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Washington University School of Law

Coordinates: 38°38′59″N 90°18′43″W / 38.64968°N 90.31205°W / 38.64968; -90.31205
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
For the law school in Seattle, Washington, see University of Washington School of Law.
Washington University School of Law
MottoPer Veritatem Vis
(Strength Through Truth)
Parent schoolWashington University in St. Louis
Established1867
School typePrivate law school
Parent endowment$12 billion [1]
DeanStefanie Lindquist
LocationSt. Louis, Missouri, U.S.
Enrollment718
Faculty136 (full-time), 95 (part-time)[2]
USNWR ranking16th (tie) (2024)
Bar pass rate91.93% (2023 first-time takers)
Websitelaw.washu.edu
ABA profileStandard 509

The Washington University School of Law[3][4] (WashU Law) is the law school of Washington University in St. Louis, a private research university in St. Louis, Missouri.[5] Founded in 1867, it is the oldest continuously operating law school west of the Mississippi River.[6]

The school consistently ranks highly in popular law school ranking publications. In 2024, it was ranked 16th among 196 law schools by U.S. News & World Report and 6th in the nation by Above the Law in 2022.[7][8]

WashU Law offers JD, LLM, MLS, and JSD degrees, along with a range of dual-degree programs in conjunction with other schools at the university. Currently, the school graduates around 230 to 250 JD students each year.

History

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Anheuser Busch Hall

Founded in 1867, WashU Law is the oldest continuously operating law school west of the Mississippi River (the oldest, Saint Louis University School of Law, operated briefly from 1843-1847 and was reestablished in 1908).[6][9] The law school was originally located in downtown St. Louis and then relocated in 1904 to the Danforth Campus of Washington University in St. Louis.

In January 1997, the Washington University School of Law moved into Anheuser-Busch Hall. Anheuser-Busch Hall architecturally mirrors the classic style of the Washington University Danforth Campus.

Admissions

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For the class entering in fall 2024, there were 244 matriculants. The 25th and 75th LSAT percentiles for the 2022 entering class were 163 and 176, respectively, with a median of 173. The 25th and 75th undergraduate GPA percentiles were 3.45 and 4.00, respectively, with a median of 3.96. The acceptance rate for JD candidates in 2022 was 18.02% and 25.18% of accepted applicants enrolled. Ten enrollees were not included in the acceptance rate.[10]

Employment

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According to WashU Law's official 2023 ABA-required disclosures, 98.2% of 2023 graduates had secured full-time employment within nine months of graduation. A total of 63.7% had found employment in firms of more than 250 lawyers or had secured federal judicial clerkships.[11]

According to U.S. News & World Report, the median starting salary for WashU Law's Class of 2023 graduates in the private sector was $205,000.[7]

Costs

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The total cost of attendance (indicating the cost of tuition, fees, and living expenses) at WashU Law for the 2022–2023 academic year was $89,678.[12]

2022-23 Expenses
Category Per Annum
Tuition $64,488
Room $8,910
Board $5,958
Books $1,500
Misc $5,000
University Health & Wellness Fee $576
Student Bar Association Fee $70
Legal LAUNCH Week Fee $70
University Health Insurance $2,232
Yellow Zone 3 Parking Permit $874
Total $89,678

Journals

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The Washington University School of Law sponsors four student-run scholarly legal journals.

  • Washington University Law Review began as the St. Louis Law Review in 1915 and was re-titled the Washington University Law Quarterly in 1936.
  • Washington University Journal of Law and Policy originated in 1968 as the Urban Law Annual and focused entirely on issues surrounding land use, urban development, and other legal concerns of urban communities.
  • Washington University Global Studies Law Review is a student-edited international legal journal dedicated to publishing articles by international, foreign, and comparative law scholars.
  • Washington University Jurisprudence Review was formed in 2008 and is the only student-edited, in-print journal of law and philosophy.

