Susan Westerberg Prager, Dean
By any standard, the UCLA School of Law is recognized as one of the nation's great law schools. This reputation is based on excellence in scholarship, a rigorous educational program, and the quality of the faculty which includes eminent authorities in all major fields of law.
The educational program at the UCLA School of Law is rigorous and competitive, but it takes place in a humane environment where there is a genuine spirit of community. The student body of the school is intellectually distinguished, interesting, and culturally diverse.
The school's strong clinical program offers courses in lawyering skills such as interviewing, counseling, negotiation, and trial advocacy. UCLA students, alumni, and faculty have collaborated to pioneer clinical legal education. Students see more focus on the attorney/client relationship; they see more of what will ultimately face them as lawyers and policymakers.
An extensive and diversified student extern program, one of the most highly regarded moot court programs in the nation, and a basic philosophy that teaches law students to think clearly and analytically, but with compassion, all contribute to the distinction of the school.
The School of Law, one of two academic units at UCLA which operate on a semester (rather than quarter) system, offers a three-year curriculum leading to the J.D. degree. The school is accredited by the California Committee of Bar Examiners, is a member of the Association of American Law Schools, and is on the approved list of the American Bar Association. Graduates of the school are qualified to apply for admission to practice in any state in the U.S.
The school is designed to produce lawyers who are well-prepared for the various private and public roles which are assigned to members of the legal profession. Students do not undertake a specific major but have the opportunity to enroll in a wide variety of courses dealing with various legal fields.
Juris Doctor (J.D.)
Master of Laws (LL.M.)
Juris Doctor Degree
Students beginning their professional work are admitted only for the Fall Semester. You must have received a bachelor's degree from a university or college of approved standing before beginning work in the school. You are also required to take the Law School Admission Test (LSAT). The admissions committee considers grades and test scores and, in appropriate cases, such additional factors as ability in languages other than English, work experience or career achievement, previous positions of leadership or other special achievements, ethnic background, prior community or public service, unusual life experiences, overcoming a physical disability or other disadvantage, career goals, economic disadvantages, and any other characteristic which may indicate that you will contribute to the educational and other benefits of a diversified student body.
For detailed information about the academic programs offered by the School of Law, the fees, and the semester-system calendar by which it operates, obtain the Announcement of the UCLA School of Law by contacting the Law Admissions Office, School of Law, 71 Dodd Hall, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA 90095-1445.
For information on the proficiency in English requirements for international graduate students, refer to Graduate Admission in the Graduate Study section of this catalog.
Candidates for the degree of Juris Doctor must pursue resident law school study for six semesters and successfully complete 87 units. The residence requirements may be satisfied as follows: (1) six semesters in regular session in this school or (2) two semesters in regular session (or equivalent) in a school which is accredited by the American Bar Association, coupled with four semesters in regular session (or equivalent) in this school.
Every first-year student is required to take the full schedule of required courses; second- and third-year students are required to take a minimum of 12 hours and may not take more than 16 hours each semester. The second- and third-year curriculum is elective, except for a required course in professional responsibility. In addition to the courses in the regular law school curriculum, students may take two courses for credit in other disciplines within the University. Graduate students may enroll in upper division law courses on a limited basis. Law courses are not open to non-UCLA students. Auditing is not permitted.
Attendance and Grades -- The right to take examinations and the privilege of continuing as a student in the school are conditioned on regular classroom attendance. Information on the grading system, which is based on a letter-grade scale of A+ to F, may be obtained from the Office of the Assistant Dean for Students. Standards for satisfactory performance and for graduation are prescribed by the faculty and are published separately. They may also be obtained from the above office.
The school offers courses of instruction within the school and supervised educational experiences outside it in an effort to enable its students to think intelligently and to prepare them for careers of practice and public service. To this end the school employs several instructional techniques in a variety of subject areas.
