School of Law: Information

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• Journal of Law & Politics
• Virginia Environmental Law Journal
• Virginia Journal of Criminal Law
• Virginia Journal of International Law
• Virginia Journal of Law & Technology
• Virginia Journal of Social Policy & the Law
• Virginia Law & Business Review
• Virginia Law Review
• Virginia Sports & Entertainment Law Journal
• Virginia Tax Review

Academic policies are published annually by the Law School. Current-year policies may be found on-line at: http://www.law.virginia.edu/html/academics/policies/policies.htm

Virginia Law is enriched by the scope of student organizations, extracurricular activities and the community spirit that permeates student life. Opportunities include 10 student-run academic journals, more than 65 interest-centered organizations, student self-governance (both Law School and University), and a vibrant range of social and athletic activities. In addition, the University and local community are both large enough to offer something to meet anyone’s interests and small enough to make active participation compatible with a student’s rigorous academic schedule.

The Law School offers the first professional degree in law and two graduate law degrees:

• Doctor of Juridical Science (S.J.D.)
• Juris Doctor (J.D.)
• Master of Laws (LL.M.)

The Law School is located on the North Grounds, about a mile from the central University Grounds, as part of a graduate-professional complex that also includes the Darden School of Business. The school includes Clay Hall, the main entrance to the Law School; Withers-Brown Hall, the building to the right of the main entrance that houses classrooms, administrative and faculty offices, and the Arthur J. Morris Law Library; and Slaughter Hall, the building to the left of the main entrance that includes classrooms, student organization offices, moot courtrooms, the Law School Foundation and Alumni Association, and student services such as the offices of Career Services, Financial Aid, Graduate Studies, Public Service, Student Affairs and Student Records. To the back of the school, Scott Commons includes a cafeteria, dining rooms, student mailboxes and study/lounge space. The Law School has wireless Internet access available to students, staff and visitors, as well as computer lab access in the Law Library.

