Willamette University College of Law ESTABLISHED 1883 SALEM, OREGON 2013–2014
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willamette university college of law ESTABLISHED 1883 SALEM, OREGON 2013–2014 willamette.edu/wucl/admission | 1 A MESSAGE FROM THE DEAN It is my pleasure to introduce you to the Willamette University College of Law, and to invite you to get to know us better. Established in 1883, we are the second-oldest law school in the West, and part of a small private university that is older than the state of Oregon itself. AN INTIMATE LEARNING clinics. Most students gain some sort of ENVIRONMENT real-world experience while in law school, and we offer many classes taught by At Willamette, we take pride in being leaders in the Oregon bar. At Willamette, one of the smaller law schools in the you can learn statutory interpretation country. Most classes have fewer than from a current justice of the Oregon 25 students, and those students get to Supreme Court or civil trial practice know each other and their professors from one of the most experienced civil well. We have excellent nationally and litigators in the state. internationally known scholars on our faculty, and what students appreciate AN OUTSTANDING is how accessible they are outside of ALUMNI NETWORK class. Faculty members serve as valuable Because of our 130-year history, we have mentors to students throughout their a hugely successful and far-reaching time at Willamette and beyond. alumni network. Our alums include the LEARNING WHERE LAWS governor of Washington, a U.S. Senator, ARE MADE counsel and deputy legal counsel for the governor of Oregon, a current Our campus sits directly across the street justice of the Oregon Supreme Court, from the state Capitol. Our students have and the two most recent chief justices easy access to state agencies, courts of Oregon. We also have countless and the Legislature for both traditional alumni who are partners in prestigious courses and for externships and in-house law firms and businesses throughout the 2 | WILLAMETTE UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF LAW Pacific Northwest, Northern California Of the 28 schools on the West Coast, we and overseas. Our alumni are very proud had the 7th-best placement rate. Of those of their association with Willamette and schools, though, our tuition is among actively mentor our students and recent the lowest. graduates. AN ENVIABLE LOCATION PRACTICE-READY EDUCATION Finally, our campus is in beautiful Salem, We offer a curriculum that prepares Oregon, which is in the heart of wine students for the practice of law and for country and a paradise for outdoor leadership in business or government enthusiasts. Situated close to the Pacific in the 21st century. A choice of electives coast and the Cascade Mountains, in the first year helps students tailor Salem offers world-class recreational their education to their own interests. In opportunities including hiking, biking, upper-level years, students can pursue skiing, fishing, golf and boating of all certificates focusing on certain areas or kinds. The cost of living is very affordable, participate in externships or in-house and Portland’s cultural amenities are less clinics that offer practical experience than an hour away. dealing with clients — including a full-time We encourage you to get to know us externship that allows students to spend better. If you can, come visit. I think an entire semester away from campus you will see why Willamette is such a getting experience in the geographic special place. location in which they hope to practice. Warmest regards, As a result of these programs and of our alumni network, our class of 2012 had the best placement success of all the law schools in Oregon and the second-best rate in the Pacific Northwest for jobs that either require or prefer the JD degree. Curtis Bridgeman willamette.edu/wucl/admission | 3 viewbook Contents 2 DEAN’S MESSAGE 5 PREMIER LEGAL EDUCATION IN THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST 6 5 REASONS TO COME TO WILLAMETTE 9 INTIMATE LEARNING ENVIRONMENT 11 CONNECTED TO GOVERNMENT 12 ALUMNI NETWORK 14 PRACTICE-READY EDUCATION 17 INNOVATIVE PROGRAMS Law and Government Law and Business Sustainability Law International and Comparative Law Dispute Resolution 28 PLACEMENT OFFICE Externship Programs and Clinics Course Offerings 30 CLINICS AND EXTERNSHIPS 31 COURSE OFFERINGS AND DEGREE PROGRAMS 33 COLLINS LEGAL CENTER AND J.W. LONG LAW LIBRARY 34 LIFE IN THE NORTHWEST Campus Life and Beyond Life in Salem 37 VISITING THE COLLEGE OF LAW 39 COLLEGE OF LAW ADMISSION The Application Process Additional Requirements Tuition, Expenses and Financial Aid 4 | WILLAMETTE UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF LAW willamette university college of law premier legal education in the Pacific Northwest For 130 years, Willamette University experience working with clients in the College of Law has prepared students for Clinical Law Program. These programs a life spent mastering the law. provide students with an insider’s view into the lawmaking process and valuable Willamette’s learning environment is hands-on experience in the practice of law. distinctive among law