Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law

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Benjamin N. Cardozo
School of Law
Cardozo Crest
Motto: צדק צדק תרדף
Tzedek Tzedek Tirdof
(Justice, justice, shall you seek)
Established: 1976
Type: Private
Dean: David Rudenstine
Faculty: 52
Undergraduates: 0
Postgraduates: 1108
Location: New York City, New York, USA
Campus: Urban
Journals: 10
Website: www.cardozo.yu.edu

The Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law is the law school of Yeshiva University, located in the New York City borough of Manhattan. The school is named for Supreme Court Justice Benjamin N. Cardozo.

Cardozo is a relatively new law school, having graduated its first class in 1979.[1] Cardozo's success as a young school has been remarkable, leading some to characterize Cardozo as a "rising star" among law schools.[2]

Of the top 90 law schools, no school is younger than Cardozo.[3] Cardozo is one of only three schools founded after 1967 that is ranked among the top 80 schools. The other two are BYU Law School (fouonded 1973)[4] and George Mason University School of Law (founded 1972).[5]

Cardozo is currently ranked 55th[6] by U.S. News, which is the most widely read (and criticized)[7] ranking of law schools. While Cardozo is noted for its academic strengths in numerous areas of study,[8] its Intellectual Property and Dispute Resolution programs are particularly well reputed and consistently ranked highly by U.S. News.

The Innocence Project, run by Cardozo Professor Barry Scheck, is well known for using DNA technology to help free innocent prisoners. The project is frequently reported on in the national news.[9]

Signifying its recognition by long-established law schools, in 1999 Cardozo became a member of the Order of the Coif, an honor society for law scholars.[10]

Cardozo's excellence was recently acknowledged when an associate justice of the U.S. Supreme Court selected a Cardozo graduate for a clerkship.[11] A Supreme Court clerkship is arguably the most prestigious appointment for a law graduate and is an honor typically reserved for the very best students at the most elite law schools.[12] This is the second time a Cardozo graduate has been chosen for a Supreme Court clerkship.[13]

In 2007, Cardozo had the third-highest bar-exam passage rate among the fifteen law schools in New York State, becoming the first school in recent memory other than Columbia Law School, New York University School of Law, and Cornell Law School to place in the top three.[14]

Most of Cardozo's 9,000 alumni reside in the New York metropolitan area, and they have a considerable presence in New York City. However, some Cardozo graduates pursue their careers internationally and many can be found across the country in 43 states.[15]

Contents

[edit] Rankings

Brookdale Center
Brookdale Center

General Rankings

U.S. News ranked Cardozo 55th out of 184 law schools.[16] By other measures, the law school ranks:

  • 23rd - Student Quality [17]
  • 28th - Faculty Quality [18]
  • 23rd - Most Cited Law Review [19]
  • 31st - Most SSRN Downloads [20]
  • 15th - Most Prolific Faculty [21]
  • 3rd - New York State Bar Pass Rate (2007) [22]
  • Most Competitive Students [23]

Specialty Rankings

  • Top 3 - Law and Literature [24]
  • 4th - Critical Theories [25]
  • 4th - Intellectual Property [26]
  • 5th - Law & Philosophy [27]
  • 6th - Dispute Resolution [28]
  • 10th - LL.M./Masters of Law [29]
  • Top-20 Runner-Up - International & Comparative Law [30]
  • 2nd - Most Cited Arts & Entertainment Law Journal [31] (1st in Scholarly Impact and Cites by Courts) [32]

[edit] Admission

Admission to Cardozo has become increasingly competitive. The GPA and LSAT scores of entering students are consistently higher than schools with similar rankings.[33]

The class entering in Fall 2005 had a 3.5 median GPA and a 164 median LSAT score. The top quarter of LSAT scores were 166 or higher, and the top 25% of the incoming class had a 3.72 GPA or higher.[34]

The top undergraduate feeder schools for Cardozo have been Cornell University, New York University, University of Pennsylvania, Columbia University, the State University of New York Schools, and the University of California Schools. [35][36][37] Approximately 20% of incoming students hail from the Ivy League.[38]

[edit] Location and Facilities

Map of Facilities
Map of Facilities

Cardozo, located on Fifth Avenue in the heart of Greenwich Village, is in one of the most vibrant and accessible neighborhoods in Manhattan.

Brookdale Center -- 55 Fifth Avenue Cardozo is located in the 18 story Brookdale Center. The law school occupies the first 11 floors. The top floors are used as office space and are accessed through a separate entrance.

