#1
For practical training, 2022
Who We Are
Law School Overview
Learn about the School of Law
In our first two decades, St. Thomas Law has outpaced expectations, garnering national attention for our commitment to the student experience and community impact. Our mission-driven law school is perfectly poised to take a dramatic step forward in our national visibility and global impact.
St. Thomas prepares lawyers to lead through faith and reason through service to their communities, to create a more just and equitable society and to defend swiftly against emerging threats to the rule of law. The power to change lives starts with St. Thomas Law.
St. Thomas prepares lawyers to lead through faith and reason through service to their communities, to create a more just and equitable society and to defend swiftly against emerging threats to the rule of law. The power to change lives starts with St. Thomas Law.
School of Law Overview
Get more than a career. Get a mission.
St. Thomas gives students opportunities to start making an impact from day one. They work side-by-side with their professors, while lawyers and judges mentor them through our award-winning Mentor Externship Program. Turns out, when bright, caring people put their energy toward advancing the common good, everyone wins.
A Distinctive Legal Education
Our Mission, Vision and Values
Our law school is inspired by justice, guided by faith, grounded in reason, committed to excellence and devoted to advancing the common good.
A Caring Community
Committed to Diversity and Belonging
St. Thomas School of Law has a unique mission founded on the precepts of diversity, community and inclusiveness. We are intentional about building an inclusive and diverse law school that is oriented toward cultivating a strong sense of belonging and support within our school and promoting justice in our world.
#8
For student quality of life, 2021
92.3%
Gold-standard employment, 2021
A National Leader in Practical Training
St. Thomas Law’s experiential courses, legal clinics and externships provide opportunities for students to represent clients, develop key competencies and expand professional relationships. The school has been a national leader for practical training since its founding and was once again ranked first in the nation for practical training in 2022.
Inspiring New Lawyers
A Mentor for Every Law Student
St. Thomas Law’s award-winning Mentor Externship Program pairs students, each year of law school, with a lawyer or judge working in their area of interest who will help them gain work experience, develop relationships and navigate the legal field.
Centers and Institutes
The University of St. Thomas School of Law is home to centers and institutes that focus on research, programming and scholarship. The centers and institutes support innovation, facilitate legal reform, advance social justice, strengthen the connection between faith and the law, improve legal education and more.
School of Law News
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Julie Craven Named Ombudsperson for Archdiocese
Julie Craven, associate director of St. Thomas Law’s Initiative on Restorative Justice and Healing, has been named as ombudsperson for victim-survivors of clerical sexual abuse in the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis. She succeeds Twin Cities attorney Victoria Newcome Johnson, who had served as ombudsperson since May 2020. The ombudsperson position was created in… The post Julie Craven Named Ombudsperson for Archdiocese appeared first on Newsroom | University of St. Thomas.
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Q&A With School of Law Alumna Amanda Harrington ’19 J.D.
Amanda Harrington ’19 J.D. is the manager of Be@School, a program of the Hennepin County Attorney’s Office (HCAO) that works to address the barriers to school attendance for K-12 students. Its goal is to keep students out of the juvenile justice system for violating compulsory education laws by facilitating early interventions and providing services. The… The post Q&A With School of Law Alumna Amanda Harrington ’19 J.D. appeared first on Newsroom | University of St. Thomas.
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Hearing From and Learning Alongside Inmates
A recent visit to the Minnesota Correctional Facility in Stillwater provided students in the law school’s Restorative Justice, Law and Healing course the opportunity to learn about the rehabilitation efforts of a local prison community, and to sit beside convicted men in the Restorative Justice 101 course offered at the facility. Below are reflections about… The post Hearing From and Learning Alongside Inmates appeared first on Newsroom | University of St. Thomas.
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Religious Liberty Legal Clinic Files Brief in Support of Preserving Sacred Land Threatened by Mining
The University of St. Thomas School of Law Religious Liberty Appellate Clinic has filed an amicus curiae brief in the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in the case Apache Stronghold v. United States. The brief is filed on behalf of five leading religious liberty scholars at law schools around the nation. The brief argues… The post Religious Liberty Legal Clinic Files Brief in Support of Preserving Sacred Land Threatened by Mining appeared first on Newsroom | University of St. Thomas.