Academics

Juris Doctor (JD)

Pepperdine University School of Law awards the Juris Doctor (JD) degree after the successful completion of 88 units of courses over three years and the completion of the Professional Development Program, among other requirements.

The Curriculum

First-year law students follow a rigorous course of study that covers the following subjects: Civil Procedure, Contracts, Criminal Law, Property, Torts, and Legal Research and Writing.

After the first year, students are required to complete 25-29 units of additional required courses (depending on the units offered for certain courses), including: Corporations, Evidence, Wills and Trusts, Constitutional Structure, Constitutional Law–Individual Rights and Liberties, Federal Income Taxation, Criminal Procedure, Remedies, and a Professional Responsibility course.

Students also have the opportunity to select from a broad range of elective courses, clinics, externships, and student-edited journals. Students may choose to pursue a concentration in an area of interest. The School of Law offers four certificate programs: (1) a certificate in dispute resolution from the Straus Institute for Dispute Resolution; (2) a certificate from the Palmer Center for Entrepreneurship and the Law in one of four concentrations; (3) a certificate in Criminal Legal Practice;  and (4) a certificate in International and Comparative Law.