• Bracewell and Giuliani Oral Advocacy Awards: Established by the Houston firm in 1988 in connection with the Legal Research and Writing Program, this award honors one student from each first-year small section for his or her outstanding appellate brief and one student from each first-year small section for outstanding oral advocacy. Honorees receive a monetary award and certificate.Mortimer Caplin Public Service Award: Established in 1992 by Mr. Caplin, ‘40, the commissioner of the Internal Revenue Service under President John F. Kennedy, this award is given at commencement to a graduating student entering a career in the public service sector who demonstrates the qualities of leadership, integrity, and service to others.
• Mortimer Caplin Public Service Fellowship: This fellowship is given to exceptional law students who accept low-paying or unpaid public service internships during the summer.
• Edwin S. Cohen Tax Prize: This monetary prize is given annually to the graduating student who has demonstrated, by the sustained excellence of his or her performance in tax courses, superior scholarship in the tax area.
• Claire Corcoran Award: This award is presented to second-year students who have demonstrated the most commitment to public interest work
• Hardy Cross Dillard Prize: Established in honor of Hardy Cross Dillard, retired Judge of the International Court of Justice and former dean and James Monroe Professor of Law, this monetary prize and plaque are awarded to the author of the best student note in a current volume of the Virginia Journal of International Law.
• Hardy Cross Dillard Scholarship: This scholarship is given to an exceptional member of the entering class based on — in addition to financial need — prior academic achievement, leadership, integrity, service to others, success in endeavors outside the classroom, and maturity. All applicants are considered for the scholarship; no separate application is required.
• Faculty Award for Academic Excellence: This award ispresented to the student who has had the most outstanding academic record during his or her three years in Law School.
• Linda Fairstein Public Service Fellowship: This fellowship is given to exceptional law students who accept low-paying or unpaid public service internships during the summer.
• Carl M. Franklin Prize: Established at his 50th reunion in 1998 by Dr. Carl M. Franklin ‘48, this award recognizes the student with the highest grade point average at the end of his or her first year of law school. The winner receives a cash award and a plaque recognizing this scholastic achievement.Robert E. Goldsten (‘40) Award: Established by Robert E. Goldsten, this award is given to the student who has, in the opinion of the faculty, contributed the most to classroom participation. The winner receives a monetary award and a lifetime membership in the University of Virginia Alumni Association.
• Eppa Hunton IV Memorial Book Award: Established in 1977 by the Richmond, Va., law firm of Hunton & Williams, in honor of Eppa Hunton IV, ‘27, this award is presented annually to a third-year student who has demonstrated unusual aptitude in litigation courses and shown a keen awareness and understanding of the lawyer’s ethical and professional responsibility.
• Margaret G. Hyde Award: Established in 1930 by Forrest J. Hyde, Jr., ‘15, this monetary award is made to an outstanding member of the graduating class whose scholarship, character, personality, activities in the affairs of the school, and promise of efficiency have, in the opinion of the law faculty, entitled him or her to special recognition.
• Jackson Walker LLP Award: This monetary award is presented by the Dallas law firm to the student who has attained the highest grade point average in his or her class after four semesters.
• Herbert Kramer/Herbert Bangel Community Service Award: Established in 1989 by Mr. Herbert Kramer, ‘52, this monetary award is given annually to a third-year student who has contributed the most to the community during Law School.
• Law School Alumni Association Best Note Award: This monetary award is presented to the member of the graduating class who wrote the best note in a current issue of a Law School publication.
• Thomas Marshall Miller Prize: Established by Emily Miller Danton in 1982 in memory of her father, Thomas Marshall Miller, who attended the Law School, this monetary award is given annually to an outstanding and deserving member of the graduating class, selected by the faculty.
• Monroe Leigh Fellowship in International Law: This fellowship was established in honor of Monroe Leigh ‘47, who in a legal career that spanned six decades advised governments and private companies and furthered the development of international legal institutions as a scholar and public servant. The fellowship provides a total of $10,000 for one or two students to pursue a public international law project of their own choosing during the summer following their first, second or third year.
• National Association of Women Lawyers Award: This honorary membership in the National Association of Women Lawyers is awarded each year to an outstanding member of the graduating class.
• Norton Rose Fulbright Best Memorandum Award: Established in 2005 in connection with the Legal Research and Writing Program, the award honors one student from each first-year small section for his or her outstanding major memorandum of law submitted at the end of the student’s fall semester. Honorees receive a monetary award and plaque.
• John M. Olin Prize in Law and Economics: The Olin Foundation gives a monetary award to the graduate or graduates who have produced outstanding work in the field of law and economics.
• Powell Fellowship in Legal Services: Established in honor of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Lewis F. Powell Jr., the Powell Fellowship awards $40,000 to a graduating student or to a judicial clerk to enable him or her to work in public interest law and to enhance the delivery of legal services to the poor under the sponsorship of a public interest organization. The award is made for one year with the expectation that it will be renewed for an additional year.
• Pro Bono Award: This award recognizes the student who exhibits the most extraordinary commitment to pro bono legal service during his or her years at the Law School. The award is the highest recognition offered through the Law School’s voluntary pro bono program, which encourages all students to provide at least 75 hours of free legal services to the indigent.
• Pro Bono Service Awards: These awards are presented tograduates who have successfully fulfilled the requirements of the Law School’s Pro Bono Program.
• Mary Claiborne and Roy H. Ritter Prizes: These four prizes for character, honor, and integrity were established in 1985 by C. Willis Ritter, ‘65 to honor his parents. Under the terms of the award, four monetary prizes are given annually to two female and two male members of the second-year class. The prize is applied against each recipient’s tuition during his or her final year of study. In addition, each recipient is given an appropriate certificate and the names of the winners also appear on a plaque in the library.
• Rosenbloom Award: This monetary award was established by Daniel Rosenbloom ‘54 to honor a student with a strong academic record who has significantly enhanced the academic experience of other law students by volunteering support and assistance to them.
• Shannon Award: Established by the Z Society to encourage outstanding scholarship at the University, the award is presented each year to the student with the highest academic record after five semesters.
• Earle K. Shawe Labor Relations Award: Established in honor of the late Hardy C. Dillard, by Earle K. Shawe, ‘34, this monetary award is given to the graduating student who shows the greatest promise of becoming a successful practitioner in the field of labor relations. Shawe is the founder and senior partner of Shawe & Rosenthal, a Baltimore firm devoted exclusively to labor and employment law.
• James M. Shoemaker, Jr., Moot Court Awards: These awards are given to the final round participants in the William Minor Lile Moot Court Competition
• James C. Slaughter Honor Award: This monetary award was established by the Textile Veterans Association in honor of James C. Slaughter, ‘51, and is presented to an outstanding member of the graduating class.
• Stephen Pierre Traynor Award: This award for excellence in appellate advocacy was established in 1970 by the late Roger J. Traynor, former Chief Justice of the California Supreme Court, in memory of his son. The monetary award is presented to the participant in the final round of the William Minor Lile Moot Court Competition who, in the opinion of the judges of the final round, presents the best oral argument.
• Roger and Madeleine Traynor Prize: Established in 1980 by a gift from retired Chief Justice and Mrs. Traynor of California, these prizes are awarded each year to acknowledge the best written work by two graduating students. Each winner receives an appropriate certificate and a monetary award.
• Trial Advocacy Award: The Virginia Trial Lawyers Association presents a monetary award to a graduating student who best exemplifies the attributes of an effective trial lawyer.
• Virginia State Bar Family Law Book Award: Established by the Family Law Section of the Virginia State Bar and the Virginia Chapter of the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers, this award is presented to the graduating student who has demonstrated the most promise and potential for the practice of family law.