Legal Education, U.S.

Legal education is the instruction and development of legal knowledge and practice skills in individuals who wish to obtain a law degree and possibly enter the practice of law. Law schools responsible for facilitating legal education are often considered a mini-institution insulated from changes to the larger affiliated institutions, yet they are equally impacted by higher education reforms. This entry explores the pedagogy, assessment, and overall structure of legal education.

The focus of this entry is legal education as a professional degree in the United States. While legal studies can be an undergraduate program offering, it is often considered part of the liberal arts curricular framework. Moreover, despite efforts to globalize legal education, it continues to be a geographically bounded structure, necessitated by each nation’s autonomous ...