Concentration - Criminal Law
Juris Doctor
Description
The School of Law offers a Juris Doctor (J.D.), a concurrent Juris Doctor/Master of Accountancy (J.D./M.Accy.) and a concurrent Juris Doctor/Master of Taxation (J.D./M.Tax.).
Minimum Total Credit Hours: 90
Course Requirements
First Year
- Law 503 Civil Procedure I (3 credits, one semester)
- Law 507 Constitutional Law I (3 credits, one semester)
- Law 501 Contracts (4 credits, one semester)
- Law 568 Criminal Law (3 credits, one semester)
- Law 514 & 515 Legal Research and Writing I & II (6 credits, two semesters)
- Law 504 Property (4 credits, one semester)
- Law 502 Torts (4 credits, one semester)
- 1 Skills course (3 credits) (courses fulfilling the Skills requirement are designated each semester by the law faculty)
- A 3-hour elective as determined by law faculty (3 credits)
Upper Level (Second and Third Years)
- Law 603 Legal Profession (3 credits, one semester)
- 1 Skills course (3 credits) and 1 Writing course (2-3 credits) (courses fulfilling the Skills and Writing requirements are designated each semester by the law faculty)
Otherwise, students have free choice of elective courses to complete the remainder of their credit hours.
Sample Traditional Curriculum for J.D.
Year 1 (all courses required)
| Description | Fall | Spring | Any |
|---|---|---|---|
| Civil Procedure I | 3 | ||
| Constitutional Law | 3 | ||
| Contracts | 4 | ||
| Criminal Law | 3 | ||
| Legal Writing and Research | 3 | 3 | |
| Property | 4 | ||
| Torts | 4 | ||
| Contract Negotiation and Drafting (skills) | 3 | ||
| 3-hour elective | 3 |
Year 2
| Description | Fall | Spring | Any |
|---|---|---|---|
| Civil Procedure II | 3 | ||
| Constitutional Law II | 3 | ||
| Criminal Procedure I | 3 | ||
| Environmental Law | 3 | ||
| Evidence | 4 | ||
| Federal Trial Practice (skills) | 3 | ||
| Intellectual Property | 3 | ||
| Income Taxation of Individuals | 3 | ||
| Legal Profession (required) | 3 | ||
| Secured Transactions | 3 |
Year 3
| Description | Fall | Spring | Any |
|---|---|---|---|
| Administrative Law | 3 | ||
| Bankruptcy | 3 | ||
| Copyright Law | 3 | ||
| Civil Legal Clinic | 4 | ||
| Depositions (skills) | 3 | ||
| Gaming Law (writing) | 3 | ||
| Innocence Project | 4 | ||
| Pro Bono Service | 1 | ||
| Moot Court Board/Law Journal | 4 (earned over Year 2 and Year 3) | ||
| Wills and Estates | 3 |
*Note: Other than the required courses indicated above, students may choose from a large variety of elective courses to complete their law degree.
Sample 24-Month Curriculum for J.D.
First Summer
| Description | Fall | Spring | Intersession or Summer |
|---|---|---|---|
| Civil Procedure I | 3 | ||
| Criminal Law | 3 |
First Fall
| Description | Fall | Spring | Intersession or Summer |
|---|---|---|---|
| Civil Procedure II | 3 | ||
| Contracts | 3 | ||
| Legal Writing and Research | 3 | ||
| Property | 3 | ||
| Torts | 3 |
First Spring
| Description | Fall | Spring | Intersession or Summer |
|---|---|---|---|
| Contracts | 3 | ||
| Contract Negotiation and Drafting (skills) | 3 | ||
| Constitutional Law | 3 | ||
| Legal Profession | 3 | ||
| Legal Writing and Research | 3 | ||
| Torts | 3 |
Second Summer
| Description | Fall | Spring | Intersession or Summer |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bankruptcy | 3 | ||
| Environmental Law | 3 | ||
| Federal Trial Practice (skills) | 3 | ||
| Income Taxation of Individuals | 3 | ||
| Interviewing and Counseling (skills) | 3 | ||
| Secured Transactions | 3 |
Second Fall
| Description | Fall | Spring | Intersession or Summer |
|---|---|---|---|
| Constitutional Law II | 3 | ||
| Evidence | 3 | ||
| Gaming Law (writing) | 3 | ||
| Intellectual Property | 3 | ||
| Wills and Estates | 3 |
Second Spring
| Description | Fall | Spring | Intersession or Summer |
|---|---|---|---|
| Administrative Law | 3 | ||
| Copyright Law | 3 | ||
| Criminal Procedure I | 3 | ||
| Depositions (skills) | 3 | ||
| Innocence Project | 3 |
Other Academic Requirements
For the Juris Doctor degree, the requirements are: (1) successful completion of 90 credit hours of law courses (70 of which must be graded credit hours and 75 of which must come from courses that meet in regularly scheduled classroom hours), including the courses specifically required for graduation, and (2) an overall grade-point average of 2.00 (C) or better. The curriculum and courses required for graduation are subject to change at any time without prior notice at the direction of the law faculty.