In the first year of their legal education students are exposed to an intensive study of legal reasoning in a series of fields which have historically dominated legal thought. In conjunction with these courses students also receive training in the use of legal bibliography and in effective legal writing and oral advocacy.
In the second and third years students have an opportunity to engage in a number of different fields of law and law-related study.
The School of Law offers three concurrent degree programs which allow you to fulfill the requirements of the J.D. and another graduate degree simultaneously.
The School of Law and the Department of Education offer a concurrent plan which allows students to design a program of study leading to the J.D. and any advanced degree in education (M.Ed., M.A., Ed.D., or Ph.D.). If the program meets the degree requirements in both areas, students are awarded both degrees on its completion.
The School of Law and the Department of Urban Planning offer a concurrent plan of study providing an integrated curriculum for students planning to specialize in the legal aspects of urban problems. Education in planning offers an overview of theories and methods that permit identification and treatment of urban problems; education in law offers insight into the institutional causes and possibilities for treatment of these problems. Students pursue studies in both areas and receive both the J.D. and M.A. degrees at the end of four years.
Students interested in the program must apply and be admitted to the School of Law, the Urban Planning Department, and the Graduate Division.
The School of Law and the John E. Anderson Graduate School of Management offer a concurrent program which enables students to prepare for careers where law and management overlap and where understanding of both fields is necessary. Examples of such areas would include public service, international trade, industrial relations, corporate law, and specialized areas of management consulting. The program makes it possible to earn the J.D. and M.B.A. in four academic years. Students interested in such a program should apply to both schools simultaneously.
The school offers a graduate law program leading to the Master of Laws (LL.M.) degree to outstanding international students interested in pursuing graduate studies. Law school graduates with outstanding records who may be interested in this program should contact Rita Saavedra, LL.M. Program, School of Law, 1242 Law, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA 90095-1476, for further information.
The UCLA School of Law offers on of the finest clinical education programs in the nation. Housed in a state-of-the-art clinical wing, the program provides extensive and rigorous practical training for student-lawyers prior to entry into the legal profession. Through simulated and actual client contact, students learn skills such as how to interview and counsel clients in litigation and nonlitigation matters, draft legal documents, examine and crossexamine witnesses, resolve legal disputes, and argue to a judge or jury. In the recently established Frank G. Wells Environmental Law Clinic, students derive hands-on experience working on a mixture of large and small cases, both federal and state, involving citizen enforcement actions under various environmental statutes, especially actions under the Clean water Act against polluters of the Santa Monica Bay.
In community outreach law, students work on a variety of projects that involve them with members of the community. In one project students created a workshop to teach lay people about Proposition 187, the California law now being challenged in federal court which eliminated government benefits for illegal immigrants. Other innovative programs include a mediation clinic working with cases in the municipal courts and a public policy advocacy course that focuses on public interest policy questions.
In addition to the speciality clinics, students can choose from an extensive array of clinical subjects ranging from trial advocacy and alternative dispute resolution to fact investigation and pretrial procedures. Students in most clinical courses work with real clients under close faculty supervision, either at the school's Clinic Law Office or, for some courses, in public interest law settings.
The clinical wing includes a two-story Law Office designed with modern lawyering technology in mind: the student work rooms are equipped with computers that operate on a network, access legal research databases, and use electronic mail.
The School of Law was a pioneer of clinical legal education, and the program continues on the cutting edge of new methods for training lawyers. The program has received the Emil Gumpert Award for Excellence in the Teaching of Trial Advocacy, and clinical faculty members have authored numerous influential texts and articles that are used in clinical courses nationwide.
The school has one of the most extensive, best established, and most diversified student extern programs in the nation. Under supervision of experienced practitioners and judges, students perform legal work in government law offices, public interest law firms, nonprofit agencies, and the chambers of state and federal judges.
In the semester-long program, students develop their legal skills outside the classroom context, gain practical experience in supervised settings, and acquire perspectives about the lawyering process or the judicial decision-making process. Students regularly report that the program is an excellent educational experience.