| Birmingham School of Law | |
| Established: | 1915 |
| Type: | Private |
| Dean: | S. Scott Garrett [1] [2] |
| City: | Birmingham |
| State: | Alabama |
| Country: | U.S. |
| Coordinates: | 33.516°N -86.8064°W |
| Students: | 400 |
| Ranking: | Unranked |
The Birmingham School of Law is a state-accredited law school located in Birmingham, Alabama.[3] Founded in 1915 by Judge Hugh A. Locke, a judge of the Chancery Court and president of the Birmingham Bar Association, the Birmingham School of Law offers a part-time program of study in which graduates receive the Juris Doctor (J.D.) degree after four years of study.
The law school is not accredited by the American Bar Association and graduates may not qualify to be admitted to the bar in states other than Alabama.
The law school requires applicants to have a bachelor’s degree before beginning classes but does not require an LSAT test score as part of its application process unless the applicant’s degree is from a foreign country. The school reviews an applicants’ academic records and employment history in determining acceptance.[4] The school requires a minimum 2.75 GPA to be considered for admission.[5]
Graduates are eligible to take the Alabama Bar Examination pursuant to the authority granted by the Alabama Legislature and the Alabama Supreme Court.[6] The Birmingham School of Law is not accredited by the American Bar Association, nor is the school seeking accreditation. As a result, graduates are generally not allowed to take the bar exam and practice in other states.[7] [8]
The Birmingham School of Law ranks significantly below Alabama's three ABA-accredited law schools in bar examination performance. The school had a 12.5% pass rate for first-time takers on the July 2023 examination compared to 82.20% for ABA schools. The school had a 8.57% pass rate for repeat takers on the July 2023 examination.
The school is located in downtown Birmingham, in a renovated a historic building. The school consists of an auditorium, mock courtroom, law library, computer lab, and multimedia classrooms. In the past, classes were held at Birmingham-Southern College, the Birmingham YMCA, the historic Frank Nelson Building in downtown Birmingham, and the Jefferson County Courthouse.