Texas A&M University School of Law

Last updated
Texas A&M University
School of Law
School-of-Law.png
Parent school Texas A&M University
Established1989;35 years ago (1989)
School type Public law school
Endowment$13.5 billion (University System and Foundations, 2019) [1]
Dean Robert B. Ahdieh [2]
Location Fort Worth, Texas, United States
32°44′55″N97°19′33″W / 32.74861°N 97.32583°W / 32.74861; -97.32583
Enrollment522 (2021) [3]
Faculty118 (2017) [4]
USNWR ranking26th (tie) (2024) [5]
Bar pass rate92.99% (2023) [6]
Website law.tamu.edu

Texas A&M University School of Law is the law school of Texas A&M University located in downtown Fort Worth, Texas. Established in 1989 as the Texas Wesleyan University School of Law, it was formerly the law school of Texas Wesleyan University until it was acquired by Texas A&M University on August 12, 2013. On August 13, 2013, fully accredited by the American Bar Association, it began operations at the same location. [7] The law school is a member of the Association of American Law Schools (AALS) and offers the Juris Doctor (J.D.) degree. [8] Students may also pursue a Master of Laws (LL.M.) or Master of Legal Studies (M.L.S.) degree either online or in-residence. [9]

Contents

History

Founded in 1989, the law school began as the Dallas/Fort Worth School of Law in Irving, Texas, and then became the Texas Wesleyan University School of Law in 1992. On June 26, 2012, Texas A&M University reached an agreement with Texas Wesleyan University under which it would take over ownership and operational control of the law school, to be renamed the Texas A&M University School of Law. The agreement became final on August 12, 2013, with Texas A&M purchasing the school and all its physical and licensing assets for $73 million. [10] After the sale, Texas A&M University declined to re-issue Texas A&M diplomas to law school alumni, stating that A&M lacked the necessary accreditation to do so. [11]

Academics

Texas A&M confers the Juris Doctor degree upon students who satisfactorily complete 90 credit hours and the experiential, rigorous writing, and pro bono requirements. Concentrations include Business Law; Criminal Law, Justice & Policy; Dispute Resolution; Estate Planning; Family Law; Intellectual Property; Workplace Law; Energy Law; Environmental Law; and Water Law. [12]

Since its acquisition by Texas A&M University, the law school has increased the size of the faculty by 30% while reducing the size of incoming classes, with an 8.4:1 student-faculty ratio in the 2016–17 academic year. [13] It also boosted the overall scholarship budget by 65%. [14]

Programs

Through the Advocacy Program, students may compete in Moot Court (appellate advocacy), Mock Trial (trial advocacy) and Alternative Dispute Resolution (negotiation, mediation and arbitration). [15]

The Texas A&M Law Fellowship is a student-run organization whose stated mission is to raise awareness of legal work in the public interest sector. It awards fellowships to students who work in public interest organizations during the summer with funds raised at the annual Law Fellowship Gala and Auction. [16]

The legal clinics offered at the law school include the Community Development Clinic, Criminal Defense Clinic, Entrepreneurship Law Clinic, Family Law and Veterans Clinic, Immigrant Rights Clinic, Intellectual Property and Technology Law Clinic, Low Income Tax Clinic, and Wills and Estates Clinic. [17] Students who are accepted into the clinic are supervised by practicing attorneys and a faculty supervisor. [18] In 2014, the United States Patent and Trademark Office approved a clinic at the law school after the school had shown a strong intellectual property program. [19] The school has expanded that program, doubling the faculty in 2015. [20]

The law school also hosts honor societies including the Elliott Inn of Phi Delta Phi [21] and the Order of the Coif. [22]

Admissions

Texas A&M was ranked among the more selective law schools in 2019, placing 37th nationally in a 24/7 Wall St. ranking based on overall acceptance rate, median LSAT, and median undergraduate GPA. [23]

Texas A&M accepted 18.41% of applicants for the 2021 first-year class. The median LSAT score is 163, and the median GPA is 3.84. [24] Women make up 52% of the 2021 first-year class, minorities make up 33% of the class, and the average age is 24. [25]

Tuition

As part of the transition from a private to a public institution, in 2015 the law school announced that it would offer in-state tuition beginning in the 2016–17 academic year, resulting in a reduction in tuition and fees for Texas residents. It also guaranteed a locked tuition rate to all students for up to four academic years. [14]

For the 2021–2022 academic year, full-time resident tuition and fees are $32,634; for non-residents, tuition and fees are $48,618. [26] In the 2020–2021 academic year, 92% of Texas A&M law students received a grant or scholarship with a median total award of $27,000 for full-time students. [24]

Rankings

Texas A&M University is ranked tied for 29th nationally in the 2023–2024 edition of the U.S. News Rankings of Best Law Schools. [27] For 2023, the school is also ranked 6th for its intellectual property law program [28] and 4th for its dispute resolution program. [29]

