The Law Faculty, upon the recommendation of the Curriculum Committee, may designate a particular grouping of courses with other academic requirements as an “academic concentration.” In making such a designation, the Law School Faculty will require that the proposed “academic concentration” comply substantially with the following description guidelines.

Such designations are to be made in order to provide:

1. Focus of school resources and faculty effort in areas of the law likely to benefit students, the reputation of the Law School and the outside legal community.

2. Guidance in course selection and career development for students interested in pursuing a particular area of law practice.

3. An opportunity for students to distinguish themselves in a competitive job market.

4. Enhanced quality to the entire JD program.

An academic concentration shall consist of the following requirements:

1. An introductory academic course or sequence of academic courses.

2. Additional academic courses (including Base Menu courses) such that the total number of academic credits under (1) and (2) in each participating student’s program equals a minimum set for the academic concentration, which shall not be less than 14 credits, as determined by the faculty proposing the concentration and approved by the Law faculty.

3. A Skills course or internship in an agency or law firm that has been designated by a concentration Faculty Director as providing practical experience related to the concentration.

4. Successful completion of either a concentration thesis of publishable quality or the Law School’s legal writing requirement in a concentration course. A concentration Faculty Director must approve, in writing, the topic and supervisory arrangements for all students writing a thesis. All theses must be written under the supervision of a full time faculty member. If a student wishes to have an adjunct faculty member supervise a paper written in satisfaction of a concentration’s legal writing requirement, the student must obtain prior approval by a concentration faculty director and an Associate Dean. [as amended 11/30/00]

In order to qualify for completion of the concentration requirements, a student must (i) attain upon graduation a minimum cumulative average of 3.25 in concentration courses and must not have received a grade less than 2.00 in any such course; (ii) attain upon graduation a minimum cumulative average of 3.00 for the entire JD program; (iii) satisfy the concentration writing requirement; and (iv) in the case of the civil litigation concentration, complete an internship or clinical program approved by the concentration Faculty Director.  [as amended 11/30/00]

Any student who is in good academic standing and has successfully completed the first year of the Day program or of the Evening program may file with the Law School Registrar a Notice of Enrollment in a particular academic concentration. A student may be enrolled in only one such concentration at any time but may change enrollment to another concentration. The Law School Registrar shall forward a copy of each such notice to the appropriate concentration Faculty Director and the Administrative Director of Concentrations.

Students pursuing concentrations will be responsible for ensuring that they have satisfied the requirements of their chosen academic concentrations. Upon completing the requirements of an academic concentration, a participating student shall submit to the Law School Registrar a Notice of Concentration Completion specifying the courses taken, other programs completed in fulfillment of the concentration requirements, and how the student satisfied the concentration’s writing requirement. The Law School Registrar’s only obligation will be to notify students of the need to submit the Notice of Concentration Completion and to verify information presented in those notices. The appropriate concentration Faculty Director and the Administrative Director of Concentrations will determine in conjunction with the Law School Registrar whether students submitting Notices of Concentration Completion have satisfied the requirements necessary to earn an academic concentration.

1. Certificate. Upon graduation, each student who has completed all requirements for his or her academic concentration shall receive a certificate issued by the Law School indicating that the student has completed a concentration.

2. Certificate with Distinction. Concentration students who have either completed a thesis approved by a concentration Faculty Director or attained upon graduation a cumulative 3.50 average in all concentration courses shall receive a certificate indicating the student has completed the concentration with distinction.

3. Transcripts. Any academic transcript issued for a concentration graduate shall have a notation indicating that the student has completed his or her concentration, and, as applicable, whether a student has completed his or her concentration with distinction. An explanation of the nature of the concentration completed shall be attached to the transcript.

A student may receive a certificate and transcript notation in only one academic concentration. The certificates and transcript notations will make clear that these are academic concentrations, not practice specialties.

For each academic concentration designated by the Law Faculty, the Dean shall appoint a resident faculty member or members who shall serve as the concentration faculty director(s). The concentration Faculty Director(s) shall on an annual basis recommend to the Curriculum Committee for consideration by that committee and the Law School Faculty what courses or academic requirements should be added to or deleted from the concentration designation. However, routine amendments to concentration academic requirements may be adopted by the Curriculum Committee acting alone without subsequent Law School faculty validation. Routine amendments include amendments such as determining elective courses that may satisfy concentration requirements, as distinct from amendments affecting the structure or requirements of academic concentrations. In addition, the concentration Faculty Director(s) shall from time to time schedule conferences for faculty members teaching in the concentration, oversee the performance of adjunct faculty teaching in the concentration offering, and invite to the school speakers practicing in the area of the concentration. Faculty teaching in the concentration shall assist the concentration Faculty Director(s) in providing course selection and career development advice to students enrolled in the concentration.

See requirements for the financial services concentration set forth on the Law School website.

See requirements for the health and biomedical law concentration set forth on the Law School website.

See requirements for the intellectual property law concentration set forth on the Law School website.

See requirements for the international law concentration set forth on the Law School website.

See requirements for the civil litigation concentration set forth on the Law School website.