Creighton University School of Law, located in

Omaha, Nebraska Omaha ( ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Nebraska and the county seat of Douglas County. Omaha is in the Midwestern United States on the Missouri River, about north of the mouth of the Platte River. The nation's 39th-largest cit ...

, United States, is a component of the Jesuit

Creighton University Creighton University is a private Jesuit research university in Omaha, Nebraska. Founded by the Society of Jesus in 1878, the university is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission. In 2015 the university enrolled 8,393 graduate and undergra ...

. According to Creighton's official 2019 ABA-required disclosures, 75% of the Class of 2019 obtained full-time, long-term, JD-advantaged or JD-required employment nine months after graduation.

History

In 1904, the School of Law began as a joint project with the Omaha Bar Association, with Timothy J. Mahoney as the first dean. The School of Law was housed in the Edward Creighton Institute on S. 18th Street until 1921, when it moved to new quarters on the Creighton campus.

Admissions

The middle 50% range of

LSAT The Law School Admission Test (LSAT; ) is a standardized test administered by the Law School Admission Council (LSAC) for prospective law school candidates. It is designed to assess reading comprehension as well as logical and verbal rea ...

scores of the full-time Fall 2018 entering class was 150–156. In this class, the male to female ratio is 51 percent to 49 percent, respectively. 19 percent of this class is a minority.

Scholarships

Creighton Law offers multiple types of scholarships to incoming first-year law students, as well as scholarships to returning second- and third-year law students. Examples include the Dean's Academic Scholarship, and the Frances M. Ryan Diversity Scholarship. 73% of the 2018 entering class received a scholarship.

Programs

The majority of Creighton School of Law students are enrolled in a full-time Juris Doctor program, which takes three years to complete. A growing number of students are enrolled in the Accelerated JD program, which takes two years to complete. A small portion of the student body is enrolled in a part-time JD program, which takes approximately four years to complete.

Concentrations and joint degrees

Creighton School of Law offers six certificates and four joint degrees. The certificates are Health Law, Family Law, Business, Commercial and Tax Law; Criminal Law and Procedure, International and Comparative Law, and Litigation. The joint degree programs include the law 3/3 program with its BSBA/JD degree (the completion of an undergraduate degree and a JD in six years instead of seven), the MBA/JD degree, the JD/MS in Government Organization and Leadership (GOAL), and the JD/MS in Negotiation and Conflict Resolution.

Clinics

Creighton operates the Milton R. Abrahams Clinic, which offers free legal assistance on civil matters to low-income residents of Douglas County. Starting in the Fall of 2017, the Creighton Immigrant and Refugee Clinic, housed within the Milton R. Abrahams Clinic, offers support to immigrant and refugees and is run in cooperation with the Immigrant Legal Center (formerly known as Justice for Our Neighbors).

Activities

''Creighton's Law Review'' is published four times annually. Students are selected based on class standing or writing ability to work on the ''Law Review'' during their second and third years. The ''Creighton International and Comparative Law Journal'' (CICLJ) is an online publication, founded in 2010, that serves as a forum for debate and exploration of international law issues. It also provides students with the opportunity to refine their research, writing, and critical-thinking skills to create articles. The

Moot Court Moot court is a co-curricular activity at many law schools. Participants take part in simulated court or arbitration proceedings, usually involving drafting memorials or memoranda and participating in oral argument. In most countries, the phrase " ...

team at Creighton has received recognition for winning a number of regional and national competitions. The Black Law Students Association (BLSA), was selected as Creighton University's “Most Outstanding Graduate/Professional School Student Organization” for the 2017–18 academic year.

Employment

According to Creighton's official 2017 ABA-required disclosures, nearly 88% of the Class of 2017 obtained full-time, long-term, JD-advantaged or JD-required employment nine months after graduation. Creighton's Law School Transparency under-employment score is 5%, indicating the percentage of the Class of 2017 unemployed, pursuing an additional degree, or working in a non-professional, short-term, or part-time job nine months after graduation.

Costs

Among top private Jesuit universities, Creighton is the least expensive institution for both tuition cost and cost of living. It is also among the lowest for average tuition rate increase in recent years. The total cost of attendance (indicating the cost of tuition, fees, and living expenses) at Creighton for the 2015–2016 academic year was $62,499.

Notable events

On a bi-annual basis,

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Clarence Thomas Clarence Thomas (born June 23, 1948) is an American jurist who serves as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. He was nominated by President George H. W. Bush to succeed Thurgood Marshall and has served since 1 ...

co-teaches a course on constitutional law with professor G. Michael Fenner, JD. His most recent visit was in February 2019. Once a year, the

Nebraska Supreme Court The Nebraska Supreme Court is the highest court in the U.S. state of Nebraska. The court consists of a chief justice and six associate justices. Each justice is initially appointed by the governor of Nebraska; using the Missouri Plan, each jus ...

holds session at Creighton University School of Law. The most recent session was in March 2019. The

United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit The United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit (in case citations, 8th Cir.) is a United States federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the following United States district courts: * Eastern District of Arkansas * Western Dist ...

heard oral arguments at the law school in November 2017. The law school completed a $4.6 million renovation over the years 2015–2017. A poverty law program was launched in 2017. On June 20, 2011, the ''Omaha World-Herald'' reported that Creighton Law School was temporarily reducing its class size.

