About UC Hastings College of the Law

UC Hastings College of the Law was founded in 1878 as the first law department of the University of California, and today is one of the top-rated law schools in the United States. Its alumni span the globe and are among the most respected lawyers, judges and business leaders today.  Our faculty are nationally renowned as both teachers and scholars.

Our Electives offer many Opportunities

• clinical training
• more than 50 seminars in wide-ranging areas
• concentrations for advanced study in Civil Litigation and Dispute Resolution, Criminal Law, Intellectual Property Law, International Law, Law and Health Sciences, Social Justice Lawyering, and Taxation. 
• opportunities to work on scholarly journal publications
• a moot court training program that regularly produces national championship teams for appellate advocacy competitions throughout the United States

Our Mission Statement

The mission of the University of California, Hastings College of the Law is to provide an academic program of the highest quality, based upon scholarship, teaching, and research, to a diverse student body and to assure that its graduates have a comprehensive understanding and appreciation of the law and are well trained for the multiplicity of roles that they will play in a society and profession that are subject to continually changing demands and needs.   

Our Program Learning Outcomes

1. Doctrinal and Substantive Knowledge
   Students will be able to identify, explain, and employ basic concepts, theories, procedures, and rules of law in both core legal areas and in their own chosen area(s) of specialization.
2. Problem Solving & Critical Thinking
   Students will be able to analyze, assess, and form independent judgments on a variety of legal issues, and will use these skills to solve client legal problems.
3. Practical and Communication Skills
   Students will be able to gather and analyze evidence, communicate effectively in appropriate written and oral formats with a multiplicity of audiences, and demonstrate other professional skills.
4. Research Skills
   Students will be able to independently retrieve, organize, analyze and evaluate paper and electronic legal and interdisciplinary sources, and differentiate between the types and relevance of the authorities.
5. Professionalism
   Students will demonstrate the professional skills necessary for effective and ethical participation in the legal profession.
6. Public Service
   Students will be able to describe the roles and responsibilities of lawyers in overcoming obstacles to legal access and in promoting social justice.