University of the Pacific, McGeorge School of Law is a private, American Bar Association (ABA)-approved

law school A law school (also known as a law centre/center, college of law, or faculty of law) is an institution, professional school, or department of a college or university specializing in legal education, usually involved as part of a process for b ...

in the Oak Park neighborhood of the city of

Sacramento, California Sacramento ( or ; ; ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of California and the county seat, seat of Sacramento County, California, Sacramento County. Located at the confluence of the Sacramento Rive ...

. It is part of the University of the Pacific and is located on the University's Sacramento campus.

History

The school that eventually became McGeorge began in 1921 when

University of Chicago Law School The University of Chicago Law School is the Law school in the United States, law school of the University of Chicago, a Private university, private research university in Chicago, Illinois. It employs more than 180 full-time and part-time facul ...

graduate and

Standard Oil Standard Oil Company was a Trust (business), corporate trust in the petroleum industry that existed from 1882 to 1911. The origins of the trust lay in the operations of the Standard Oil of Ohio, Standard Oil Company (Ohio), which had been founde ...

executive Verne Adrian McGeorge began teaching law students at night in downtown Sacramento, California. After its formal establishment as a school in 1924, this Sacramento Law School, subsequently renamed in Professor McGeorge's honor as the "McGeorge School of Law", merged with the University of the Pacific in 1966 and came to be known as "Pacific McGeorge". McGeorge became an integral part of the University of the Pacific in 1991. The current dean of McGeorge School of Law is Michael Hunter Schwartz, formerly the dean of the William H. Bowen School of Law at

University of Arkansas at Little Rock The University of Arkansas at Little Rock (UA Little Rock, UALR) is a Public university, public research university in Little Rock, Arkansas, United States. Established as Little Rock Junior College by the Little Rock School District in 1927, the ...

from 2013 to 2017.

Accreditation, memberships, rankings

McGeorge has been approved by the

American Bar Association The American Bar Association (ABA) is a voluntary association, voluntary bar association of lawyers and law students in the United States; national in scope, it is not specific to any single jurisdiction. Founded in 1878, the ABA's stated acti ...

(ABA) since 1969. As an ABA approved law school, McGeorge graduates are eligible to sit for the

bar examination A bar examination is an examination administered by the bar association of a jurisdiction that a lawyer must pass in order to be admitted to the bar of that jurisdiction. Australia Administering bar exams is the responsibility of the bar associat ...

in any American jurisdiction.

Memberships

McGeorge joined the

Association of American Law Schools The Association of American Law Schools (AALS), formed in 1900, is a non-profit organization of 175 law schools in the United States. An additional 19 schools pay a fee to receive services but are not members. AALS incorporated as a 501(c)(3) non- ...

(AALS) in 1974. It has a chapter of the

Order of the Coif The Order of the Coif () is an American honor society for law school graduates. The Order was founded in 1902 at the University of Illinois College of Law. The name is a reference to the ancient English order of trial lawyers, the serjeants-at-la ...

, a national law school honorary society founded for the purposes of encouraging legal scholarship and advancing the ethical standards of the legal profession.

Rankings and bar exam passage rate

In the 2025 '' U.S. News & World Report'' law school rankings, McGeorge School of Law was ranked tied for 163rd out of 197 schools. Of the McGeorge alumni who took the California bar for the first time in July, 2022, 57% passed. It ranked fifteenth among the eighteen ABA-accredited California law schools.

Admissions

For the class entering in 2024, the law school accepted 613 out of 1031 applicants (a 59.46% acceptance rate), with 207 of those accepted enrolling (a 33.77% yield rate – the percentage of accepted students who enrolled). Five students were not included in the acceptance statistics. The class consisted of 212 students. The median

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 and logical reasoning. The test is ...

score was 155 and the median undergraduate

GPA Grading in education is the application of standardized measurements to evaluate different levels of student achievement in a course. Grades can be expressed as letters (usually A to F), as a range (for example, 1 to 6), percentages, or as num ...

was 3.52. One student was not included in the GPA calculation. The reported 25th/75th percentile LSAT scores and GPAs were 152/158 and 3.13/3.77.

Tuition costs

McGeorge's tuition and fees for full-time students during the 2019–2020 academic year cost $56,776 per year, while tuition and fees for part-time students was $42,418-47,824 per year.