  • 1st Floor -- The newly renovated lobby, which occupies most of the first floor, is frequently used as a space for large events. The Jacob Burns Moot Court room and a classroom are also on the first floor.
  • 2nd Floor -- The second floor has classrooms and a bookstore.
  • 3rd Floor -- On the third floor, also recently renovated, students enjoy a large student lounge, a cafe, and a cafeteria which offers kosher food.
  • 4th Floor -- The fourth floor has classrooms, faculty offices, and offices for student organizations.
  • 5th Floor -- The fifth floor contains faculty offices, the faculty lounge, a seminar room, and the offices of the student law journals.
  • 6th, 7th, 8th, and 9th Floors -- The Dr. Lillian and Dr. Rebecca Chutick Law Library is the center of student and faculty research at Cardozo. Encompassing four floors of Cardozo's building, the library holds more than 535,000 volumes,[39] has over 140 computers, and study space for nearly 500 students.[40] The library entrance is on the seventh floor. Faculty offices also occupy part of the ninth floor.
Student Lounge
Student Lounge
  • 10th Floor -- Floor ten houses administrative offices for the law school.
  • 11th Floor -- Floor eleven is home to career services, the admissions office, and the clinics.
The Alabama -- 15 East 11th Street
The Alabama is Cardozo's nine-story residence hall and is just around the corner from Brookdale Center. The Alabama has over 100 units.[41]
Alabama
Alabama
The Innocence Project -- 100 Fifth Avenue
The Innocence Project recently moved from the 11th floor of Brookdale Center to a new office space three blocks from the law school. The move allowed the Innocence Project to hire more staff and significantly increase the number of cases it takes.
Fogelman Library of The New School -- 65 Fifth Avenue[42]
The Cooper Union Library -- 7 East 7th Street[43]
Both the Fogelman Library and the Cooper Union library serve as Cardozo's secondary libraries when the main library is closed on the Sabbath or on holidays.

[edit] Course and Degree Offerings

Juris Doctor

For J.D. students, Cardozo offers a selection of over 130 courses[44] in addition to the eight courses required[45] during the first year. Students may choose to graduate with a concentration in one of the following areas:[46]

  • Commercial Law
  • Constitutional Law and Rights
  • Corporate Law
  • Criminal Law and Procedure
  • Family and Matrimonial Law
  • Intellectual Property and Communications Law
  • International and Comparative Law
  • Litigation (General)
  • Property and Real Estate
  • Taxation

Cardozo also offers "pathways" in both Public Law and Regulation and Jurisprudence and Legal History, which are not formal concentrations.[47] Students may also earn a Certificate in Dispute Resolution.[48]

Master of Laws

For those who already have a law degree, Cardozo offers LL.M. degrees in General Studies, Comparative Legal Thought, and Intellectual Property.[49] LL.M. students can take almost any of the couses offered to J.D. students. The LL.M. program may be entered in the Spring Term or in the Fall Term.

Study Abroad

Cardozo students may study abroad through the following programs:

Students may apply for individual study abroad programs to study abroad at other institutions.

Alternative Entry Plan (AEP)

While most Cardozo students begin their legal studies in September,[54] some students are allowed the flexibility to begin in January[55] or May[56] AEP students are able to take classes part-time and during the summer, which gives AEP students the option of graduating in three years or a semester early.

