Cornell University Law School: A Comprehensive Overview
Cornell Law School, one of the five Ivy League law schools, offers a rigorous and comprehensive legal education. Established in 1887 as Cornell University's Department of Law, it has a rich history of producing influential figures in law and public service. Located in Ithaca, New York, at the heart of the Finger Lakes region, Cornell Law School provides a supportive and collaborative community for its students.
Academic Programs and Degrees
Cornell Law School offers four degree programs: JD, LLM, MSLS, and JSD. In addition to these, the school provides several dual-degree programs in conjunction with other professional schools at the university, such as:
- JD/MBA (business degree from the Johnson Graduate School of Management)
- JD/MPA (public affairs degree from the Cornell Institute of Public Affairs)
- JD/MILR (labor relations degree from the School of Industrial and Labor Relations)
- JD/PhD in developmental psychology
- JD/Master en Droit: A four-year program preparing graduates for bar admission in the United States and France.
- JD/M.LL.P: A three-year program focused on German and European law and practices.
- JD/Master in Global Business Law: A three-year program focusing on global business law.
These programs reflect the school's commitment to interdisciplinary education and preparing students for diverse career paths.
A Historical Perspective
The Law Department at Cornell opened in 1887 in Morrill Hall, with Judge Douglass Boardman as its first dean. Initially, admission requirements were minimal, not even requiring a high school diploma. Over time, the standards evolved, with two years of undergraduate education required by 1917, and the program becoming a graduate degree program in 1924. The department was officially renamed Cornell Law School in 1925.
Throughout its history, Cornell Law School has been a pioneer in diversity and inclusion. In 1890, George Washington Fields graduated, becoming one of the first law school graduates of color in the United States. Mary Kennedy Brown became the school's first female graduate in 1893. Notable figures such as Charles Evans Hughes, who later served as Governor, Secretary of State, and Chief Justice of the United States, taught at Cornell Law School from 1891 to 1895.
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The school moved into Boardman Hall in 1892, a building specifically constructed for legal instruction. In 1932, the Law School relocated to its present-day location at Myron Taylor Hall, an ornate, Gothic structure funded by Myron Charles Taylor, a former CEO of US Steel and a member of the Cornell Law class of 1894. Further expansions included Hughes Hall in 1963 and the Jane M.G. Foster wing in 1988, enhancing the library space.
International Programs and Initiatives
Cornell Law School has a strong emphasis on international legal studies. In 1948, it established a program of specialization in international affairs and began awarding LL.B. degrees. The Cornell International Law Journal was first published in 1968. The Berger International Legal Studies Program, established in 1991, offers a unique JD specialization opportunity, a four-year JD/Master en Droit (French law degree) program, and a three-year JD/LLM program in Portugal.
The school also runs two summer institutes overseas. The Cornell-Université de Paris I Summer Institute of International and Comparative Law at the Sorbonne in Paris, France, offers courses in international human rights, comparative legal systems, and international commercial arbitration. In 2006, Cornell Law School launched a second summer law institute, the Workshop in International Business Transactions with Chinese Characteristics in Suzhou, China.
The Clarke Program in East Asian Law and Culture brings an exciting interdisciplinary and humanistic focus to the study of law in East Asia.
Campus and Facilities
Cornell Law School is located in the renovated and expanded Myron Taylor Hall, at the heart of the scenic 745-acre Cornell University campus. Recent expansions and renovations have added significant classroom and student space. Myron Taylor Hall saw the addition of 40,000 square feet of underground classroom space.
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The Law Library
The Law Library is a significant resource, containing 700,000 books and microforms, including rare historical texts relevant to the legal history of the United States. It serves as one of the 12 national depositories for print records of briefs filed with the United States Supreme Court. The library also houses a large collection of print copies of the records and briefs of the New York Court of Appeals.
The microfilm collection includes sets of Congressional, Supreme Court, and United Nations documents, as well as a large collection of World Law Reform Commission materials. Microfiche records and briefs for the United States Supreme Court, the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit and D.C. Circuit, and the New York State Court of Appeals are also collected.
The library has a large collection of international, foreign, and comparative law, with a focus on the Commonwealth of Nations and Europe, as well as collections of public international law and international trade law. Special collections include the Samuel Thorne collection, with 175 of some of the earliest and most rare books on law, the Nathaniel C. Moak Library, the Edwin J. Marshall Collection of early works on equity, and the Earl J. Bennett Collection of Statutory Material, a print collection of original colonial, territorial, and state session laws and statutory codes.
Admissions and Selectivity
Admission to Cornell Law School is highly competitive. The median LSAT score for the 2025 entering class was 173 (98th percentile), with the 75th percentile at 175 (99th percentile). The school employs a full-file-review admissions process, placing significant emphasis on an applicant's statement, letters of recommendation, community and extracurricular involvement, and work experience. The application also includes a statement on diversity and a note on why the applicant wants to attend Cornell.
Tuition and Cost of Attendance
For the 2022-2023 academic year, the non-discounted tuition for the JD program was $74,098 per year. The total cost of attendance, including tuition, fees, and living expenses, was $97,618.
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Experiential Learning and Clinics
Cornell Law School emphasizes experiential learning as a core component of its educational model. The Cornell Legal Aid Clinic, established in 1960, allows students to work on real legal problems under the supervision of experienced faculty. Students can participate in in-house clinics or externships, developing crucial skills for the practice of law.
Law Journals and Publications
The school has three student-edited law journals: the Cornell Law Review, the Cornell International Law Journal, and the Cornell Journal of Law and Public Policy. Cornell Law students actively participate in moot court competitions, both internally and externally, including the Langfan First-Year Moot Court Competition.
Cornell Law School is also home to the Legal Information Institute (LII), which maintains Wex, a free legal dictionary and encyclopedia. The LII is a world leader in the development and support of legal research.
Career Development
Cornell’s law students are among the most recruited in the country. Hundreds of employers recruit students through on-campus visits, virtual settings, and job fairs in various cities. The Career Development Office provides employment counseling and serves as a liaison to legal employers. The Office of Public Service hosts an annual Public Interest Law Career Symposium to foster the Law School’s commitment to service.
Notable Alumni
Cornell Law School has produced numerous distinguished alumni who have made significant contributions to law, government, and society. These include:
- Secretaries of State Edmund Muskie and William P. Rogers
- Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Samuel Pierce
- The first female President of Taiwan, Tsai Ing-wen
- Federal judge and first female editor-in-chief of a law review Mary H. Gregory
Commitment to Ideals
When Cornell University’s founding president, Andrew Dickson White, began to lay plans for a law department at Cornell University in the late 1800s, he wrote that he did not want to educate swarms of hastily prepared lawyers, “but a fair number of well-trained, large-minded, morally based lawyers in the best sense. . .” He hoped graduates of the school would become “a blessing to the country, at the bar, on the bench, and in various public bodies.” This ideal still holds true to this day.
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