Notable alumni

* Laura Duffy, former

United States Attorney United States attorneys are officials of the U.S. Department of Justice who serve as the chief federal law enforcement officers in each of the 94 U.S. federal judicial districts. Each U.S. attorney serves as the United States' chief federal ...

for the Southern District of California * Brad Ashford, former member of the

Nebraska Legislature The Nebraska Legislature (also called the Unicameral) is the legislature of the U.S. state of Nebraska. The Legislature meets at the Nebraska State Capitol in Lincoln. With 49 members, known as "senators", the Nebraska Legislature is the sm ...

, former member of the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...

* Frank A. Barrett, former

Governor of Wyoming A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

* Patrick Bourne, former member of the Nebraska Legislature * John Joseph Cavanaugh III, former member of the United States House of Representatives *

Ernie Chambers Ernest William Chambers (born July 10, 1937) is an American politician and civil rights activist who represented North Omaha's 11th District in the Nebraska State Legislature from 1971 to 2009 and again from 2013 to 2021. He could not run in 2 ...

, member of the

* William M. Connolly, former Nebraska Supreme Court Justice * Robert Vernon Denney, former member of the United States House of Representatives *

Mike Johanns Michael Owen Johanns ( ; born June 18, 1950) is an American attorney and politician who served as a United States Senator from Nebraska from 2009 to 2015. He served as the 38th governor of Nebraska from 1999 until 2005, and was chair of the Mi ...

, Member of the United States Senate, former

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and former

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* Steve Lathrop, former member of the Nebraska Legislature * Ray Madden, former member of the United States House of Representatives * Cheryl L. Mason — Chairman of the Board of Veterans' Appeals, US Department of Veterans’ Affairs (first woman appointed to the position) * Francis P. Matthews, former

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* Michael McCormack, former Nebraska Supreme Court Justice * John McKay, former

* Frederick Messmore, Justice of the Nebraska Supreme CourtHugh Jackson Dobbs, ''History of Gage County, Nebraska'' (1918), p. 437-439."Fred Messmore, 79, Is Dead; Served High Court 28 Years", ''The Lincoln Star'' June 26, 1969), p. 2. *

Henry Monsky Henry Monsky (February 4, 1890 – May 2, 1947) was a Jewish-American lawyer and communal leader from Omaha, Nebraska. Life Monsky was born on February 4, 1890 in Omaha, Nebraska, the son of fish dealer Abraham Monsky and Betsy Perisnev Greenblat ...

, Omaha attorney * Eugene O'Sullivan, former member of the United States House of Representatives * Robert W. Pratt, District Judge for the

United States District Court for the Southern District of Iowa The United States District Court for the Southern District of Iowa (in case citations, S.D. Iowa) has jurisdiction over forty-seven of Iowa's ninety-nine counties. It is subject to the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals (except for patent claims a ...

* Mike Reasoner, former member of the

Iowa House of Representatives The Iowa House of Representatives is the lower house of the Iowa General Assembly, the upper house being the Iowa Senate. There are 100 seats in the Iowa House of Representatives, representing 100 single-member districts across the state, formed ...

* Clair Roddewig, 14th

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. * Matt Schultz,

Council Bluffs Council Bluffs is a city in and the county seat of Pottawattamie County, Iowa, United States. The city is the most populous in Southwest Iowa, and is the third largest and a primary city of the Omaha-Council Bluffs Metropolitan Area. It is loc ...

Iowa Iowa () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wisconsin to the northeast, Illinois to th ...

City Council A municipal council is the legislative body of a municipality or local government area. Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as a city council, town council, town board, community council, rural counc ...

, former Iowa Secretary of State * Robert L. Smith (1918–1999), Associate Justice of the Nebraska Supreme Court * Lyle Elmer Strom, District Judge for the

United States District Court for the District of Nebraska The United States District Court for the District of Nebraska (in case citations, D. Neb.) is the federal district court whose jurisdiction is the state of Nebraska. Court offices are in Omaha and Lincoln. Appeals from the District of Nebraska ...

* Doug Struyk, member of the Iowa House of Representatives *

Lee Terry Lee Raymond Terry (born January 29, 1962) is a former American politician and a senior law firm adviser. From 1999 to 2015, he served as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives for as a member of the Republican Party. Since 2015, Terry ...

, former member of the United States House of Representatives * Ginni Thomas, wife of

References

External links

*
Official ABA profile

Law School Fact Sheet

To Educate and Serve: The Centennial History of Creighton University School of Law, by Oliver B. Pollak (Carolina Academic Press, 2007)
{{authority control Catholic law schools in the United States

Law Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior,Robertson, ''Crimes against humanity'', 90. with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been vario ...

Educational institutions established in 1904 Law schools in Nebraska 1904 establishments in Nebraska