Academic programs

McGeorge offers degree programs leading to the award of the J.D. (

Juris Doctor A Juris Doctor, Doctor of Jurisprudence, or Doctor of Law (JD) is a graduate-entry professional degree that primarily prepares individuals to practice law. In the United States and the Philippines, it is the only qualifying law degree. Other j ...

), the LL.M. (

Master of Laws A Master of Laws (M.L. or LL.M.; Latin: ' or ') is a postgraduate academic degree, pursued by those either holding an undergraduate academic law degree, a professional law degree, or an undergraduate degree in another subject. In many jurisdi ...

), the M.P.A. (

Master of Public Administration A Master of Public Administration (MPA) is a specialized professional graduate degree in public administration that prepares students for leadership roles, similar or equivalent to a Master of Business Administration but with an emphasis on the ...

), the M.P.P. (

Master of Public Policy The Master of Public Policy (MPP) is a graduate-level professional degree. It provides training in policy analysis and program evaluation at public policy schools. The MPP program places a focus on the systematic analysis of issues related to pu ...

) and the J.S.D. (

Doctor of Juridical Science A Doctor of Juridical Science (SJD; ), or a Doctor of the Science of Law (JSD; ), is a research doctorate degree in law that is equivalent to a Ph.D. degree. In most countries, it is the most advanced law degree that can be earned. Australia ...

) degrees. McGeorge offers both a three-year day division program and four-year evening division program. The first year curriculum at McGeorge consists of 27 units. McGeorge law students must also complete 29 units of upper-level required curriculum. Therefore, 56 units out of the 88 units to graduate are required courses. All students take the same required courses.

Location

The McGeorge School of Law is located on University of the Pacific's Sacramento campus at 3200 Fifth Avenue in the Oak Park area of Sacramento, the capital of California.

Journals and publications

* ''The University of the Pacific Law Review'' (formerly titled "McGeorge Law Review" and "The Pacific Law Journal"). A student-run, scholarly journal publishing four issues annually. Two issues are published each year containing professional articles and student-authored comments or casenotes; one issue contains the Review of Selected California Legislation, or "Greensheets"; and one issue contains a symposium, focusing on a specific, significant legal topic. * ''California Initiative Review.'' An online analysis of

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

ballot initiatives and related issues. * ''California Water Law Journal.'' A forum for water law research.

Notable people

Notable alumni

* Greg Aghazarian –

California State Assembly The California State Assembly is the lower house of the California State Legislature (the upper house being the California State Senate). The Assembly convenes, along with the State Senate, at the California State Capitol in Sacramento, Califor ...

man, 26th District *

Mark Amodei Mark Eugene Amodei ( ; born June 12, 1958) is an American lawyer and politician serving as the United States House of Representatives, U.S. representative for Nevada's 2nd congressional district since 2011. The only Republican Party (United Stat ...

– U.S. Congressman from Nevada * Ronald J. Bath –

USAF The United States Air Force (USAF) is the Air force, air service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is one of the six United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Tracing its ori ...

, Director of U.S. Air Force Strategic Planning *

Scott Baugh Scott Randall Baugh (born July 4, 1962) is an American attorney and politician. He is a member of the Republican Party. He served in the California State Assembly and served as the chair of the Republican Party in Orange County, California, from ...

– former

Republican

Leader Leadership, is defined as the ability of an individual, group, or organization to "", influence, or guide other individuals, teams, or organizations. "Leadership" is a contested term. Specialist literature debates various viewpoints on the co ...

, 67th District *

Scott Boras Scott Dean Boras (born November 2, 1952) is an American sports agent, specializing in baseball. He is the founder, owner and president of the Boras Corporation, a sports agency based in Newport Beach, California, that represents roughly 175 pro ...

– sports agent *

Consuelo María Callahan Consuelo María Callahan (born June 9, 1950) is a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. Background Consuelo María Callahan was born June 9, 1950, in Palo Alto, California. She was raised in F ...

– Judge,

United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit (in case citations, 9th Cir.) is the U.S. federal court of appeals that has appellate jurisdiction over the U.S. district courts for the following federal judicial districts: * Distric ...

