UC Davis School of Law

University of California
Davis School of Law
Motto Fiat lux (Latin)
Parent school University of California
Established 1965[1]
School type Public
Parent endowment $598 million (2010)[2]
Dean Kevin Johnson
Location Davis, California, US
Enrollment 589[1]
Faculty 62[1]
USNWR ranking 23[1]
Bar pass rate 88% (ABA profile)
Annual tuition $41,763 (In-state)
$50,595 (Out-of-state)[1]
Website www.law.ucdavis.edu
ABA profile UC Davis Profile

The University of California Davis School of Law (Martin Luther King, Jr. Hall), referred to as UC Davis School of Law and commonly known as King Hall and UC Davis Law, is an American Bar Association approved law school located in Davis, California on the campus of the University of California, Davis. The school received ABA approval in 1968.[3] It joined the Association of American Law Schools (AALS) in 1968.[4]

By design, UC Davis School of Law is the smallest of the five law schools in the University of California system, with a total enrollment of just under 600 students. Located in a building named for Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and commonly referred to as King Hall,[5] the School is committed to preserving Dr. King's ideal of social and political justice.

The School’s traditional and emerging areas of study include business law, criminal law and procedure, environmental and natural resources law, health care law and bioethics, human rights and social justice law, intellectual property law, immigration law, international and comparative law, constitutional law, and public interest law. Certificate programs are offered in Public Service Law, Environment and Natural Resources Law, and Pro Bono Service.

Among the UC Davis School of Law's assets are award-winning trial and appellate advocacy programs, clinics, and externships, five student-run journals, and more than 40 active student organizations.

Contents

Rankings and academics

UC Davis is one of the top 5 law schools in California, and one of the top 25 law schools in the United States. US News & World Report ranks UC Davis 23rd among top law schools in the U.S.,[1] and as the second most diverse of the four law schools in the UC system (after UC Hastings).[6] Princeton Review placed UC Davis tenth in the nation in the 2009 version of its annual ranking of faculty diversity among American law schools. It is listed as an "A-" in the March 2011 "Diversity Honor Roll" by The National Jurist: The Magazine for Law Students.[7]

It is listed as an "A" (#16) in the January 2011 "Best Public Interest Law Schools" ratings by The National Jurist: The Magazine for Law Students.[8]

UC Davis Law has the smallest student body of the UC schools, but a slightly larger student/faculty ratio than UCLA or Berkeley.[9]

In addition, it is one of the least expensive law schools in the UC system, and it grants the most in financial aid after UCLA, so students tend to graduate with less debt on average than other schools in the UC system.[10][11][12] UC Davis Law's King Hall Loan Repayment Assistance Program (LRAP), founded in 1990 to help alumni working in relatively low-income public-service law careers to repay student loans, was the first loan repayment assistance program established at any UC law school.

According to Brian Leiter's Law School rankings, Davis ranks 23rd in the nation in terms of scholarly impact as measured by academic citations of tenure-stream faculty.[13]

In February 2008, the The National Jurist: The Magazine for Law Students ranked the UC Davis Law Review number 30 on its list of the 100 best law reviews.[14]

The school is a member of the Order of the Coif, a national law school honorary society founded for the purposes of encouraging legal scholarship and advancing the ethical standards of the legal profession.[15]

Bar passage rates

Based on a 2001-2007 6 year average, 79.4% of UC Davis Law graduates passed the California State Bar.[16] In 2009, 89% of first-time test takers passed the California bar.[17]

Post-graduation employment

Based on a 2001-2007 6 year average, 93% of UC Davis Law graduates were employed 9 months after graduation.[16]

Expansion

The law school is currently undergoing $30 million expansion project that is beginning its second phase. The project thus far has added an additional wing to the law school's current building, increasing assignable space by nearly 30 percent to provide for additional classrooms, offices, and a new courtroom, named the Paul and Lydia Kalmanovitz Appellate Courtroom in honor of a $1 million gift to the project from the Kalmanovitz Charitable Foundation. The courtroom is used by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, California Supreme Court, and California Court of Appeal. The second phase, now underway, includes major renovations to the existing structure that will improve aesthetics and traffic flow as well as provide the infrastructure necessary for new technologies. Construction information, floor plans, and a live construction camera are all available on the school's website.[18]

