers a Master of Laws (LLM) in American Law for Foreign Lawyers, which provides law-trained foreign graduate students with the opportunity to develop an understanding of the American legal system and the role of law in the United States. The LLM in American Law degree requires students to complete twenty-four credit hours, within three years (an American LLM student may not take more than thirty-five law credit hours).
The College of Law also offers a Master of Laws (LLM) in Business Law, which gives Juris Doctor (JD) holders and law-trained foreign graduate students training in advanced business law and finance in areas of growing demand, such as regulatory compliance, in-house counsel and financial regulation. The LLM in Business Law degree requires students to complete twenty-four credit hours, within three years (a Business LLM student may not take more than thirty-five law credit hours).
Building on its highly ranked environmental law program, Florida State Law offers a Master of Laws (LLM) in Environmental Law and Policy, which gives Juris Doctor (JD) holders the opportunity to concentrate in or enhance their knowledge of environmental law, land use law, and energy law. The LLM in Environmental Law degree requires students to complete twenty-four credit hours, within three years (an Environmental LLM student may not take more than thirty-five law credit hours).
The College of Law offers a Juris Master (JM), a one-year master's program in law that is intended for those who possess a bachelor's degree and who want to advance their careers with a year of legal and regulatory compliance training. The program is flexible with few required courses – students can tailor their curriculum for their specific professional advancement goals. The Juris Master degree requires students to complete thirty credit hours, within three years (a JM student may not take more than forty-five law credit hours). The Juris Master program can be completed on-campus or online. The latter offers students five concentrations: Cybersecurity, Privacy, and Technology Risk Management; Employment Law and HR Risk Management; Financial Regulation and Compliance; Health Care Regulation; and Legal Risk Management, Contracting, and Compliance.
Additionally, the College of Law offers one of the most extensive externship programs in the United States, with more than one hundred placements throughout Florida and elsewhere. Clinics at the law school's Public Interest Law Center provide "live client" training for second- and third-year students on a wide variety of legal services, specializing in everything from elder law cases, to juvenile delinquency cases, to immigration advocacy. In addition, students in the Business Law Clinic learn transactional skills and earn academic credit by helping advise business and social entrepreneurs within the Florida State University community.
The College of Law offers nine joint graduate pathways in cooperation with other colleges, schools, and departments at Florida State University. The joint pathways bring together the study of law with oceanography and aquatic environmental sciences, business, information law, information technology, international affairs, public administration, social work, sport management, as well as urban and regional planning.
Summer Program in Law at Oxford
The College of Law conducts a summer program at Oxford University in England. As the oldest ongoing program in Oxford sponsored by a U.S. law school, this program provides students with a unique opportunity to study comparative law and the history of the English common law and its institutions in their native setting. Since its establishment in 1973, approximately forty-five law students from the United States and Canada as well as a limited number of graduate students in related fields, lawyers, and others have been taught annually by tenured members of the Oxford University and The Florida State University law faculties.
Questions concerning the application and program may be directed to Shirley Oglesby, Assistant to the Director, (850) 645-0926 or at https://law.fsu.edu/academics/academic-programs/study-abroad/oxford
Academic Policies
All academic policies of the College of Law can be found at: https://law.fsu.edu/academics/academic-resources/academic-rules-policies.
Admission Requirements
For August admission, students must apply between September 1 and July 31, or by the deadline published by the College of Law. The College of Law enrolls only one JD class in the fall of each year and does not offer a part-time or evening program. Submit and complete an application as early as possible.
Factors considered by the admissions committee include numerical credentials (LSAT and GPA), exceptional personal talents, interesting or demanding work or service experience, leadership potential, rigorousness of the undergraduate course of study, maturity, a history of overcoming economic or other social hardships, ability to communicate effectively, and other factors. Decisions on applicant files are made as early as October.
One of the greatest strengths of the College of Law is its student body, which currently represents 42 U.S. states and territories, 38 countries, and 299 colleges and universities.
Admission to the College of Law is a competitive process; the 2022 class had a median LSAT score of 165 and a median GPA of 3.83.
All registrants are required to have a baccalaureate degree from a regionally accredited college or university prior to commencing law study. Every prospective law student must take the Law School Admissions Test given by the Law School Admission Council, or the GRE given by Education Testing Services (ETS). For more information about the LSAT, please visit https://www.lsac.org. Registration with the Credential Assembly Service is also required. For more information about the GRE, please visit http://www.ets.org.
Juris Master students are admitted for the fall, spring, and summer semesters. All application deadlines are posted online.
Applicants for the LL.M. in American Law for Foreign Lawyers program, may apply for fall admission, with a completion deadline of July 15. International students are strongly encouraged to submit their application by June 1.
Applicants for the LL.M. in Environmental Law and Policy program and LL.M. in Business Law program may apply for fall or spring admission, with a completion deadline of July 15 for fall, and November 1 for spring. International students are strongly encouraged to submit their application by June 1 for fall admission and by October 1 for spring admission.
Applicants for the online LL.M. in Business Law, may apply for either fall, spring or summer admission, with a completion deadline of July 15 for fall, November 1 for spring, and April 1 for summer.
For more information about the admissions process, please visit https://law.fsu.edu/admissions-financial-aid/admissions/jd-procedures or call (850) 644-3787.
Student Services
The Student Advancement Office is responsible for coordinating a number of different services, activities, and programs for the benefit of all law students. The Student Advancement Office assists students in all facets of student life, from financial aid to the adjustment to law school. The Career Services and Professional Development Office assists students in finding employment both during and after law school. The primary goal of the Career Services Office is to provide students and alumni with the tools and skills that they need to launch successful job searches and fulfilling legal careers.
The Academic Programs Office was created in 2017 to provide more personalized guidance to students on course selection and to offer enhanced legal writing and other academic support. The office is also dedicated to helping students and recent graduates as they prepare for bar exams. FSU Law also has a full-time bar support professor, whose sole focus is helping students prepare for bar exams and who has a strong record of preparing test-takers for success.
The law school Research Center is a dynamic, highly responsive force in the life of the College of Law. An indispensable resource for faculty members, students, alumni, attorneys, and members of the public, the Research Center is dedicated to research, teaching, and service. The distinctive feature of our Research Center is that its faculty proactively trains students and other faculty members to produce highly sophisticated, cost-effective legal research. For example, we offer specialized courses in efficient research relating to environmental law, economics, business and tax law, and international law. Students also have 24/7 access to one of the most comprehensive collections of legal materials, including databases, current awareness services used in law firms, and practice resources used by lawyers.