* L. Whitney Clayton – Presidency of the Seventy of

the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a Nontrinitarianism, nontrinitarian Restorationism, restorationist Christianity, Christian Christian denomination, denomination and the ...

Lloyd Connelly Lloyd George Connelly, Jr. (born December 31, 1945, in Sacramento, California) is a Sacramento County, California Superior Court Judge. Before his appointment as a judge, Connelly was a Democratic politician, serving as a member of the Califo ...

– Judge, Sacramento County Superior Court *

Ellen Corbett Ellen Marie Corbett (December 31, 1954 – August 9, 2024) was an American Democratic Party (United States), Democratic politician from the San Francisco Bay Area. She served in the California State Senate, representing the California's 10th Sta ...

–

California State Senator The California State Senate is the upper house of the California State Legislature (the lower house being the California State Assembly). The state senate convenes, along with the state assembly, at the California State Capitol in Sacramento. N ...

, 10th District * Christine Craft – attorney, radio talk show host, and former television news anchor *

John Doolittle John Taylor Doolittle (born October 30, 1950), is an attorney and an American politician. Elected to Congress in 1990, he served as a Republican member of the United States House of Representatives from 1991 to 2009, representing (numbered as ...

– US Congressman 1991–2009 * Morrison C. England Jr. – Judge,

United States District Court for the Eastern District of California The United States District Court for the Eastern District of California (in case citations, E.D. Cal.) is a federal court in the Ninth Circuit (except for patent claims and claims against the U.S. government under the Tucker Act, which are appe ...

Noreen Evans Noreen Marie Evans (born April 22, 1955) is an American lawyer and politician who was a member of the California State Senate. As a Democrat, she represented the 2nd district, encompassing Humboldt, Mendocino, Lake and Napa counties, as well ...

–

woman, 7th District * Dayvid Figler – Former Las Vegas Municipal Court Judge, NPR commentator * Bryan Freedman – attorney specializing in

entertainment law Entertainment law, also known as media law, encompasses legal services provided to the entertainment industry. These services often overlap with intellectual property law, which includes key components such as trademarks, copyright, and the right ...

* Edward J. Garcia – Judge,

* John M. Gerrard – Justice of 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 ...

James Hardesty James William Hardesty (born November 28, 1948) served as a justice of the Nevada Supreme Court. He was elected in 2004, and reelected in 2010 and 2016. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree from University of Nevada and a Juris Doctor A Ju ...

- Justice of the

Nevada Supreme Court The Supreme Court of Nevada is the highest state court of the U.S. state of Nevada, and the head of the Nevada Judiciary. The main constitutional function of the Supreme Court is to review appeals made directly from the decisions of the distri ...

Mikayil Jabbarov Mikayil Chingiz oghlu Jabbarov ( born 19 September 1976) is an Azerbaijani politician who is the current Minister of Economу of Azerbaijan (since 23 October 2019) He was previously Minister of Taxes (2017–2019) and Minister of Education (20 ...

–

Minister of Economy A ministry of finance is a ministry or other government agency in charge of government finance, fiscal policy, and financial regulation. It is headed by a finance minister, an executive or cabinet position . A ministry of finance's portfolio ...

of the

Azerbaijan Republic Azerbaijan, officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, is a Boundaries between the continents, transcontinental and landlocked country at the boundary of West Asia and Eastern Europe. It is a part of the South Caucasus region and is bounded by ...

* Michael A. Lilly –

Attorney General of Hawaii The attorney general of Hawaii () is the chief legal officer and chief law enforcement officer of Hawaii. In present-day statehood within the United States, the attorney general is appointed by the elected Governor of Hawaii, governor with the app ...

(1984–1985) *

Bill Lockyer William Westwood Lockyer (born May 8, 1941) is an American politician and lawyer from the state of California. A Democrat, he served in both houses of the state legislature, having been a member of the California State Assembly from 1973 to 19 ...

–

California State Treasurer The state treasurer of California is a constitutional officer in the executive branch of the Government of California, government of the U.S. state of California. 34 individuals have held the office of state treasurer since statehood. The incumb ...

and former

California Attorney General The attorney general of California is the state attorney general of the government of California. The officer must ensure that "the laws of the state are uniformly and adequately enforced" (Constitution of California, Article V, Section 13). The ...

