Thomas Jefferson School of Law now offers a Criminal Law Fellowship Program for incoming students with a particular interest in pursuing criminal law. This program provides superior access to criminal law in the classroom and in the field. Our new CL Fellows will be introduced to the professors who teach criminal law and procedure, as well as related courses, through a seminar as part of new student orientation. (If you’d like to learn more about our criminal law faculty, check out our criminal law specialties webpage.) During their first year of law school, the CL fellows take special legal writing classes that focus on problems involving criminal law and procedure. In the second or third semester, the CL fellows attend a special multi-day seminar introducing aspects of criminal law and policy that are not covered in the basic courses that all law students take. CL fellows may also choose to take Criminal Procedure and Evidence during the summer after their first year so that they can be certified to practice in criminal court at the beginning of their second year of law school.
During the second and third years, CL fellows receive priority registration in trial practice classes that focus on problems relating to a criminal trial. All CL fellows spend two semesters working in a real criminal practice setting. They also receive preference to register for all advanced criminal law and procedure classes, including (as third years) the highly sought after criminal law positions in the TJSL Veterans Legal Affairs Clinic. CL fellows also have the opportunity to work one-on-one with criminal law professors on scholarly projects, either the professor’s or the student’s own projects. In addition, fellows have the opportunity to participate in criminal-related moot court competitions and to attend many scholarly and practice-oriented programs dealing with various aspects of criminal practice. Interested CL fellows may also be paired with TJSL graduate mentors who practice criminal law.
This program is designed for law students with a strong interest in pursuing a career in criminal law. If you think that this program might be for you, please contact the admissions office and ask about the Criminal Law Fellowship Program.