At the Thomas Jefferson School of Law, we offer our students real world experience and instruction by our world class faculty.
Real World Experience
Thomas Jefferson students have numerous opportunities to represent real clients as they learn the law under the supervision of experienced practitioners. Examples of the kinds of real world experiences that are available include the following:
Veterans Legal Clinic: Students serve as lead counsel on behalf of veterans who have served their country and are now struggling. Students engage in a variety of lawyering tasks including appearing in court, drafting pleadings and other legal memoranda, and meeting and negotiating with opposing parties, lawyers, and government agencies.
Small Business Law Center: Our small business law center is a “law firm in a law school.” It includes multiple clinics, such as a patent clinic, a trademark clinic, and a business law clinic. Students work with clients on an array of business and nonprofit matters, such as incorporation, internal governance, tax and regulatory compliance.
Mediation Program: Students receive intensive training in mediating disputes and then work with clients to mediate real cases in a courtroom setting.
Externships: In addition to our on-campus clinics, students have access to a large number of placements in law firms and government agencies in San Diego, where they learn the practice of law by working with practicing attorneys, while expanding their network of contacts in the legal community. A recent survey found that Thomas Jefferson ranked fifth in the nation for the number of students participating in externships.
Judicial Externships: Students also have the opportunity to work in the chambers of federal or state judges in San Diego. They are able to observe courtroom proceedings and assist judges by conducting research and drafting the court’s opinion.
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World Class Faculty
Thomas Jefferson students learn from a world class faculty, who bring a world of experience into the classroom. All of our instructors have practiced in areas in which they teach. Here are some examples of their broad and impressive experience:
- Represented the United States in a case before the World Court
- Represented private clients such as Amazon, Apple, Google, Disney Studios, Warner Studios, HBO, Spike Lee, Public Enemy, George Clinton, Geraldo Rivera, Bobby Brown, Sly Stone, Master Card, Alcoa and Monsanto
- Awarded the French Legion of Honor medal by French President Jacques Chirac
- Served as policy analyst for the White House during the Obama administration
- Worked as a visiting professional at the International Criminal Court in The Hague
- Testified as expert witnesses before U.S. courts and international tribunals.
- Chaired the San Diego Task Force on Medical Marijuana
- Served as an advisor to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee
- Served as a consultant to the United Nations
- Represented the United States in international treaty negotiations.
- Created the LawNerds.com website, which is the single most widely used resource for learning law school study schools and which receives as many as 40,000 unique visitors in a month.
The accomplishments of our faculty should come as no surprise. They are graduates of some of the finest law schools in the nation, including Harvard, Yale, Stanford, Chicago, Columbia, UC Berkeley, Michigan, New York University, Pennsylvania and Georgetown.
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Members of the Thomas Jefferson faculty are nationally recognized experts in their fields.
- Their work has been cited by the U.S. Supreme Court, lower federal courts, state supreme, appellate and trial courts, and international tribunals.
- They are regularly quoted in national media outlets and have been quoted by, among others, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, The Los Angeles Times, CNN, Fox News, National Public Radio, ABC Radio, Slate, Bloomberg News, the UK Telegraph, and the Daily Beast.
- They have been invited to speak at prestigious universities all over the world, including Harvard, Yale, Stanford, Columbia, Chicago, Princeton, New York University, UC Berkeley, UCLA, Michigan, Georgetown, Northwestern, Boston College, Vanderbilt, William and Mary, Oxford, the London School of Economics and Political Science, Beijing University in China, the University of Paris, the University of Milan, the University of Amsterdam, Moscow State University, Waseda University in Japan, and Qatar University, to name only a few.
- They have spoken in more than 60 countries located in every region and in every continent except Antarctica.
- They have literally written the book on the subjects they teach. They have written books on subjects as diverse as sex discrimination in the workplace, intersexuality, illegal drug and marijuana law, sports law, internet law, international environmental disputes, international economic law, fan fiction and copyright, women and human rights, Native American law, law and psychology, mediation, international employment law, family law, criminal law, criminal procedure, antitrust law, the European Union, contracts, property, civil procedure, risk management, legal reasoning, and legal ethics.