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Academic Programs
Academics
Welcome to the Academics page at St. Mary’s University School of Law, where we are dedicated to fostering your talents and preparing you for a successful legal career. Here, you will gain the practical skills needed to become a professional leader and an advocate for justice. St. Mary’s is committed to providing a comprehensive legal education, from diverse degree programs to hands-on experience through special programs and clinics. With the guidance of our expert faculty and a strong alumni network, you’ll be equipped to navigate the complexities of the legal field. Explore the resources and opportunities available to you, and discover how St. Mary’s can help you reach your full potential.
Find your Law Program
The St. Mary’s School of Law offers Juris Doctor (J.D.), Master of Jurisprudence (M.Jur.) and Master of Laws (LL.M.) programs. These programs are designed for aspiring attorneys and professionals seeking a deeper understanding of legal concepts. Our law degree programs are flexible and accessible. Programs are available in full-time or part-time and online or on-campus to fit the needs of working professionals, career changers, and traditional students. Joint degrees and early admission programs are offered for undergraduates, making it easier to start your legal education sooner. Whether you’re preparing to practice law, advance in a non-legal field or want to enhance your credentials with a specialized LL.M., you will find a program that aligns with your goals.
Alumni Network
Founded in 1927, St. Mary’s Law has an active alumni network with more than 9,500 alums, spread across Texas and the nation, who serve as adjunct professors, student mentors and ambassadors for the school. More than 500 St. Mary’s graduates have served as elected or judicial officials. Learn more about the law school of San Antonio.
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Accreditation
The St. Mary’s University School of Law is approved by the Council of the Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar of the American Bar Association, 321 North Clark Street, Chicago, IL 60654, 312-988-6738. The School of Law is also accredited by the American Association of Law Schools (AALS).
Summon Your Talents
St. Mary’s teaches students the practical skills that enable them to become professional leaders and effective advocates of legal and social justice.
Programs
Degree Programs
Along with full-time or part-time J.D. programs and a Master of Jurisprudence degree, the School of Law offers three flexible LL.M. degrees: International and Comparative Law, American Legal Studies and International Criminal Law. In cooperation with other departments of St. Mary’s University, several joint-degree programs are also available for law students, as well as an early admission program for exceptional St. Mary’s University undergraduate students.
Special Programs
St. Mary’s Law equips students with practical, real-world legal skills through our Advocacy Programs, Judicial Internships, the Center for Terrorism Law, our study abroad programs in both Austria, and China, and our Center for Legal and Social Justice, which includes our clinical programs in criminal, civil, and immigration and human rights law.
Law Certificate Program
In a world of ever-changing circumstances, it is important to have access to trusted and professionally accredited academic opportunities. Micro-credentials such as our certificate programs in Compliance and Health Care Compliance can be completed in one semester, can be stacked with additional courses should you decide to pursue a Master’s degree with us in the future and indicate unique professional development that will set you apart from your peers.
Visiting Scholar Program
St. Mary’s School of Law welcomes foreign and domestic visitors to conduct independent research at our beautiful San Antonio, Texas campus. We invite qualified candidates to apply to this program to conduct legal research in a friendly and vibrant academic environment. Our program is open to judges, lawyers, professors and Ph.D. students.
Non-Degree Seeking Student
If you are a non-traditional student, these programs offer a range of courses meticulously crafted to refresh your legal knowledge and equip you with the skills necessary to excel in your legal career. Led by our esteemed faculty, renowned experts in their respective fields, these courses provide a stimulating learning experience that blends theory with practical applications.
Get Hands-on Experience
Clinical Program
With the Clinical Program, students gain hands-on experience while providing legal services to underserved communities in San Antonio and South Texas. Choose from one of our five clinics: Consumer Protection, Criminal Justice, Family Law, Immigration and Human Rights and Real Estate. Students will work on real cases, developing skills in key legal areas. The program not only prepares students for their careers but also supports social justice by offering free legal services to low-income individuals.
