California (Santa Clara) -- Santa Clara University School of Law -- Accreditation: Full ABA -- Year Founded: 1912

The Santa Clara University School of Law (Santa Clara Law) is the law school of Santa Clara University, a Jesuit university in Santa Clara, California, in the Silicon Valley region. The School of Law was founded in 1911. The Jesuit affiliation of the university is manifested in a concern with ethics, social justice, and community service.



Santa Clara University School of Law was founded in 1911. The school is part of Santa Clara University (founded 1851), the oldest operating institution of higher learning in California and the oldest Catholic university in the American West.

Santa Clara Law offers the Juris Doctor (J.D.) law degree. It also offers several joint degree programs, including J.D./Master of Business Administration (J.D./M.B.A.) and J.D./Master of Science in Information Systems (MSIS) offered in conjunction with Santa Clara University's Leavey School of Business, ranked 10th in graduate programs on the U.S. News & World Report graduate schools rankings. In addition, the School offers Master of Laws (LL.M.) degrees in Intellectual Property Law, in U.S. Law for Foreign Lawyers, and in International and Comparative Law. Santa Clara Law also features specialized curricular programs in High Tech and Intellectual Property law, International Law, and Public Interest and Social Justice law. The School offers more summer study abroad programs than any law school in the United States, with 13 different programs in 17 countries.



SCU Law School's Bergin Hall

Contact the School

Santa Clara Law
Santa Clara University
500 El Camino Real
Santa Clara, California 95053
Phone: (408) 554-5048
Email: lawadmissions@scu.edu

Santa Clara University School of Law: Centers, Clinics & Programs


High Tech Law Institute
promotes and advances the study and development of intellectual property law and related laws and policies as applied to existing and emerging technologies.

Center for Global Law & Policy
promotes scholarship in the field of international and comparative law and provides a variety of educational opportunities for law students.

Center for Social Justice and Public Service
a community for all who share the commitment to giving voice in the legal system to marginalized, subordinated, or underrepresented clients and causes.

Center Scholars
Santa Clara Law recognizes faculty for their scholarship connected to the Law School Centers of Excellence - the Center for Global Law and Policy, the Center for Social Justice and Public Service, and the High Tech Law Institute.

Katharine and George Alexander Community Law Center
a free legal clinic where law students work with attorney mentors to represent clients in need.

Leadership Initiative
promotes the development of leadership education for law students by working with academics and members of the legal profession.

Northern California Innocence Project
a clinical program providing students the opportunity to represent California prisoners raising claims of factual innocence.

Death Penalty College
an intensive training program for defense attorneys who represent persons charged in capital cases.

Institute for Redress and Recovery
an interdisciplinary project that facilitates collaboration between lawyers representing human rights victims in legal proceedings and clinicians able to provide medical and psychological services.

BroadBand Institute of California
specializing in applied research and education in the areas of law, technology and public policy.