Suffolk University Law School

Suffolk University Law School was founded by Gleason Archer as a male-only, evening law school that catered to students who viewed the study of law as a means to better themselves and society. Archer's mission was to make the study of law available to all competent students, regardless of social standing or circumstances. In an effort to uphold that tradition, the school currently offers a full-time day division and a part-time evening division to meet to the various needs of its students.

The law school is named after the location of its original home in Suffolk County, Massachusetts. It later moved to its current location in Boston, Massachusetts where it stands across the street from Boston Common, America's oldest city park, and the historic Beacon Hill. The school has been co-educational since 1937.


In addition to its JD program, which received full ABA accreditation in 1953, Suffolk University Law School also offers an advanced LL.M in Global Law and Technology, as well as joint degrees through an agreement with Suffolk University's Sawyer Business School and Suffolk College of Arts and Sciences.

As one of the first law schools to establish academic concentrations, Suffolk University Law School offers a number of concentration options including Civil Litigation, Financial Services, Health and Biomedical Law, Intellectual Property, and International Law.

Clinical, internship, and public service opportunities are available to provide students with practical experience. Clinical programs are open to students in their last two years of study, with the exception of the Defenders and Prosecutors Programs, which are only open to final year law students.

Clinical program offerings consist of the Battered Women's Clinic, the Civil and Judicial Internship Program, the Education Advocacy Clinic, the Family Clinic, the Health Law Clinic, the Housing Clinic, the Immigration Clinic, the Investor Advocacy Clinic, the Juvenile Internship Program, the Juvenile Justice Center, the Evening Landlord Tenant Clinic, the Suffolk Defenders, the Suffolk Prosecutors, and the International Suffolk-Haifa Clinical Exchange Program.

The law school publishes six student-edited law reviews and journals, which contain articles from students, faculty members, and other scholars. These publications include the Suffolk University Law Review, the Suffolk Transnational Law Review, the Journal of High Technology Law, the Journal of Health and Biomedical Law, and the Suffolk Journal of Trial and Appellate Advocacy.

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To supplement the basic curriculum, the Suffolk University Law School also offers a number of programs including moot court and study abroad programs. In addition to the Career Development Office, students can also obtain public service career information and other resources through the Rappaport Center for Law and Public Service.

Camille Nelson is the Dean of Suffolk University Law School. She earned her law degree from the University of Ottawa Faculty of Law and hold a Master of Laws from Columbia Law School.