School of Law - Santa Clara University - Overview
Students Can Become Lawyers who Lead
When students choose Santa Clara Law, one of the top-ranking law schools in California, they will join others who are committed to excellence, ethics, and social justice. They will be immersed in one of the most beautiful and vibrant business centers in the world: Silicon Valley and the San Francisco Bay Area.
Historic Beauty in a High Tech Location
Santa Clara Law was founded in 1911 on the site of Mission Santa Clara and Santa Clara University, California's oldest operating higher-education institution. The school has all the latest technological capabilities on a beautiful campus with historic buildings and acres of spectacular gardens. In the Mediterranean climate, the sun shines more than 300 days a year.
Santa Clara Law is in the southern part of the San Francisco Bay Area -- home to world-class companies such as Google, Apple, eBay, Intel, Yahoo!, Oracle, Facebook, HP, and Genentech, as well as numerous start-ups. This economy generates some of the most interesting and cutting-edge legal work around, and the Bay Area offers a beautiful and culturally rich place to live, work, and play. Within a short drive, students will discover magnificent old-growth redwood forests, the rugged California coastline and the Pacific Ocean, and the city of San Francisco, one of the world's most popular destinations.
Faculty Mentors and Small Classes
Santa Clara Law's faculty members include experienced legal scholars, outstanding teachers, nationally and internationally known legal scholars, and those who have dedicated their lives to helping others through legal clinics, including the Northern California Innocence Project and the Katharine and George Alexander Community Law Clinic.
Santa Clara University offers more than 100 courses each year, including more than 30 in the popular area of IP and high tech law and policy. Classes are small enough to enable faculty members to be actively engaged with students and collaborate to maximize the learning experience. The faculty members, staff members, and students work together to create a collegial and supportive environment.
Top Ranked in High Tech/IP
Santa Clara Law is consistently ranked among the nation's best law schools for its intellectual property curriculum and program, a reflection of its close connections to the hive of high-tech activity in Silicon Valley.
Global Opportunities
Santa Clara's comprehensive international law program -- with classes in 13 countries and internships in 21 countries around the globe -- has more summer abroad locations than any other law school in the nation, giving students opportunities to gain critical skills in this global economy. Plus, the university's international law program includes a broad offering of courses as well as visiting international scholars and speakers throughout the year.
Degree Offerings
Santa Clara offers part-time or full-time academically rigorous JD programs, with day and evening classes; a combined JD/MBA program; and certificates in High Tech Law, International and Comparative Law, and Public Interest and Social Justice Law. The university also offers three graduate degrees -- the LLM in US Law for Foreign Lawyers, the LLM in Intellectual Property, and the LLM in International and Comparative Law.
Santa Clara Law students prepare to practice law in any field, while having ample opportunities to apply their skills in clinics, field placements, community service, and internships and summer fellowships with world-class companies in the university's backyard.
Dedicated to Diversity
Santa Clara Law is consistently ranked among the top 10 most diverse law schools in the country because the community is dedicated to diversifying the legal profession. The university's 1,000 students share their law school experience with peers from all 50 states and more than 50 foreign countries, and students learn from a diverse and talented group of faculty members who are committed to inclusive educational experiences.
Committed to Social Justice
Santa Clara's programs reflect the university's true commitment to social justice, and its students serve the poor and the marginalized while learning the law through Santa Clara's Center for Social Justice and Public Service and related clinics.
Santa Clara's Alumni Leaders
Santa Clara Law's robust alumni network includes more than 10,000 graduates across the US and around the world. The university's alumni serve in leading positions across the legal field, including general counsel of top high tech companies, partners in national and international firms, judges, and social justice advocates. Santa Clara Law's alumni actively support its students by serving as mentors, participating in mock interviews, and hosting networking events. Notable alumni include US Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta; California Congresswoman Zoe Lofgren; Dorian Daley, Senior Vice President, General Counsel and Corporate Secretary of Oracle; and Scott Shipman, eBay's Associate General Counsel, Global Privacy Leader.