Full-Time JD Program Overview
JD overview
Our UIC Law curriculum specializes in equipping rising attorneys with the knowledge and tools needed to succeed from their first day on the job. You’ll develop the strategic, analytical, and transactional skills that are so valuable to employers, regardless of the concentration you choose.
JD Requirements and Curriculum
The Juris Doctor (JD) program consists of three components: 10 core courses which must be taken first, additional required courses that can be taken any time after the core courses are completed, and experiential learning through a clinic or externship. View required courses below:
General Requirements
JD courses, listed on the proposed degree track in this chart provide students with a fundamental store of knowledge and skills related to substantive legal concepts and rules, including analysis of cases, statutes, and other sources of law; recognition of relevant facts from a mass of raw data; effective oral and written communication; advocacy; and organization and management of legal work and ideas.
Remaining credit hours for the JD are fulfilled by selecting electives from substantive areas of law, including business law, employee benefits, estate planning, information technology law, intellectual property law, international law, public interest law, real estate law, and more.
To successfully earn a JD from UIC Law, degree candidates must:
- Earn credit for at least 90 semester hours of law study
- Obtain an overall GPA of 2.25 or better, and
- Earn a minimum of 3 clinical and/or externship credit hours.
Required Curriculum
Core Courses for the JD Degree
- Contracts I* (3 credits)
- Property* (4 credits)
- Torts* (4 credits)
- Lawyering Skills I* (3 credits)
- Expert Learning* (1 credit)
- Contracts II* (3 credits)
- Civil Procedure I* (3 credits)
- Criminal Law* (3 credits)
- Constitutional Law I* (3 credits)
- Lawyering Skills II* (3 credits)
Additional Required Courses for the JD Degree
- Civil Procedure II (3 credits)
- Constitutional Law II (3 credits)
- Trial Advocacy‡ (3)
- Evidence† or Trial Lawyer: Evidence (4 Credits)
- Lawyering Skills III (2 Credits)
- Lawyering Skills IV (2-3 Credits)
- Professional Responsibility† (3 Credits)
Experiential Learning Requirement
- Experiential Learning†: Clinic/Externship (3 Fieldwork or Clinic Credits)
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* – Credit in these courses is required before students can register for upper-level required and elective courses.
† – These required courses may be taken at any time during a student’s second or third year. Evidence is a prerequisite to Trial Advocacy. Trial Lawyer: Evidence and Trial Lawyer: Advocacy must be taken together and may be taken in lieu of Evidence and Trial Advocacy.
‡ – For students who began their JD studies on or after August 26, 2019, Trial Advocacy, although an important part of the JD curriculum, is no longer a required course. Students who began their JD studies before August 26, 2019, must successfully complete Trial Advocacy, Trial Lawyer: Advocacy, or Accelerated Trial Advocacy in order to earn a JD degree.
Full-Time JD Track
Estimated Completion: 6 Semesters
First Semester (15 Hours)
- Contracts I* (3)
- Property* (4)
- Torts* (4)
- Lawyering Skills I* (3)
- Expert Learning* (1)
Second Semester (15 Hours)
- Contracts II* (3)
- Civil Procedure I* (3)
- Criminal Law* (3)
- Constitutional Law I* (3)
- Lawyering Skills II* (3)
Third Semester (15 Hours)
- Civil Procedure II (3)
- Constitutional Law II (3)
- Lawyering Skills III (2)
- Evidence† (4) & Electives (3) or
- Trial Lawyer: Evidence (4) & Trial Lawyer: Advocacy‡ (3)
Fourth Semester (15 Hours)
- Professional Responsibility† (3)
- Experiential Learning† (Clinic or Externship) (3-5)
- Electives (7-9)
Fifth Semester (15 Hours)
- Lawyering Skills IV (2)
- Trial Advocacy‡ (3)
- Electives (10)
Sixth Semester (15 Hours)
- Electives (15)
Legend
*– Credit in these courses is required before students can register for upper-level required and elective courses.
† – These required courses may be taken at any time during a student’s second or third year. Evening students may also take Professional Responsibility before this time during a summer term after completeing all courses listed in this part-time evening track in the first through fourth semester. Evidence is a prerequisite to Trial Advocacy. Trial Lawyer: Evidence and Trial Lawyer: Advocacy must be taken together and may be taken in lieu of Evidence and Trial Advocacy.
‡ – For students who began their JD studies on or after August 26, 2019, Trial Advocacy, although an important part of the JD curriculum, is no longer a required course. Students who began their JD studies before August 26, 2019, must successfully complete Trial Advocacy, Trial Lawyer: Advocacy, or Accelerated Trial Advocacy in order to earn a JD degree.
Choose Your Path Explore JD Concentrations
Required Experiential Education
In addition to the other required courses that ensure our degree candidates develop the basic competencies expected of attorneys, UIC Law has numerous experiential education opportunities that offer students a chance to put their skills to the test in real legal work settings. Students can fulfill their experiential learning requirement in one of our Community Legal Clinics, by taking externships, or a combination of both. A maximum of 15 clinic or externship hours may be credited toward the JD.
JD Experiential Education
Meet the Faculty
Our UIC Law faculty routinely hold leadership positions within the law school and in the nation’s most prominent legal associations. Meet our dedicated and diverse staff of attorneys and professional who are committed to helping you pave your path to justice.