Rankings and honors

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The 2024 edition of U.S. News & World Report Best Grad Schools ranked WashU Law:

  • tied for #16 overall

Law School Specialty Rankings:

  • tied for #20 in Business/Corporate Law
  • tied for #12 in Clinical Training
  • tied for #19 in Constitutional Law
  • tied for #18 in Contracts/Commercial Law
  • tied for #18 in Criminal Law
  • tied for #21 in Dispute Resolution
  • tied for #70 in Environmental Law
  • tied for #24 in Health Care Law
  • tied for #30 in Intellectual Property Law
  • tied for #29 in International Law
  • tied for #32 in Tax Law
  • tied for #25 in Trial Advocacy[7]

The 2022 edition of The Princeton Review Best Law Schools ranked WashU Law:

  • 6th in Best for Federal Clerkships[13]

Leiter's Law School Rankings placed the law school:

  • 10th in where elite litigation boutiques hire[14]

The Above the Law 2022 law school rankings ranked WashU Law:

  • 6th in the country overall

Degree programs

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Juris doctor program

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JD students are required to take 86 semester hours of credit in order to graduate. In the first year of law school all students are required to take one semester each of Contracts, Property, Torts, Civil Procedure, Constitutional Law, and Criminal Law. Additionally, in fall of their first year all students are required to take Legal Practice I and Legal Research Methodologies I, and in spring of their first year students are required to take Legal Practice II and Legal Research Methodologies II. The second and third year offer more flexibility in planning the student's curriculum as there are only two mandatory classes (a class from the ethics curriculum and one seminar).

Joint degree programs

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The School of Law offers five joint degree programs (usually completed in four years):

JD-MBA, with the Washington University in St. Louis Olin Business School
JD-MA in East Asian Studies, with the Washington University School of Arts and Sciences
JD-MA in Economics, with the Washington University School of Arts and Sciences
JD-MHA in Health Administration, with the Washington University School of Medicine
JD-MSW, with the Washington University in St. Louis George Warren Brown School of Social Work
JD-LLM, with the University of Queensland

Master of Laws program

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The Washington University School of Law offers an LL.M. in U.S. Law for international students, an LL.M. in Negotiation and Dispute Resolution, an LL.M. in Intellectual Property & Technology Law, and an LL.M. in Taxation. An Online Master of Laws in U.S. Law program and an Online Master of Legal Studies program are also available.[15][16] The school also offers a Dual LL.M. Degree with the Tecnológico de Monterrey's Escuela de Gobierno y Transformación Pública in Mexico.[17]

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This program is a graduate program designed for non-lawyers.[18]

Juris scientiae doctoris program

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The JSD program emphasizes original research and writing culminating in the preparation of a significant and extensive dissertation of publishable quality.[19]

Online law programs

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In January 2013, the Washington University School of Law started to offer an online LL.M. in U.S. Law degree for international students.[20] The school also offers an online Master of Legal Studies degree and a dual LL.M. degree.

Online program in taxation

The Washington University School of Law offers an online LL.M. degree in Taxation for U.S. candidates who already possess a J.D. degree, and for foreign lawyers.[21]

Online program

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The Master of Laws in U.S. Law program at the Washington University School of Law is an online degree offering meant for international lawyers. The LL.M. curriculum consists of live online classes with weekly coursework.[22]

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The curriculum focuses on appropriate legal procedure with regard to contracts, intellectual property, business associations, negotiation, immigration law, and cyber security.[23]

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  • Appellate Clinic
  • Civil Rights and Mediation Clinic
  • Criminal Justice Clinic
  • Entrepreneurship & Intellectual Property Clinic
  • First Amendment Clinic
  • Immigration Clinic
  • Interdisciplinary Environmental Clinic
  • Low Income Taxpayer Clinic
  • Post-Conviction Relief Clinical Practicum
  • Prosecution Law Clinic
  • Wrongful Conviction Clinic

Research centers and institutes

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  • Center for Empirical Research in the Law - focuses on applying sophisticated empirical methodology to legal studies research.[24]
  • Center for Research on Innovation and Entrepreneurship - provides law students with the ability to work with intellectual property counsel and provide legal advice to both the University and the wider community. Law students collaborate with students from the School of Medicine, Olin School of Business, the Department of Biomedical Engineering, the George Warren Brown School of Social Work, and Arts & Sciences.
  • Whitney R. Harris World Law Institute - focuses as a center for instruction and research in international and comparative law to prepare students for a global society.

