Academic Programs
The academic program leading to the Juris Doctor (JD) degree is designed to allow students to develop special skills in public law, business and commercial law, international law, property and land use, and related fields. In addition to the JD program, Washington College of Law offers the Master of Laws (LLM) in International Legal Studies, Law and Government, Advocacy, International Human Rights and Humanitarian law, Derechos Humanos y Derecho Humanitario, and Intellectual Property, as well as the Doctor of Juridical Science (SJD) The LLM program in International Legal Studies permits specialization in one of eight areas: international business law, international environmental law, international human rights law, gender and the law, international commercial arbitration, free trade agreements and regional integration, international organizations, and international and comparative protection of intellectual property. The LLM program in Law and Government allows graduate studies in the broad areas of civil and constitutional rights (including criminal law, disability rights, gender and the law, politics, and legislation), business and financial regulation (including banking, intellectual property, and securities), and administrative law and regulatory practice (including health law and policy, labor and employment law and policy, environmental law and policy, immigration law and policy, and national security law and policy). The LLM program in Advocacy provides opportunities for law graduates to enhance their legal advocacy skills in and out of the courtroom and combines a rigorous academic component and a breadth of practical litigation training. The LLM programs in International Human Rights and Humanitarian Law and Derechos Humanos y Derecho Humanitario are unique hybrid programs composed of online courses during the academic year and residential courses offered during summer sessions. They are designed for professionals who wish to pursue advanced human rights studies but are not able to attend a yearlong residential program.
WCL also participates in dual degree programs with other American University schools, which offer students the opportunity to receive both a JD from the Washington College of Law and a master’s degree in International Affairs with the School of International Service; Justice, Law and Criminology, Public Administration (MPA), or Public Policy (MPP) with the School of Public Affairs; or Business Administration (MBA) with the Kogod School of Business. Dual degree LLM programs are also available with the MBA, MPA, MPP, or MIS.
American University’s law school has a strong national and international substantive focus, offering a broad range of courses in addition to the basic program necessary for state bar examinations. Clinical programs involve students in providing representation, under close faculty supervision, of clients with pending legal problems. Students have responsibility for every phase of cases, from the initial client interview through the trial or appeal. The Clinics include Community and Economic Development Law, Criminal Justice, DC Law Students in Court, Disability Rights Law, Domestic Violence, Civil Advocacy, Glushko-Samuelson Intellectual Property Law, Janet R. Spragens Federal Tax, Immigrant Justice, International Humans Rights Law, and Women and the Law. For more information, go to: www.wcl.american.edu/clinical.
Beyond the classroom, clinical programs, and supervised externships and field placements at federal, state, and local agencies, courts, and legislatures, academic offerings are enriched by an extensive independent study program allowing for intensive faculty-student work on complex legal research projects. In addition, Washington College of Law publications, including The American University Law Review, The American University International Law Review, The Administrative Law Review, The American University Journal of Gender, Social Policy & the Law, and The American University Business Law Review provide opportunities for students to develop expertise in traditional legal writing and research. For more information and a full listing of WCL publications, go to: www.wcl.american.edu/pub.cfm.
The basic first-year classes are taught using case analysis and dialogue as well as the problem method. First-year students take Civil Procedure, Constitutional Law, Contracts, Criminal Law, Property, Torts, and a year-long course in legal research and writing. Upper-class courses are mostly elective and include a wide variety of teaching styles and formats.
Law Library
The Pence Law Library is central to legal research for Washington College of Law students and faculty. In addition to extensive holdings of legal publications and periodicals, the Law Library provides access to databases such as LexisNexis,Westlaw, HeinOnline, BloomburgBNA, ProQuest Congressional, and WorldCat, as well as the websites and catalogs of thousands of other libraries worldwide, including the Library of Congress, the libraries of all members of the Washington Research Library Consortium (WRLC) and the libraries of all other area law schools. Services to WCL alumni include off site access to HeinOnline, JStor, and Academic Search, Alumni Edition. All holdings and databases can be searched through the Law Library’s catalog, LEAGLE, at http://leagle.wcl.american.edu/.
The library’s special collections include depositories of US and European Union documents; the Goodman Collection of Rare Law Books; the Richard Baxter Collection in International Law; a collection of litigation documents, including transcripts from the Iran Contra Controversy of the late 1980s; and the archives of the former National Bankruptcy Review Commission. A special collection of legal fiction containing over 1400 titles was also recently added. For more information on the Pence Law Library, go to: http://library.wcl.american.edu/.
Legal Study in Washington, DC
The Washington College of Law is located in the northwest section of the city a short distance from Congress, the Supreme Court, the United States District Court and Court of Appeals, and the Maryland, Virginia, and District of Columbia courts. Washington, DC is the center of all federal regulatory process, and is the principal home of every major federal agency, such as the Securities and Exchange Commission, the Federal Communications Commission, the Internal Revenue Service, and the Federal Trade Commission. Washington is also the base for cabinet-level departments such as the Department of Energy, the Department of Education, the Department of Justice, and other agencies which perform functions critical to the federal system and contribute to an environment for legal education unparalleled outside this city. Judicial, executive, and legislative internships form an integral part of the legal education of many WCL students.
In addition, Washington is the seat of the world’s principal intergovernmental financial institutions, including the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund, and the Inter-American Development Bank. Also located in Washington are the Organization of American States and the International Telecommunications Satellite Organization. Private or nongovernmental organizations, among them Amnesty International and the International Human Rights Law Group, have offices in Washington, and a majority of the world’s leading international law firms can be found here.
Taking advantage of this natural setting for legal study and work, WCL offers many unique courses taught by its full-time faculty and by specialists who are members of the adjunct faculty. Field components are available in various courts and government agencies, and are carefully supervised by faculty members and designated field supervisors. For second- and third-year students interested in part-time law-related jobs, the Career Services Office coordinates requests for law student employment from law firms, corporations, courts, and government agencies. Further, the law school offers a unique training program in federal regulatory process which has a separate lecture faculty of top-level officials from the government and private sector.
For information regarding Washington College of Law admissions, financial aid, or programs:
Office of Admissions
Washington College of Law
4801 Massachusetts Ave., NW, Suite 507
Washington, DC 20016-8085
phone: 202-274-4101
online: www.wcl.american.edu
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