#3
For practical training, 2025
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 Belonging
St. Thomas School of Law has a unique mission founded on the precepts of community and inclusion. We are intentional about building a law school that cultivates a strong sense of belonging and support within our school and promotes justice in our world.
#6
Best Value Private Law School, 2024
89.9%
Gold-standard employment, 2024
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 ranked #3 in the nation for practical training in 2025.
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
St. Thomas Names Father Daniel Griffith VP for Mission
The University of St. Thomas will turn to a triple Tommie to serve as its next Vice President for Mission. Father Daniel Griffith, a St. Thomas School of Law faculty member who currently serves as pastor and rector of the Basilica of Saint Mary in Minneapolis, will begin his new role July 1. Griffith will… The post St. Thomas Names Father Daniel Griffith VP for Mission appeared first on Newsroom | University of St. Thomas.
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Tales from the Archives: Building a Law School with Purpose
On Aug. 20, 2001, the University of St. Thomas School of Law opened its doors and with them, a long-awaited chapter in the university’s history. The inaugural class of 120 law students and 10 faculty members marked the culmination of decades of vision and hope to bring legal education back to St. Thomas. The story… The post Tales from the Archives: Building a Law School with Purpose appeared first on Newsroom | University of St. Thomas.
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Law Professor Jerry Organ Appointed to ABA Special Advisory Committee
University of St. Thomas School of Law Professor Jerry Organ has been appointed to a Special Advisory Committee by the American Bar Association (ABA), the national accreditor of law schools. The committee of state supreme court justices, law school deans and prominent legal scholars will assist the Council of the ABA Section of Legal Education… The post Law Professor Jerry Organ Appointed to ABA Special Advisory Committee appeared first on Newsroom | University of St. Thomas.
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Training Ethical, Technologically Fluent Lawyers for an AI-Driven Legal World
Generative artificial intelligence (AI) is reshaping nearly every profession, including law. To explore its evolving impact, the University of St. Thomas School of Law hosted a panel discussion titled Training Tomorrow’s Lawyers: AI and the New Apprenticeship. The panel brought together local judges, attorneys and technologists to discuss how AI is changing the legal profession,… The post Training Ethical, Technologically Fluent Lawyers for an AI-Driven Legal World appeared first on Newsroom | University of St. Thomas.
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Bankruptcy Legal Clinic Students Build Skills While Helping Clients Relieve Financial Burdens
In St. Thomas Law’s Bankruptcy Litigation Clinic, students have the chance, under supervision, to be practicing attorneys with real clients. They learn how to file a complaint, go through the discovery process and prepare for a possible trial. Students also complete an attestation for their clients, a written accounting of the person's debt and a… The post Bankruptcy Legal Clinic Students Build Skills While Helping Clients Relieve Financial Burdens appeared first on Newsroom | University of St. Thomas.