schools. We are committed to the pursuit of academic and Willamette law students should expect to professional excellence and to providing be challenged, to defend their opinions, a supportive environment that maximizes to think and rethink their ideas, and to each student’s unique potential. graduate with a heightened respect for themselves and confidence in what they We emphasize small enrollment, can do. Guided by a highly gifted and excellence in teaching and a high level of dedicated faculty, our students leave the faculty-student interaction. Our student- school well equipped to become notable faculty ratio is about 13 to 1. Our select leaders in their chosen fields. enrollment of fewer than 400 students creates an intellectual intimacy unmatched Graduates of the College of Law serve by most law schools in the United States. the profession and their communities with honor and distinction throughout the Willamette’s law school has a rich and United States — on the bench and the diverse curriculum. Specialized certificate bar, in state and national government, in programs in Law and Business, Law Fortune 500 corporations, and in nonprofit and Government, Sustainability Law, agencies. Equally important, they proudly Dispute Resolution and International and uphold the Willamette tradition of being Comparative Law underscore the strong dedicated public servants, leaders of the academic foundation we provide and help bar and good citizens. distinguish Willamette students from other law school graduates. In addition, students gain important practical skills training through intensive trial practice and targeted externships. Students also acquire real-world willamette.edu/wucl/admission | 5 willamette university college of law REASONS TO COME TO WILLAMETTE Intimate Learning Environment Connected to Government Alumni Network Practice-Ready Education Enviable Location 6 | WILLAMETTE UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF LAW FOR MORE INFORMATION ADMISSION: 503-370-6282 EMAIL: [email protected] WEBSITE: willamette.edu/wucl/admission willamette.edu/wucl/admission | 7 8 | WILLAMETTE UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF LAW an intimate learning environment PERSONALIZED INSTRUCTION rather than competitors. The small class sizes have the feel of seminars or Unlike other law schools, many of workshops, which provides students with which seem to believe bigger is better, the opportunity to develop their critical Willamette is a small school dedicated thinking skills and powers of persuasion. to nurturing its students in a learning As a result, upon graduation, Willamette environment that fosters rather than law students join a community of alumni discourages collaboration. This is in who value one another as friends and keeping with Willamette University as a fellow professionals. whole, which is proud of and faithful to its 179-year history as a university that places students at the center of its mission. Three Willamette keeps classes small to ensure effective faculty- quarters of all courses taken in the second student interaction and an intimate learning environment. and third years of law school have 19 or Throughout the last 10 years, a notable 31 percent of law fewer students. Many have fewer than 10 classes had fewer than 10 students, 22 percent of classes had students. As a result, students work closely fewer than 20 students, and 15 percent of classes had fewer with faculty members and fellow students. than 25 students. Education at Willamette is rigorous, but it is never impersonal. Willamette’s distinctive approach to Classes with 20–25 students 15% 10–19 students 22% legal education and our belief that the best lawyers are individually trained, not mass produced, create a different type of law student and a different type of law 26–50 students 17% school. Professors are not inaccessible, aloof figures you only see standing at 51–75 students 8% a lectern in a lecture hall; rather, they Classes with More than 75 interact with students regularly outside of fewer than students 7% class and become lifelong mentors, both 10 students 31% academically and professionally, to their students. Fellow students are colleagues willamette.edu/wucl/admission | 9 10 | WILLAMETTE UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF LAW connected to government Located just steps away from the Oregon Capitol and Supreme Court, Willamette offers students the opportunity not just to study the law, but to work with the actual individuals engaged in making the law and even to participate in the lawmaking process as students. Lawmakers, judges, and public officials regularly come to campus to speak to students, and several officials — including a current Oregon Supreme Court justice and two former chief justices — teach courses at the law school. Willamette’s proximity to state government — an advantage that cannot be matched anywhere else in the region — also provides students with a unique ability to work with state officials while pursuing their studies. Students can do externships, including part-time and full-time externships for a semester, at the Legislature, Supreme Court, or Oregon Department of Justice, among other places.