Texas A&M's overall U.S. News ranking has increased rapidly since 2015, when it was unranked. [30] Between 1998 and 2020, the school experienced the largest increase of any law school to its academic reputation score rising from 1.5 to 2.6 (out of 5 points). [31] This score, based on a survey of law school faculties, is the largest single factor in the U.S. News rankings methodology. [32] U.S. News has previously ranked the law school 149th (2016), [33] 111th (2017), [34] 92nd (2018), [35] 80th (2019), [36] 83rd (2020), [37] 60th (2021), [38] 53rd (2022), [39] 46th (2023) [40] and tied for 29th (2024). [41]

Bar exam

First Time Bar Passage:

In 2020, Texas A&M had an overall first-time bar exam pass rate of 89.89%. [42] That, when compared with other Texas law schools, was behind University of Texas School of Law (95.05%) and Texas Tech University School of Law (93.81%), while ahead of Baylor Law School (87.25%), University of Houston Law Center (86.06%), SMU Dedman School of Law (85.18%), South Texas College of Law (79.03%), St. Mary's University School of Law (70.41%), UNT Dallas College of Law (59.34%), and Texas Southern University Thurgood Marshall School of Law (51.74%).

In 2019, Texas A&M had an overall first-time bar exam pass rate of 90.32%. That mark was second best among Texas law schools behind University of Texas School of Law (93.29%), tied with Baylor Law School (90.32%), while ahead of SMU Dedman School of Law (86.51%), University of Houston Law Center (85.14%), Texas Tech University School of Law (82.09%), South Texas College of Law (76.63%), St. Mary's University School of Law (69.65%), UNT Dallas College of Law (69.48%), and Texas Southern University Thurgood Marshall School of Law (55.77%).

Ultimate Bar Passage:

Of all 2018 Texas A&M law graduates who took the bar, 94.78% ultimately passed the bar exam within two years of graduation. That mark was fourth best among Texas law schools behind University of Texas School of Law (97.06%), Texas Tech University School of Law (95.92%), and SMU Dedman School of Law (95.73%), while ahead of South Texas College of Law (94.38%), University of Houston Law Center (92.76%), Baylor Law School (91.23%), St. Mary's University School of Law (84.91%), UNT Dallas College of Law (80.74%), and Texas Southern University Thurgood Marshall School of Law (75.86%).

Of all 2017 Texas A&M law graduates who took the bar, 89.47% ultimately passed the bar exam within two years of graduation. That mark was fifth best among Texas law schools behind Baylor Law School (97.06%), University of Texas School of Law (96.78%), SMU Dedman School of Law (94.61%), and Texas Tech University School of Law (92.55%), while ahead of University of Houston Law Center (88.50%), UNT Dallas College of Law (87.18%), South Texas College of Law (85.50%), St. Mary's University School of Law (83.90%), and Texas Southern University Thurgood Marshall School of Law (79.69%). [43]

Employment

Class of 2020:

Out of 130 total graduates of the Class of 2020, 93.8% (or 122 graduates) obtained full-time, long-term employment for which bar passage was required or for which a J.D. was an advantage within 10 months of graduation. 80.8% (or 105 graduates) were employed in long-term, full-time, bar passage required jobs (i.e. as attorneys) excluding solo practice. 5.4% (or 7 graduates) were unemployed and seeking work, pursuing an additional degree, or working in a non-professional, short term, or part-time job within 10 months of graduation.

Of those graduates, 4.6% (or 6 graduates) obtained federal clerkships, and 10.0% (or 13 graduates) obtained jobs at large law firms with more than 100 lawyers. 14.6% (or 19 graduates) obtained full-time, long-term public service positions in government or public interest.

Class of 2019:

Out of 130 total graduates of the Class of 2019, 92.3% (or 120 graduates) obtained full-time, long-term employment for which bar passage was required or for which a J.D. was an advantage within 10 months of graduation. 80.8% (or 105 graduates) were employed in long-term, full-time, bar passage required jobs (i.e. as attorneys) excluding solo practice. 6.2% (or 8 graduates) were unemployed and seeking work, pursuing an additional degree, or working in a non-professional, short term, or part-time job within 10 months of graduation.

Of those graduates, 3.1% (or 4 graduates) obtained federal clerkships, and 7.7% (or 10 graduates) obtained jobs at large law firms with more than 100 lawyers. 19.2% (or 25 graduates) obtained full-time, long-term public service positions in government or public interest.

Class of 2018:

Out of 138 total graduates of the Class of 2018, 82.6% (or 114 graduates) obtained full-time, long-term employment for which bar passage was required or for which a J.D. was an advantage within 10 months of graduation. 65.9% (or 91 graduates) were employed in long-term, full-time, bar passage required jobs (i.e. as attorneys) excluding solo practice. 11.6% (or 16 graduates) were unemployed and seeking work, pursuing an additional degree, or working in a non-professional, short term, or part-time job within 10 months of graduation.

Of those graduates, 2.2% (or 3 graduates) obtained federal clerkships, and 4.3% (or 6 graduates) obtained jobs at large law firms with more than 100 lawyers. 20.3% (or 28 graduates) obtained full-time, long-term public service positions in government or public interest. [44]

Scholarly publications

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