Moot Court, Mock Trial and Advocacy
These programs provide an ideal environment for students to develop and polish their trial and appellate courtroom skills, as well as their negotiation, mediation, client counseling and dispute resolution skills that are the hallmark of great attorneys. The St. Mary’s advocacy programs are consistently recognized for competitive excellence on regional and national levels. Advocacy at St. Mary’s is comprised of three primary programs that allow students both academic and competitive opportunities to hone their skills prior to graduation.
Externship Program
The Externship course allows law students (2Ls or 3Ls) to gain practical work experience at a nonprofit, government agency or in-house counsel offices while completing a curriculum that builds key professional development skills. The course provides law students with the opportunity to understand the relationship between legal doctrine and practical legal skills.
Judicial Internships
Judicial internships allow students to assist with legal research and develop key skills under the guidance of experienced judges. The intern is supervised by a judge, law clerk or a briefing attorney to a judge or staff attorney of the court for one semester. These internships boost legal careers and build professional resumes.
Pro Bono Program
The Pro Bono Program offers students a variety of volunteer opportunities, including assisting vulnerable groups, providing legal services at community events and helping with criminal record expungements. This commitment supports underserved communities and also develops socially responsible lawyers dedicated to public service.
Law Fellowships
The St. Mary’s University School of Law Fellowships program provides valuable financial and experiential support to law students pursuing careers in public interest law and veterans’ legal services. Students serve veterans in areas such as housing, family law and public benefits. These fellowships advance legal education, promote access to justice and prepare students for impactful careers in public service law.
Student Learning Outcomes
Skills
Student must be able to demonstrate competency in the following areas:
- Legal drafting and writing
- Critical reading
- Legal analysis/critical thinking
- Public speaking
- Effective listening
- Technology
- Legal research
- ADR
- Litigation skills
- Applying canons of statutory interpretation
Legal Principles
Student must be able to demonstrate knowledge of:
- Sufficient substantive law to pass the bar exam and be proficient in a basic law practice
- The theoretical bases for and public policies of various types of substantive laws
- The relationship between substantive law and potential clients
Professionalism and Identity
Students must demonstrate knowledge of and practice:
- Legal ethics
- Work ethic
- Professionalism
- Time management and timely arrivals and submittals
- Email etiquette
- Ability to evolve with the future of law as the practice changes
Service and Justice
Students must recognize:
- Principles of justice
- Pro bono/community service
- Marianist principles
Meet our Faculty and Staff
The faculty of St. Mary’s Law are renowned legal experts in specialties from business law to international law. Our professors pride themselves on being approachable and accessible for student learning and staff members help ensure your success throughout your legal studies.
Resources
Law Success
Your success is our mission. The Office of Academic and Student Affairs provides support for law students throughout their studies, from helping first-year law students develop basic law school skills to helping students prepare for the bar examination.
Bar Success
In many ways, you are preparing for the bar exam from the moment you start law school because it is a necessary step on your journey to becoming an attorney. The mission of the Office of Bar Success is to get you ready for the bar, and our bar experts will work with you to ensure you are ready to tackle that final hurdle to professional licensure. Our office is responsible for administering the Bar Prep for Credit course and the Raise the Bar program.
Study Abroad
St. Mary’s School of Law offers unique programs for international study: the Institute on World Legal Programs in Innsbruck, Austria; and the Institute on Chinese Law and Business. Both offer summer study abroad options for students at St. Mary’s and other law schools. We also offer a Legal and Cultural Spring Break in Mexico.
Law Journals
St. Mary’s Law is home to three law journals: The St. Mary’s Law Journal, The St. Mary’s Journal on Legal Malpractice and Ethics and The Scholar: St. Mary’s Law Review on Race and Social Justice.
Sarita Kenedy East Law Library
A federal depository library, the collection consists of print, microfilm and multimedia items totaling more than 400,000 volumes covering a wide range of searchable subjects. The features large reading rooms and shelving spaces, computer labs, a Rare Book Room, the Law Alumni Room, the Law Commons, conference rooms, study carrels, media and instruction classrooms, and copy and printing centers.
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