JD Program Overview
One of the things that makes UIC Law so special is the variety and number of courses we offer our students. Regardless of which of our courses interest you, you'll develop the strategic, analytical, and transactional skills that are so valuable to employers. We specialize in educating attorneys who can succeed from their first day on the job.
General Requirements Heading link
The juris doctor (JD) program consists of a required core curriculum that all students must pass in order to graduate. These courses, listed on the proposed degree tracks below, 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:
1) earn credit for at least 90 semester hours of law study
2) obtain an overall GPA of 2.25 or better, and
3) earn a minimum of 3 clinical and/or externship credit hours.
Lawyering Skills Program
A foundational component of the JD curriculum, the Lawyering Skills Program teaches students practical lawyering skills, including legal reasoning, legal research, oral advocacy, drafting, and client counseling over the course of four semesters. That’s double the training you’d receive at most law schools. All Lawyering Skills courses are taught in small sections to provide students the level of personalized instruction they need to succeed throughout law school.
JD Experiential Education
In addition to the other required courses that ensure our degree candidates develop the basic competencies expected of attorneys, the Law School 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 Degree Track Course Sequences Heading link
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Degree Tracks
Standard Full-Time Track
Standard Full-Time 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)
Standard Part-Time Evening Track
Standard Part-Time Evening Track
The schedule below indicates the semester during which required courses will be offered in the evening.
Part-time students who complete two summer sessions (after the fourth and sixth semesters) can complete the JD Program in four academic years..
Fall – First Semester (8-11 Hours)
- Torts* (4)
- Lawyering Skills I* (3)
- Expert Learning* (1)
- Contracts I* (optional) (3)
Spring – Second Semester (10 Hours)
- Contracts I* (3) or Contracts II* (3)
- Property* (4)
- Lawyering Skills II* (3)
Fall – Third Semester (8-9 Hours)
- Civil Procedure I* (3)
- Criminal Law* (3)
- Contracts II* (3) or Lawyering Skills III (2)
Spring – Fourth Semester (8-9 Hours)
- Civil Procedure II (3)
- Constitutional Law I* (3)
- Lawyering Skills III (2) or Lawyering Skills IV (2-3)
Fall – Fifth Semester (9-10 Hours)
- Constitutional Law II (3)
- Trial Lawyer: Evidence (4) & Trial Lawyer: Advocacy (3)‡ or
- Lawyering Skills IV (2-3) & Electives (3-4)
Spring – Sixth Semester (8-9 Hours)
- Evidence (4)
- Experiential Learning†(Clinic or Externship) (3-5)
Fall – Seventh Semester (11 Hours)
- Trial Advocacy‡(3)
- Electives (8)
Spring – Eighth Semester (11 Hours)
- Professional Responsibility†(3)
- Electives (8)
Fall – Ninth Semester (10 Hours)
- Electives (10)
Additional Information
* 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.
Required Curriculum Heading link
Required Courses for the JD Degree
- Civil Procedure I (3 Credits)
- Civil Procedure II (3 Credits)
- Contracts I (3 Credits)
- Contracts II (3 Credits)
- Constitutional Law I (3 Credits)
- Constitutional Law II (3 Credits)
- Criminal Law (3 Credits)
- Evidence or Trial Lawyer: Evidence (4 Credits)
- Expert Learning (1 Credit)
Required Courses for the JD Degree (Cont.)
- Lawyering Skills I (3 Credits)
- Lawyering Skills II (3 Credits)
- Lawyering Skills III (2 Credits)
- Lawyering Skills IV (2 Credits)
- Professional Responsibility (3 Credits)
- Property (4 Credits)
- Torts (4 Credits)
Experiential Learning Requirement
- Clinic/Externship (3 Fieldwork Credits)
JD Concentrations Heading link
JD concentrations offer degree candidates the opportunity to go beyond their foundational knowledge of law to develop further competitive distinction at the JD level. All concentrations are designed to serve the candidate as a guide for selecting electives in specific areas of study and to develop the practice-ready skills that employers seek in career applicants. Each concentration has specific requirements and elective courses a student may take in order to earn the certificate.
JD candidates can pursue a concentration in one of the following areas: