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.