The Law School Curriculum has been designed by the faculty to
inculcate into first-year students a knowledge of fundamental legal
doctrine and policy and to begin the development of their
analytical legal skills which will continue throughout their
legal careers. In general, the first year is comprised of basic
doctrinal courses (Contracts, Torts, Property, Civil Procedure and
Criminal Law), along with extensive training in Legal Research and
Writing and an introductory course in which the students receive
initial exposure to the methods and ideas that are fundamental
components of the American legal system. Thereafter, the
upper-class curriculum is mostly elective, with but two required
courses – Constitutional Law and Professional
Responsibility. There is a 9-credit maximum on pass-fail elective
courses including clinical externship placements. The 9-credit
maximum on pass-fail coursework does not apply to co-curricular
activity or to pass-fail credits that are awarded
by St. John’s University School of Law for graded coursework at
other institutions. There is no pass-fail option for graded
courses.
In addition, however, the faculty believes that upper-class
students’ programs should also include a critical mass of
fundamental, or “core,” courses that will help the students achieve
competence as lawyers in an ever-changing legal environment.
Thus, the faculty has identified ten core areas of study from which
the student must select at least five. The core courses include:
Administrative Law, Business Organizations, Conflict of Laws,
Criminal Procedure I, Evidence, Family Law, International Law,
Taxation – Basic Federal Personal Income, Trusts &
Estates,
and a Uniform Commercial Code offering (Commercial Transactions,
Sales or Secured Transactions). The core courses are rigorous in
nature and will help students continue the process, begun in first
year, of refining their analytical legal
skills and broadening their knowledge of fundamental legal doctrine
and policy.
Full-time students have a three-year course of study, during
which Constitutional Law and Professional Responsibility must be
taken in the second year. Part-time students pursue a fouryear
curriculum, with Constitutional Law being taken during
the second year, along with Criminal Law and Civil Procedure.
Professional Responsibility may be taken during either the second
year or the third year. Faculty advisement on the selection and
sequencing of core and other elective offerings is strongly
recommended, and reference should be made to the “Upper-Class
Curriculum Guide,” an extensive exposition of all of the elective
courses available after the required first year, including
information on concentration and sequencing of electives.