The University of Connecticut School of Law (UConn Law) is the law school associated with the University of Connecticut and located in Hartford, Connecticut. It is the only public law school in Connecticut and one of only four in New England. As of 2020, it enrolled 488 students.

Background

Founded in 1921 as the Hartford College of Law, the law school is accredited by the American Bar Association, and is a member of the Association of American Law Schools. In 1948 it affiliated with the University of Connecticut, now ranked among the top 25 public research universities nationally. The law school's Collegiate Gothic-style buildings were constructed in 1925, with the exception of the Thomas J. Meskill Law Library, which was completed in 1996. The campus housed the Hartford Seminary until 1981 and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Academics

In addition to the Juris Doctor (JD) degree, the law school offers several joint degrees, combining a Juris Doctor degree with a Master of Laws, Master of Business Administration, Master of Public Affairs Administration, Master of Public Health, or Master of Social Work. UConn Law offers LLM degrees in Energy and Environmental Law, Human Rights and Social Justice, U.S. Legal Studies and Insurance Law—the only LLM program in insurance law in the United States. UConn Law also offers the SJD (Doctor of the Science of Laws) degree and a professional certificate in corporate and regulatory compliance. JD and LLM candidates may pursue certificates in Corporate and Regulatory Compliance, Energy and Environmental Law, Human Rights, Intellectual Property, and Tax Studies. JD candidates may also earn certificates in Insurance Law and Regulation, Law and Public Policy, and Transactional Practice. LLM candidates may also pursue a certificate in Financial Services or one of four Foundational Certificates in U.S. Law. In addition, UConn Law offers 19 clinics and field placement programs that provide hands-on, practical training to upper-level students who earn up to 10 credits for their work. These clinics include Animal Law, Asylum and Human Rights, Energy and Environmental Law, Children's Advocacy, Criminal, Intellectual Property and Entrepreneurship Law, Mediation, U.S. Attorney's, and Tax clinics. Seminars in a multitude of different substantive areas are available to upper-level students for about 3 credits. Internships and field work are available to upper-level students. Research positions are open to upper-level students under the direction of a faculty adviser.

Library

The 120000 sqft Thomas J. Meskill Law Library is one of the largest law libraries in the country and houses the most comprehensive collection of insurance materials in the country. The Law Library has access to hundreds of electronic databases, including Westlaw, Lexis and Bloomberg. It has five classrooms, 12 group study rooms, an adaptive technology study room, a meditation room, a café, two student lounges, and 285 study carrels, with total seating for 964. The Law Library works closely with the University of Connecticut Libraries, which form the largest public research collection in the state of Connecticut. The main library is the Homer D. Babbidge Library at the Storrs campus.

Law journals and publications

UConn Law students produce four scholarly journals: the Connecticut Law Review, the Connecticut Public Interest Law Journal, the Connecticut Insurance Law Journal, and the Connecticut Journal of International Law. The Connecticut Law Review is the oldest, largest, and most active student-run publication at the School of Law. The Connecticut Public Interest Law Journal is a student-run biannual law review published by the school. It was established in 2001 and is abstracted and indexed in HeinOnline. Every fall, the journal hosts a symposium on issues related to public interest law. The Connecticut Journal of International Law is a biannual student-edited law review covering international and comparative law. It has published by the school since 1985. The journal sponsors an annual symposium. It is abstracted and indexed in EBSCO and ProQuest databases as well as in HeinOnline. The Connecticut Insurance Law Journal is a quarterly law review covering insurance law. It was established in 1994. The journal is abstracted and indexed in HeinOnline, EBSCO and ProQuest databases, the Index to Legal Periodicals & Books, and the Emerging Sources Citation Index.

Admission

According to the University of Connecticut's official 2021 ABA-required Standard 509 Information Report, the university offered admission to 28.79 percent of JD applicants. For the 2021 first-year class, the University of Connecticut School of Law received 1,754 completed applications and offered admission to 505 applicants, of which 144 enrolled.

Employment

91.61% of UConn Law's Class of 2017 passed a bar examination within two years. Ten months after graduation, 90.4% of the Class of 2019 was employed, with 72% obtaining Bar Passage Required employment (employment as an attorney). University of Connecticut's Law School Transparency under-employment score is 9.6%, indicating the percentage of the Class of 2021 unemployed, pursuing an additional degree, or working in a non-professional, short-term, or part-time job nine months after graduation.

Faculty

Thirteen members of the full-time faculty hold doctoral degrees. Notable faculty members include:

Notable alumni

Deans of the School of Law

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