Juris Doctor (JD)

Duke Law School offers a JD program that is rigorous, relevant, innovative and interdisciplinary. First year students begin their study of law through the traditional core courses of civil procedure, constitutional law, contracts, criminal law, property, and torts. At least one first-year course is a small section of less than 30 students and rarely does any first-year class exceed 90 students. From the first-year foundation, Duke has built an extensive upper-class curriculum that blends traditional coursework with an extensive array of practical skills courses and clinics and opportunities to study in small groups with faculty. While the core curriculum is strong across the board, Duke has given special attention to those areas in which there is likely to be a growing demand for lawyers over the coming decades - business and finance law, international and comparative law, constitutional and public law, and fields relating to science and technology such as intellectual property, environmental, telecommunications, biotech, and health.