RANK 8 University of Virginia School of Law MAILING ADDRESS1-4 REGISTRAR’S PHONE 580 Massie Road 434-924-4122 Charlottesville, VA 22903-1738 ADMISSIONS PHONE MAIN PHONE 434-924-7351 (434) 924-7354 CAREER SERVICES PHONE WEBSITE 434-924-7349 www.law.virginia.edu Overview5 Founded by Thomas Jefferson in 1819, the University Of Virginia School Of Law is a world-renowned training ground for distinguished lawyers and public servants. Consistently ranked among the top law schools in the nation, Virginia has educated generations of lawyers, instilling in them a commitment to leadership, integrity and community service. Virginia is justly famous for its collegial environment that bonds students and faculty, and student satisfaction is consistently cited as among the highest in American law schools. At Virginia, law students share their experiences in a cooperative spirit, both in and out of the classroom, and build a network that lasts well beyond their three years here. Student-Faculty Ratio6 11.3:1 Admission Criteria7 LSAT GPA 25th–75th Percentile 164-170 3.52-3.94 Median* 169 3.87 Law School Admissions details based on 2013 data. *Medians have been calculated by averaging the 25th- and 75th-percentile values released by the law schools and have been rounded up to the nearest whole number for LSAT scores and to the nearest one-hundredth for GPAs. THE 2016 BCG ATTORNEY SEARCH GUIDE TO AMERICA’S TOP 50 LAW SCHOOLS 1 Admission Statistics7 Approximate number of applications 6048 Number accepted 1071 Acceptance rate 17.7% The above admission details are based on 2013 data. Class Ranking and Grades8-10 The Law School does not use or disclose class rank except for limited purposes, such as determination of specific academic awards. Grades in each course are awarded to an enforced mean. Instructors ensure that grades have an adequate distribution around this mean. Under the current grading system, there are 10 possible grades that can be used by the faculty in evaluating performance in courses and seminars: A+, A, A-, B+, B, B-, C+, C, D and F. In a few select courses, the grades S (Satisfactory) and U (Unsatisfactory), or CR (Credit) and NC (No Credit) are awarded. No credit is awarded for a course in which a student receives an F, NC, U, W (Withdrawn) or WF (Withdrawn Failing) grade. The grades U and NC are treated as F grades for all purposes. The numerical grade point values for letter grades are as follows: Letter Grade Value A+ 4.3 A 4.0 A- 3.7 B+ 3.3 B 3.0 B- 2.7 C+ 2.3 C 2.0 D 1.0 F 0.0 Candidates for the J.D. degree must accumulate 86 credits while satisfying two conditions: a student must maintain a minimum grade point average of C+ (2.3) and accumulate fewer than three exclusion points at the conclusion of each academic year. A grade of D carries one exclusion point and a grade of F carries two exclusion points. It is the intent of the faculty that, for the purpose of allocating grades in a course or seminar and to assist in achieving grade uniformity, the mean grade for each course and seminar will be a 3.3. However, there is no particular grading curve to which a faculty member must adhere. Thus, the mean can be achieved either by averaging relatively high and low grades or by having most grades grouped more closely around the B+ (3.3) mean. THE 2016 BCG ATTORNEY SEARCH GUIDE TO AMERICA’S TOP 50 LAW SCHOOLS 2 Awards11 Name of Award Awarded for/to Bracewell & Giuliani Oral Established by the Houston firm in 1988 for one student from each Advocacy Awards first-year small section for his or her outstanding appellate brief and one student from each first-year small section for outstanding oral advocacy. Mortimer Caplin Public Established in 1992 by Mortimer Caplin, ’40, the commissioner of Service Award the Internal Revenue Service under President John F. Kennedy, for a graduating student who is entering a career in the public service sector and who demonstrates the qualities of leadership, integrity and service to others. Mortimer Caplin Public For exceptional law students who accept low-paying or unpaid public Service Fellowship service internships during the summer. Edwin S. Cohen Tax Prize For the graduating student who has demonstrated superior scholarship in the tax area. Claire Corcoran Award For one or two second-year students who have demonstrated the most commitment to public interest work. Hardy Cross Dillard Prize Established in honor of Hardy Cross Dillard, retired judge of the International Court of Justice and former dean and James Monroe Professor of Law, for the best student note in a current volume of the Virginia Journal of International Law. Hardy Cross Dillard For exceptional members of the entering class based on — in addition Scholarships to financial need — prior academic achievement, leadership, integrity, service to others, success in endeavors outside the classroom and maturity. Faculty Award for For the most