GW Law School — LLMpedia

GW Law School
Name	George Washington University Law School
Established	1865
Type	Private
Parent	George Washington University
City	Washington, D.C.
Country	United States
Students	700 (approx.)

Contents

GW Law School

The George Washington University Law School is a professional institution located in Foggy Bottom near the United States Capitol and the White House. Founded in the aftermath of the American Civil War, the school has longstanding ties to federal institutions such as the U.S. Congress, the Supreme Court of the United States, and federal agencies including the Department of Justice and the Securities and Exchange Commission. Its location has fostered connections with international bodies like the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund, and the United Nations.

History

The law school's origins date to 1865 amid post‑American Civil War reconstruction and coincide with the expansion of legal professionalization in the United States. Early faculty and alumni engaged with landmark developments including the Reconstruction Amendments, the establishment of the Federal Reserve System, and the adoption of major statutes such as the Sherman Antitrust Act. Throughout the 20th century the school intersected with events like World War I, the New Deal, World War II, and the Civil Rights Movement, producing graduates who participated in inquiries such as the Nuremberg Trials and served in institutions including the Federal Trade Commission and the Internal Revenue Service. In recent decades, the school expanded programs in response to global changes signaled by events like the Fall of the Berlin Wall and treaties such as the North American Free Trade Agreement.

Situated in Foggy Bottom the law school occupies facilities adjacent to Gelman Library and university centers near the Eisenhower Executive Office Building. Proximity to landmarks like the National Mall and the Kennedy Center allows practical engagements with bodies such as the Library of Congress and the Smithsonian Institution. Clinical offices, moot courtrooms, and law libraries support interaction with the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, and practicing bar associations such as the American Bar Association and the District of Columbia Bar. The campus infrastructure has hosted visiting scholars from institutions including Harvard Law School, Yale Law School, and Columbia Law School.

The law school offers a Juris Doctor curriculum with concentrations comparable to programs at Stanford Law School, New York University School of Law, and Georgetown University Law Center. Courses cover areas tied to statutes and adjudication, with offerings in Administrative Law, International Law engaging with the International Criminal Court and trade regimes like the World Trade Organization, and transactional fields overlapping withSecurities and Exchange Commission regulation and Federal Reserve System policy. Joint degrees link with schools such as the Elliott School of International Affairs and programs related to the Public Health Service and the School of Business. Specialized certificates address subjects connected to the Patents Act and practice before the United States Patent and Trademark Office.

Admission is competitive, attracting applicants who have interned with institutions like the U.S. Senate, the House Committee on the Judiciary, and the Government Accountability Office. The school appears in rankings alongside peers such as University of Virginia School of Law and University of Michigan Law School and garners placement in specialty lists for programs relating to Environmental Protection Agency collaborations and public interest pipelines tied to organizations like the American Civil Liberties Union and Human Rights Watch. Alumni placement includes clerkships at the Supreme Court of the United States and federal courts, as well as positions at firms participating in cases before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit.

Student organizations maintain affiliations or co‑curricular projects with external entities like the Federalist Society, the American Constitution Society, and advocacy groups such as Planned Parenthood Federation of America and Common Cause. Competitive teams participate in moot court competitions administered by bodies like the International Bar Association and the Philip C. Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition, and collaborate with think tanks including the Brookings Institution, the Heritage Foundation, and the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. Cultural and affinity groups host speakers from institutions such as the Department of State, the Central Intelligence Agency, and multinational law firms that represent clients before the World Bank.

Clinical programs place students in settings interfacing with the U.S. Attorney's Office, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, and administrative tribunals like the Federal Communications Commission. Externships embed students in offices including the Public Defender Service for the District of Columbia, the Office of the Solicitor General of the United States, and nonprofits such as Human Rights First. Simulation courses and law clinics address matters arising under statutes enforced by the Department of Labor, the Environmental Protection Agency, and regulatory frameworks shaped by the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Alumni and faculty have served in roles across the federal system: judges on the United States Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, members of the United States Senate, representatives in the United States House of Representatives, cabinet officers in administrations such as the Reagan Administration and the Obama Administration, and diplomats to bodies like the United Nations General Assembly. Prominent legal figures associated with the school have contributed to jurisprudence cited by the Supreme Court of the United States and have authored works appearing in reviews such as the Harvard Law Review and the Yale Law Journal. Faculty appointments have overlapped with visiting chairs from Oxford University, Cambridge University, and research collaborations with the Brookings Institution and the American Enterprise Institute.