Centers at King Hall

Journals at King Hall

Student Organizations and Programs at King Hall

Noted people

Faculty

Alumni

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f "U.S. News & World Report, "Best Law Schools: University of California -- Davis"". http://grad-schools.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-graduate-schools/top-law-schools/school-of-law-03017. Retrieved April 14, 2011. 
  2. ^ "UC Annual Endowment Report, Fiscal Year Ended June 30, 2010". Office of the Treasurer of the Regents of the University of California. 2010. http://www.ucop.edu/treasurer/foundation/foundation.pdf. Retrieved April 22, 2010. 
  3. ^ "ABA-Approved Law Schools by Year". ABA website. http://www.americanbar.org/groups/legal_education/resources/aba_approved_law_schools/by_year_approved.html. Retrieved April 20, 2011. 
  4. ^ AALS Member Schools
  5. ^ King Hall
  6. ^ "America's Best Graduate Schools 2008, Law School Diversity Index". US News & World Report. http://grad-schools.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/usnews/edu/grad/rankings/law/brief/lawdiv_brief.php. Retrieved 2007-10-20. 
  7. ^ Larsen, Rebecca (March 2011), "Most Diverse Law Schools (Diversity Honor Roll)", The National Jurist (San Diego, California: Cypress Magazines) 20 (6): 30–37, http://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/cypress/nationaljurist0311/#/32 
  8. ^ Weyenberg, Michelle (January 2011), "Best Law Schools for Public Interest", The National Jurist (San Diego, California: Cypress Magazines) 20 (4): 24–28, http://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/cypress/nationaljurist0111/index.php#/24 
  9. ^ "America's Best Graduate Schools 2008, What are the largest and smallest law schools?". US News. http://grad-schools.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/usnews/edu/grad/webextras/brief/sb_law_size_brief.php. Retrieved 2007-10-20. 
  10. ^ "America's Best Graduate Schools 2008, Who's the priciest? Who's the cheapest?". US News & World Report. http://grad-schools.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/usnews/edu/grad/webextras/brief/sb_law_cost_public_brief.php. Retrieved 2007-10-20. 
  11. ^ "America's Best Graduate Schools 2008, Which public schools award the most and the least financial aid?". US News. http://grad-schools.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/usnews/edu/grad/webextras/brief/sb_law_finaid_public_brief.php. Retrieved 2007-10-20. 
  12. ^ "America's Best Graduate Schools 2008, Whose graduates have the most debt? The least?". US News. http://grad-schools.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/usnews/edu/grad/webextras/brief/sb_law_debt_brief.php. Retrieved 2007-10-20. 
  13. ^ "Top 25 Law Faculties Based on Scholarly Impact, 2005-2009". http://www.leiterrankings.com/new/2010_scholarlyimpact.shtml. 
  14. ^ "National Jurist's 100 Best Law Reviews". National Jurist. http://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/cypress/nationaljurist0208/index.php?startid=22. Retrieved 2008-09-25. 
  15. ^ Order of the Coif member schools
  16. ^ a b "Internet Legal Research Group: University of California-Davis School of Law, 2009 profile". http://www.ilrg.com/rankings/law/view.php/112. Retrieved April 13, 2011. 
  17. ^ Robertson, Kathy (2009-11-25). "Top UC Davis, McGeorge law students raise the bar". Sacramento Business Journal. http://sacramento.bizjournals.com/sacramento/stories/2009/11/23/daily27.html. Retrieved 2010-03-01. 
  18. ^ "UC Davis School of Law: Our New Building". UC Davis School of Law. http://www.law.ucdavis.edu/alumni/giving/camera.html. Retrieved 2008-12-01. 

External links