outstanding academic record during the three years in Academic Excellence the Law School. Linda Fairstein Public For exceptional law students who accept low-paying or unpaid public Service Fellowship service internships during the summer. Carl M. Franklin Prize Established at his 50th reunion in 1998 by Dr. Carl M. Franklin ‘48 for the highest grade point average at the end of the first year of law school. Robert E. Goldsten (’40) Established by Robert E. Goldsten for the student who has contributed Award the most to classroom participation. Eppa Hunton IV Memorial Established in 1977 by the Richmond, Va., law firm Hunton & Williams, Book Award in honor of Eppa Hunton IV ’27, for a third-year student who has demonstrated unusual aptitude in litigation courses and shown a keen awareness and understanding of the lawyer’s ethical and professional responsibility. THE 2016 BCG ATTORNEY SEARCH GUIDE TO AMERICA’S TOP 50 LAW SCHOOLS 3 Margaret G. Hyde Award Established in 1930 by Forrest J. Hyde Jr. ’15 for an outstanding member of the graduating class whose scholarship, character, personality, activities in the affairs of the school and promise of efficiency have entitled him or her to special recognition. Jackson Walker LLP Award For the highest grade point average after four semesters. Herbert L. Kramer/Herbert Established in 1989 by Herbert Kramer ’52 for a third-year student Bangel Community Service who has contributed the most to the community during law school. Award Law School Alumni For the best note in a current issue of a Law School publication. Association Best Note Award Thomas Marshall Miller Established by Emily Miller Danton in 1982 in memory of her father, Prize Thomas Marshall Miller, who attended the Law School, for an outstanding and deserving member of the graduating class. Monroe Leigh Fellowship in This fellowship was established in honor of Monroe Leigh ’47 for one International Law or two students to pursue a public international law project of their own choosing during the summer following their first, second or third year. National Association of For an outstanding woman in the graduating class. Women Lawyers Award Norton Rose Fulbright Best Established in 2005 for one student from each first-year small section Memorandum Award for his or her outstanding major memorandum of law submitted at the end of the student’s fall semester. John M. Olin Prize in Law For outstanding work in the field of law and economics. and Economics Powell Fellowship in Legal Established in honor of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Lewis F. Powell Jr. Services for a graduating student or judicial clerk to work in public interest law and to enhance the delivery of legal services to the poor under the sponsorship of a public interest organization. Pro Bono Award For extraordinary commitment to pro bono legal service during Law School. Pro Bono Service Awards For graduates who have successfully fulfilled the requirements of the Law School’s Pro Bono Program. Mary Claiborne and Roy H. Four prizes for character, honor and integrity, established in 1985 by Ritter Prizes C. Willis Ritter ’65 to honor his parents. Rosenbloom Award Established by Daniel Rosenbloom ’54 for a student with a strong academic record who has significantly enhanced the academic experience of other law students by volunteering support and assistance to them. Shannon Award Established by the Z Society to encourage outstanding scholarship at the University for the highest academic record after five semesters. THE 2016 BCG ATTORNEY SEARCH GUIDE TO AMERICA’S TOP 50 LAW SCHOOLS 4 Earle K. Shawe Labor Established in honor of the late Hardy C. Dillard by Earle K. Shawe Relations Award ’34 for the graduating student who shows the greatest promise of becoming a successful practitioner in the field of labor relations. James M. Shoemaker, Jr., For the final-round participants in the William Minor Lile Moot Court Moot Court Awards competition. James C. Slaughter Honor Established by the Textile Veterans Association in honor of James C. Award Slaughter ’51 for an outstanding member of the graduating class. Stephen Pierre Traynor Established in 1970 by the late Roger J. Traynor, former chief justice Award of the California Supreme Court, in memory of his son, for excellence in appellate advocacy. Roger and Madeleine Established in 1980 by a gift from retired Chief Justice and Mrs. Traynor Prize Traynor of California for the best written work by two graduating students. Trial Advocacy Award For a graduating student who best exemplifies the attributes of an effective trial lawyer. Virginia State Bar Family Established by the Family Law Section of the Virginia State Bar Law Book Award and the Virginia Chapter of the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers for the graduating student who has demonstrated the most promise and potential for the practice of family law.