Academics

“We are blessed with students who come here and feel passionately about the law and justice. Salus populi suprema lex—‘The welfare of the people is the highest law’—is not an empty motto here. It is a belief that becomes part of every lecture, course and private discussion. This commitment to social justice is demonstrated in our clinical program. Whether representing neighborhood development groups, government agencies, indigent parents, juveniles or indigent criminal defendants, our students learn the art of lawyering. By graduation, most clinic students acquire more hands-on experience in their area of concentration than many long-time practitioners can claim. We also have scores of extern placements available with all federal, state and local courts, various government agencies and several regional hospitals. Each placement is designed to introduce the student to substantive areas of the law in real-life situations in which the stakes are usually high. If someone were to ask me what we do best, I would state it simply: We train lawyers with a passion for justice, be it the smallest or biggest case.”