Full-time Program
First-year students begin law studies with the Required Core Curriculum (RCC): Contracts, Torts, Property, Civil Procedure, Legal Writing, Criminal Law, and Constitutional Law. Full-time students complete the RCC – with the exception of Constitutional Law - during their first academic year. The Constitutional Law course is taken along with electives during the second year. First-year courses generally run from 9:00am to 4:00pm Monday through Thursday and from 9:00am to noon on Friday.
First-Year Schedule (Full-time Day)
| Fall Semester |
Semester Hours |
Spring Semester |
Semester Hours |
| Contracts | 3.0 | Contracts | 2.0 |
| Torts | 3.0 | Torts | 2.0 |
| Legal Writing | 3.0 | Legal Writing | 3.0 |
| Property | 3.0 | Property | 2.0 |
| Civil Procedure | 3.0 | Civil Procedure | 3.0 |
| Criminal Law | 3.0 | ||
| Total Hours | 15.0 | Total Hours | 15.0 |
Full-time students are awarded a Juris Doctor degree upon satisfactory completion of 90 credit hours during a minimum of three academic years. You must maintain a 2.00 cumulative grade point average to receive the JD degree.
The JD program at Cleveland-Marshall College of Law is rigorous yet flexible, with full-time and part-time opportunities to address the needs and expectations of a diverse student population. Students completing their first year of full-time study may elect to complete subsequent semesters on a full-time or part-time (day and/or evening) basis.