* Steve Martini – attorney and best-selling author of

legal thriller The legal thriller genre is a type of crime fiction genre that focuses on the proceedings of the Criminal investigation, investigation, with particular reference to the impacts on courtroom proceedings and the lives of characters. The genre came ...

novels * Deborah Ortiz – former

, 6th District * Victor Plata – Olympic athlete in triathlon * Johnnie B. Rawlinson – Judge,

* Dana Makoto Sabraw – Judge,

United States District Court for the Southern District of California The United States District Court for the Southern District of California (in case citations, S.D. Cal.) is a federal court in the Ninth Circuit (except for patent claims and claims against the U.S. government under the Tucker Act, which are ap ...

* Robert J. Sandoval – first openly gay judge on

Los Angeles County Superior Court The Superior Court of Los Angeles County is the California Superior Courts of California, Superior Court located in Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County. It is the largest single unified trial court in the United States. The Sup ...

Steven D. Strauss Steven D. Strauss is an American author, columnist, and lawyer, who has been referred to as “America’s leading small business expert.” He is the author of eighteen books and was a senior columnist for USA Today for more than twenty years. St ...

– author, columnist, and lawyer *

Christian Wellisch Christian Wellisch (born September 13, 1975) is a Hungarian-American former professional mixed martial artist. A professional competitor from 2001 until 2009, he competed for the Ultimate Fighting Championship, UFC, World Extreme Cagefighting, W ...

– former professional

mixed martial arts Mixed martial arts (MMA) is a full-contact fighting combat sport, sport based on strike (attack), striking and grappling; incorporating techniques from various combat sports from around the world. In the early 20th century, various inter-s ...

combat athlete

Notable faculty

* J. Clark Kelso, Federal Receiver overseeing healthcare reform in California's prison system, former Acting

California Insurance Commissioner The California insurance commissioner has been an elected executive office position in California since 1991. Prior to that time, the insurance commissioner was appointed by the governor. The officeholder is in charge of the California Departme ...

(for the year 2000), former chief information officer of California. *

Anthony Kennedy Anthony McLeod Kennedy (born July 23, 1936) is an American attorney and jurist who served as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1988 until his retirement in 2018. He was nominated to the court in 1987 by Pres ...

, retired

Associate Justice An associate justice or associate judge (or simply associate) is a judicial panel member who is not the chief justice in some jurisdictions. The title "Associate Justice" is used for members of the Supreme Court of the United States and some ...

of the

United States Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that turn on question ...

(served from 1988 to 2018), Pacific McGeorge faculty member since 1965 teaching during summers in

Salzburg Salzburg is the List of cities and towns in Austria, fourth-largest city in Austria. In 2020 its population was 156,852. The city lies on the Salzach, Salzach River, near the border with Germany and at the foot of the Austrian Alps, Alps moun ...

, Austria, at the University of Salzburg for the law school's summer international program.

Present Dean and Dean Emeriti

* Michael Colatrella, 2025 - Present * Michael Hunter Schwartz, 2017 – 2025 * Francis J. –"Jay" Mootz, 2012–2017 * Elizabeth Rindskopf Parker, 2002–2012, former Executive Director and CEO of the

State Bar of California The State Bar of California is an administrative division of the Supreme Court of California which licenses attorneys and regulates the practice of law in California. It is responsible for managing the admission of lawyers to the practice of law ...

, former

CIA The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA; ) is a civilian foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States tasked with advancing national security through collecting and analyzing intelligence from around the world and ...

General Counsel A general counsel, also known as chief counsel or chief legal officer (CLO), is the chief in-house lawyer for a company or a governmental department. In a company, the person holding the position typically reports directly to the CEO, and their ...

* Gerald Caplan, 1991–2002 * Gordon D. Schaber, 1957–1991 * John Swann, 1946–1957 * Lawrence Dowrety, 1937 – WWII closure * Gilford Rowland, 1933–1937 * Russell Harris, 1930–1933 * Vern Adrian McGeorge, Founder, 1924–1930

References

2025 Best Law Schools
''U.S. News''

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Macgeorge School Of Law University of the Pacific (United States) ABA-accredited law schools in California Universities and colleges in Sacramento County, California Education in Sacramento, California Universities and colleges established in 1924 1924 establishments in California Private universities and colleges in California