New York University School of Law


The New York University School of Law is the law school of New York University, a private research university in New York City.
Established in 1835, it was the first law school established in New York City and is the oldest extant law school in New York State and one of the oldest law schools in the United States. Located in Greenwich Village in Lower Manhattan, NYU Law grants J.D., LL.M., and J.S.D. degrees.
As of 2025, NYU Law's first-time bar passage rate is 96.6 percent, with an ultimate bar passage rate of 99.2 percent.

History

New York University School of Law was founded in 1835, making it the oldest law school in New York City. It is also the oldest surviving law school in New York State and one of the oldest in the United States. The only law school in the state to precede it was a small institution conducted by Peter van Schaack in Kinderhook, New York, from 1785 to his death in 1832. Founded just four years after the establishment of New York University, NYU Law is also the university's oldest professional school.
The school was founded by Benjamin Franklin Butler, the United States Attorney General, at the request of the Council of New York University. Butler submitted to the chancellor of the university, James M. Mathews, a "Plan for the organization of a law faculty in the University of the City of New York," which defined a three-year course of study. This plan was formally accepted by the university council on June 2, 1835, marking the inception of the school of law. Instruction began, and Butler was elected the school's first principal professor in March 1838. The curriculum he instituted was the first in the country to teach law using the "course method," which came to be adopted as the standard for legal education in the United States.
NYU School of Law was one of the first law schools in the United States to admit women, beginning in 1890. The Metropolitan Law School was absorbed by NYU School of Law in 1895, and became its evening division. The law school began raising its standards for admission in the early 20th century. In 1924, it required that all students have had completed at least one year of undergraduate education or its equivalent. This was increased to two undergraduate years in 1926, in conformity with the American Bar Association's recommendation.
The law school relocated to its present location of 40 Washington Square South in Greenwich Village in 1951, under the direction of its dean, Arthur T. Vanderbilt. That year, it also established the Root-Tilden-Kern Scholarship for public service.

Academics

Courses

NYU Law offers approximately 300 courses in 16 distinct areas of study, as well as 10+ colloquia. An additional 50 international courses are available at non-NYC locations through NYU Law Abroad.

Clinics

NYU Law hosts between 50-60 clinics and externships every year.

Law journals

NYU Law publishes ten student-edited law journals. The journals appear below in the order of their founding:
NYU Law also publishes three faculty-edited law journals:
NYU Law School's LL.M. programs in Taxation and in International Taxation have been consistently ranked first by the U.S. News & World Report magazine since they started ranking specialty law school programs in 1992. Brant Hellwig is currently the faculty director of the program.
The MS in Cybersecurity Risk and Strategy is a one-year program offered jointly by NYU School of Law and NYU Tandon School of Engineering. The program is intended for mid-to-senior level professionals, and cohorts have historically been diverse, professionally and academically. Faculty directors include: Nasir Memon, Randy Milch, and Sam Rascoff. Other notable faculty include: Ed Amoroso, Judi Germano, Zach Goldman, Ira Rubinstein, Rob Silvers, and Chris Sprigman.
The MS in Health Law and Strategy program is a one-year program administered jointly with the NYU Wagner School of Public Service. It offers mid-career professionals and covers the legal aspects of the health sector. Faculty include Sherry Glied, Charlie Klippel, and Jason M. Schultz.

Dual degrees

More recently, the NYU School of Law has entered into dual degree agreements with the National University of Singapore Faculty of Law and the University of Melbourne Law School.
NYU Law offers a dual-degree program with Harvard's John F. Kennedy School of Government. Students may earn a JD/MPA or a JD/MPP.
NYU Law offers a dual-degree program with the Princeton School of Public and International Affairs. Students may earn a JD/MPA.
There is also an exchange program between Columbia Law School and NYU School of Law which allows a limited number of JD and LL.M. students to take courses at each other's schools. Columbia Law and NYU Law also play a basketball game every spring called the Deans' Cup, to raise money for public interest and community service organizations.

Admissions

More than 10,500 applicants competed for about 430 seats in the 2025 entering class at NYU Law. The 2010 edition of University of Chicago Professor Brian Leiter's ranking of the top law schools by student quality placed NYU Law 4th out of the 144 accredited schools in the United States.
Admission to the New York University School of Law is highly competitive. The 25th and 75th LSAT percentiles for the 2024 entering class were 169 and 173, respectively, with a median of 172. The 25th and 75th undergraduate GPA percentiles were 3.80 and 3.96, respectively, with a median of 3.91.

Student life

Fellowships

The law school's Root-Tilden-Kern Scholarship Program is a full-tuition scholarship awarded each year to twenty students committed to public service.
Furman Academic Scholars benefit from full tuition and summer research funding, faculty mentorship, and specialized training to prepare for a legal teaching career. NYU Law graduates can apply to be Furman Academic Fellows, receiving a stipend and other support to produce a work of scholarship to facilitate entering the teaching market. Furman Public Policy Scholars receive training and support to pursue public policy careers, including work experience in Washington, DC.
NYU Law offers several fellowships to students admitted to the LLM Program. The Hauser Global Scholarship admits eight to ten top LLM students from all over the world. The scholarship includes full tuition waiver and reasonable accommodation costs. In addition, it offers the Hugo Grotius as well as Vanderbilt Scholarships for international law studies and other branches of law respectively.
The school has a law and business program in which eight student-leaders in law and business are awarded fellowships in the Mitchell Jacobson Leadership Program. In addition, the NYU Center for Law, Economics and Organization administers the Lawrence Lederman Fellowship to facilitate the study of law and economics the program provides a $5,000 scholarship to selected students to work closely with NYU Law faculty and participate in a series of collaborative workshops designed to help students write a substantial research paper.

Employment

Graduates of the law school routinely obtain employment in elite public and private-sector positions. According to New York University School of Law's official 2025 ABA-required disclosures, 95.4 percent of the JD Class of 2024 obtained full-time, long-term, JD-required employment nine months after graduation. Among the 2024 Tax LLM graduates, 98 percent were employed full time nine months after graduation.
The law school was ranked fifth of all law schools nationwide by the US News and World Report in terms of having the highest percentage of 2024 graduates employed in public interest law, calculated at 21 percent.

Costs

The total estimated cost of attendance at NYU Law for the 2025–2026 academic year is $123,308. The Law School Transparency estimated debt-financed cost of attendance for three years is $309,177.
The majority of the Fall 2024 entering JD class received financial aid, with an average annual scholarship award of $31,698. NYU Law’s Loan Repayment Assistance Program eases the burden of debt repayment for qualifying alumni who choose careers in public service. Most LRAP participants can earn up to $110,000 a year and have no monthly payment on their law school loans.

Facilities

Buildings

NYU Law School facilities at the school's Washington Square Campus include:

Vanderbilt Hall

The law school's main building, named after Arthur T. Vanderbilt, occupies the entire block between West Third and Washington Square South and between Macdougal and Sullivan Streets. Part of the first floor as well as the underground floors host the library, which it shares with Furman Hall. The first floor also holds the auditorium, student center, and main banquet hall. The second floor is mostly classrooms, while the third and fourth floors are mostly faculty and dean offices.