[edit] Notable alumni

[edit] Notable Faculty

[edit] Former Faculty

[edit] References

  1. ^ http://www.cardozo.yu.edu/about_us/factsheet.asp
  2. ^ New York Law Schools
  3. ^ ABA Approved Law Schools
  4. ^ http://www.law2.byu.edu/Law_School/FoundingDocumentsNew/index.php
  5. ^ History of the Law School: Two Visionary Deans
  6. ^ USNews.com: America's Best Graduate Schools 2008: Top Law Schools
  7. ^ Brian Leiter The U.S. News Law School Rankings: A Guide for the Perplexed
  8. ^ http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Benjamin_N._Cardozo_School_of_Law#Rankings
  9. ^ The New York Times: Search for 'cardozo innocence project'
  10. ^ member chart
  11. ^ http://www.cardozo.yu.edu/news_events/news/page.asp?id=803
  12. ^ Brian Leiter Supreme Court Clerkship Placement, 1991 Thourgh 2005 Terms
  13. ^ http://www.crowell.com/AttorneyTemplate.cfm?Section=Lawyers&template=/Staff/StaffDetail.cfm&StaffID=166
  14. ^ Abovethelaw.com
  15. ^ Office of Alumni Affairs
  16. ^ America's Best Graduate Schools 2007: Top Law Schools. U.S. News & World Report. Retrieved on 2006-11-07.
  17. ^ Rankings of Law School by Student Quality, 2005. Leiter's Law School Rankings. Retrieved on 2006-11-07.
  18. ^ Faculty Quality Rankings: Scholarly Reputation, 2003-04. Leiter's Law School Rankings. Retrieved on 2006-11-07.
  19. ^ Law Journals: Submissions and Rankings. Washington & Lee Law School. Retrieved on 2006-11-20. Filtered by "Student-Edited" and "2006 Jnls"
  20. ^ Dave Hoffman. Fun With SSRN Law School Rankings. Concurring Opinions. Retrieved on 2006-09-23.
  21. ^ James Lindgren & Daniel Seltzer, The Most Prolific Law Professors and Faculties, 71 CHI.-KENT. L. REV.781, 793 (1996).
  22. ^ Bar Pass Rates at Law Schools in New York State. Law.com. Retrieved on 2007-12-01.
  23. ^ Yeshiva University: Rankings & Lists. Princeton Review. Retrieved on 2006-10-16.
  24. ^ Top Law Schools by Specialty Area, 2002-03: Law & Literature. Leiter's Law School Rankings. Retrieved on 2006-11-07.
  25. ^ Faculty Quality in Critical Theories, 2003-04. Leiter's Law School Rankings. Retrieved on 2006-11-07.
  26. ^ America's Best Graduate Schools 2007: Law Specialties: Intellectual Property Law. U.S. News & World Report. Retrieved on 2006-11-07.
  27. ^ Faculty Quality in Law & Philosophy, 2003-04. Leiter's Law School Rankings. Retrieved on 2006-11-07.
  28. ^ America's Best Graduate Schools 2007: Law Specialties: Dispute Resolution. U.S. News & World Report. Retrieved on 2006-11-07.
  29. ^ 2006 Rankings of American LL.M/Master of Law. American Universities Admission Program. Retrieved on 2006-11-07.
  30. ^ Faculty Quality in International & Comparative Law, 2003-04. Leiter's Law School Rankings. Retrieved on 2006-11-07.
  31. ^ Law Journals: Submissions and Rankings. Washington & Lee Law School. Retrieved on 2006-11-20. Filtered by "Entertainment, Arts, and Sports Law" and "2006 Jnls."
  32. ^ Law Journals: Submissions and Rankings. Washington & Lee Law School. Retrieved on 2006-11-20. Filtered by "Entertainment, Arts, and Sports Law," "2006 Cases" and "2006 IF." The Cardozo Arts & Entertainment Law Journal has been cited by the U.S. Supreme Court three times. See Eldred v. Ashcroft, 537 U.S. 186, 780-81 (2003); Arkansas Educ. Television Com'n v. Forbes, 523 U.S. 666, 687 n.7 (1998); Campbell v. Acuff-Rose Music, Inc., 510 U.S. 569, 578 (1994).
  33. ^ http://www.law2.byu.edu/career_services/LSATCHART_pdf.pdf
  34. ^ http://officialguide.lsac.org/OFFGUIDE/pdf/aba2990.pdf
  35. ^ Cardozo Life : Spring 2006
  36. ^ Around Campus
  37. ^ Cardozo Life : Winter 2004
  38. ^ Cardozo Life : Winter 2004
  39. ^ Dr. Lillian & Dr. Rebecca Chutick Law Library
  40. ^ SchoolPage
  41. ^ Cardozo Goes Residential - Spring 1998 Cardozo Life
  42. ^ New School University Libraries - Fogelman Social Science and Humanities Library
  43. ^ The Cooper Union Library
  44. ^ http://www.cardozo.yu.edu/academic_prog/jd_program/upper_level.asp
  45. ^ http://www.cardozo.yu.edu/academic_prog/jd_program/first_year.asp
  46. ^ Microsoft Word - Guide to Course Selection2005.doc
  47. ^ Microsoft Word - Guide to Course Selection2005.doc
  48. ^ http://www.cardozo.yu.edu/kukin/certificate.asp
  49. ^ http://www.cardozo.yu.edu/academic_prog/llm_program.asp
  50. ^ http://www.cardozo.yu.edu/academic_prog/jd_program/bucerius.asp
  51. ^ http://www.hamline.edu/law/adr/ecus/][http://www.cardozo.yu.edu/kukin/budapest.asp
  52. ^ http://www.cardozo.yu.edu/squadron/abroad.asp
  53. ^ http://www.cardozo.yu.edu/academic_prog/jd_program/heyman.asp
  54. ^ http://www.cardozo.yu.edu/admissions/admission_opt/sept_matr.asp
  55. ^ http://www.cardozo.yu.edu/admissions/admission_opt/january_matr.asp
  56. ^ http://www.cardozo.yu.edu/admissions/admission_opt/may_mtr.asp
  57. ^ "The Chat", The Washington Post , August 7, 2006. Accessed December 5, 2007. "Josh Saviano is a lawyer who is better known for his acting career, playing Paul Pfeiffer on "The Wonder Years." A Yale and Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law graduate, he is a lifelong New Yorker who bleeds blue, as in Rangers, Mets and Giants blue."

[edit] External links

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