Founded by Thomas Jefferson in 1819, the University of Virginia School of Law is a world-renowned training ground for distinguished lawyers and public servants. Consistently ranked among the top law schools in the nation, Virginia has educated generations of lawyers, instilling in them a commitment to leadership, integrity, and community service. A faculty of nationally acclaimed experts in their fields and outstanding teachers lead Virginia’s 1,100 students to appreciate the power of law to shape human behavior and to influence political, social, and cultural life.

Virginia is justly famous for its collegial environment that bonds students and faculty, and student satisfaction is consistently cited as among the highest in American law schools. Intellectual challenges are met in a spirit of cooperation. Small first-year sections promote individual inquiry while providing support and friendship. Students learn together, reading each other’s work and freely sharing course outlines and other materials, confidently relying on the student-run Honor System to maintain the highest ethical standards.

Virginia has a national reputation for producing highly skilled lawyers with a healthy combination of legal acuity and personal balance. American Lawyer magazine once identified Virginia as one of only two law schools in the country with graduates practicing in each of the nation’s top 100 law firms.