Notable alumni

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Academia and business

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Government and politics

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Judiciary

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Other

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References

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  1. ^ "About the Endowment". Washington University in St. Louis. Washington University. Retrieved 2024-12-10.
  2. ^ "Consumer Information ABA Required Disclosures - WashULaw". law.washu.edu. 2018-07-31. Retrieved 2024-12-09.
  3. ^ "Washington University School of Law". www.americanbar.org. Archived from the original on 2023-04-20. Retrieved 2023-04-30.
  4. ^ "Washington University School of Law | The Law School Admission Council". www.lsac.org. Archived from the original on 2023-04-17. Retrieved 2023-04-30.
  5. ^ "Home - WashU Law". www.law.WUStL.edu. Archived from the original on October 15, 2014. Retrieved July 3, 2017.
  6. ^ a b Owens, Dennis (1976). "American Law Schools in Their Second Century". Journal of Legal Education. 28 (2): 210–215. ISSN 0022-2208. JSTOR 42892391. Archived from the original on 2021-12-09. Retrieved 2021-04-08.
  7. ^ a b c "Washington University in St. Louis School of Law". U.S. News & World Report. Retrieved 2019-04-10.
  8. ^ Djordjevich, Vera (2022-06-08). "The 2022 ATL Top 50 Law School Rankings Are Here - Above the Law". abovethelaw.com. Retrieved 2024-12-09.
  9. ^ "History". www.slu.edu. Archived from the original on 2021-10-29. Retrieved 2021-04-08.
  10. ^ "Washington University School of Law - 2022 Standard 509 Information Report". abarequireddisclosures.org. American Bar Association. Retrieved April 10, 2024.
  11. ^ "Consumer Information ABA Required Disclosures - WashULaw". law.washu.edu. 2018-07-31. Retrieved 2024-12-09.
  12. ^ "Tuition and Expenses". 31 July 2018. Archived from the original on 2020-05-27. Retrieved 2019-04-22.
  13. ^ "Best for Federal Clerkships | The Princeton Review". www.princetonreview.com. Archived from the original on 2023-04-09. Retrieved 2023-04-09.
  14. ^ "Where Elite Litigation Boutiques Hire". www.leiterrankings.com. Archived from the original on 2023-04-09. Retrieved 2023-04-09.
  15. ^ "Online Master of Legal Studies Degree (MLS) | @WashULaw". Archived from the original on 2018-08-01. Retrieved 2018-08-01.
  16. ^ "Online Master of Law (LL.M.) Program in U.S. Law | @WashULaw". Archived from the original on 2018-08-01. Retrieved 2018-08-01.
  17. ^ "Dual LL.M. Degree with Tecnológico de Monterrey | @WashULaw". Archived from the original on 2019-04-15. Retrieved 2018-08-01.
  18. ^ "Washington University Law - Master of Legal Studies (MLS)". law.wustl.edu. Archived from the original on May 27, 2020. Retrieved July 3, 2017.
  19. ^ "Programs for International Lawyers/Juridicae Scientiae Doctor (JSD) Program". 9 October 2018. Archived from the original on 2020-05-27. Retrieved 2019-08-22.
  20. ^ "Online Law Degree Debuted by Top-Tier Washington University". www.geteducated.com. Archived from the original on 2018-12-06. Retrieved 2018-12-05.
  21. ^ "Washington University School of Law's online LL.M. in taxation website". Archived from the original on 2020-06-09. Retrieved 2020-01-02.
  22. ^ "Online Master of Law (LL.M.) Program in U.S. Law | @WashULaw". onlinelaw.wustl.edu. Archived from the original on 2018-08-01. Retrieved 2018-12-28.
  23. ^ "Online Master of Legal Studies Degree (MLS) | @WashULaw". onlinelaw.wustl.edu. Archived from the original on 2018-08-01. Retrieved 2019-01-04.
  24. ^ "The Center For Empirical Research in the Law". The Center For Empirical Research in the Law. Archived from the original on 2023-07-06. Retrieved 2023-05-18.
  25. ^ "UCSF Neurologist to Receive Prestigious Scientific | Newswise". www.newswise.com. Retrieved 24 August 2024.
  26. ^ "President Biden Announces Jonathan Kanter for Assistant Attorney General for Antitrust". 20 July 2021. Archived from the original on 16 April 2022. Retrieved 24 March 2022.
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38°38′59″N 90°18′43″W / 38.64968°N 90.31205°W / 38.64968; -90.31205

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