Our curriculum and teaching methods are designed to prepare you for a lifetime of both practicing and learning law. We live by our motto of being powered by experience, and we ensure that not only will you learn about the law from faculty with a wealth of professional experience, but you also will have hands-on experiences.
We offer many opportunities to put your knowledge into practice through classes such as lawyering skills, mediation or law practice management, as well as our specialty clinics, competition teams, and solo and small firm incubator. You also may focus your education through one of our emphasis areas.
This page is designed to give a general overview of the J.D. requirements. For an authoritative description, visit the official UMKC School of Law Catalog.
| Fall Semester | Credit hours |
|---|---|
| Contracts I | 3 |
| Criminal Law | 3 |
| Lawyering Skills I | 3 |
| Property I | 3 |
| Torts | 3 |
| Total | 15 |
| Winter Semester | Credit hours |
|---|---|
| Contracts II | 3 |
| Constitutional Law | 4 |
| Lawyering Skills II | 2 |
| Property II | 3 |
| Civil Procedure I | 3 |
| Total | 15 |
Flex students must take three of the required courses, including Lawyering Skills, in their first year. The remaining courses must be completed in the second year of study.
A student must take six credit hours in a course or combination of courses that meet the school’s experiential course requirement. These courses are primarily clinical, internship or skills simulation courses. Courses fulfilling the requirement will be designated by the faculty.
A student must take 1 credit hour in a course that meets the school's ABA 303(c) course requirement. These courses provide education to students on bias, cross-cultural competency, and racism. Courses fulfilling the requirement will be designated by the faculty.
| Course | Credit hours |
|---|---|
| Business Organizations | 3 |
| Civil Procedure II | 2 |
| Federal Taxation | 3 |
| Evidence | 3 |
| Course | Credit hours |
|---|---|
| Criminal Procedure I | 3 |
| Professional Responsibility | 2 |
| A course or combination of courses that fulfills the school’s experiential requirement | 6 |
Because of the importance of writing skills to law practice, the law school provides a comprehensive writing curriculum. All students must not only take two semesters of the first-year Lawyering Skills coursework but must also complete a rigorous research and writing project (R&W) during the second or third year. The R&W must demonstrate strong legal analysis and result in a paper of professional quality.
Read about our Lawyering Skills program (PDF)
Students may satisfy the R&W requirement in a number of ways, including taking a seminar that requires a paper meeting the standards for an R&W; pursuing an independent study project with a professor; writing a UMKC Law Review comment or American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers Journal project; or preparing a brief for a moot court competition. Details on this requirement are available for current students on Roolaw.
UMKC Law offers a variety of enrollment options — You may begin your legal education in the Fall and Summer semesters and may pursue your studies on a full-time or part-time basis. You can review all of these on our J.D. academics page.
Read the entire application process and apply for our J.D. program.
UMKC School of Law is approved by the Council of the Section of Legal Education and Admissions of the American Bar Association, 321, North Clark Street, Chicago, IL 60654, 312-988-6738.