Concentration - Criminal Law
Description
The concentration in criminal law is designed to provide students with broad-based exposure to concepts, topics, and skills vital to criminal law practitioners and to prepare students for careers in criminal law.
Course Requirements
A student must complete 27 credit hours in criminal law and advocacy related subjects. Four core courses (Criminal Law 568, Evidence Law 600, Criminal Procedure I Law 635 and Criminal Procedure II Law 714) are required. The remainder of the credit hours can be fulfilled by taking courses from a list of approved elective courses:
- Children in the Legal System 646
- Criminal Trial Practice 686
- Cyber Crime 718
- Death Penalty 721
- Federal Criminal Trial Practice 678
- Federal Habeas Corpus 716
- Legal Problems of Indigence 639
- Prosecution Function 685
- Sentencing 668
- Youth Court Seminar 550
- Criminal Appeals Clinic 697*
- Prosecution Externship Placement 654*
- Public Service Internship Placement (limited to public defender placements) 636*
- Innocence Project 692*
*Clinical courses
As appropriate, additional courses and Selected Legal Topic courses focusing on criminal justice may also be included in this category on a case-by-case basis.
Each student must also complete a clinical and a writing requirement. The clinical requirement is satisfied by the student taking one approved clinical course (see above), while the writing requirement is satisfied by selecting a course from the elective category that requires a graded term paper, or by writing a graded term paper as an independent study project under the supervision of a faculty member. The topic of the paper must pertain to criminal justice and must be a minimum of 25 pages.
Other Academic Requirements
A cumulative grade-point average of 2.5 in all concentration courses must be achieved in order to successfully complete the concentration. Students earning a cumulative grade-point average of 3.2 or higher in all concentration courses will have “with honors” reflected on their certificates.
Degree Requirements
The academic regulations for this degree program, as entered in the University of Mississippi Catalog, are in effect for the current or selected academic year and semester. The University of Mississippi reserves the right to 1) change or withdraw courses; 2) change rules for registration, instruction, and graduation; and 3) change other regulations affecting the student body at any time.
Juris Doctor
| Requirement | Hours | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Law 501 | 3 | Complete Law 501 with a passing grade. |
| Law 502 | 4 | Complete Law 502 with a passing grade. |
| Law 503 | 3 | Complete Law 503 with a passing grade. |
| Law 504 | 4 | Complete Law 504 with a passing grade. |
| Law 507 | 4 | Complete Law 507 with a passing grade. |
| Law 514 | 3 | Complete Law 514 with a passing grade. |
| Law 515 | 3 | Complete Law 515 with a passing grade. |
| Law 568 | 3 | Complete Law 568 with a passing grade. |
| Law 603 | 3 | Complete Law 603 with a passing grade. |
| Skills course | 6 | |
| Writing course | 3 | |
| Three-hour elective | 3 | Complete 3 hours of elective coursework. |
| 75 regularly scheduled hours | Please contact your advisor for more information regarding this requirement. |
Concentration - Criminal Law
| Requirement | Hours | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Law 568 | 3 | Complete Law 568 with a passing grade. |
| Law 600 | 4 | Complete Law 600 with a passing grade. |
| Law 635 | 3 | Complete Law 635 with a passing grade. |
| Law 714 | 3 | Complete Law 714 with a passing grade. |
| Clinical elective | 6 | Complete at least one clinical elective course chosen from Court Appeals Clinic, Prosecution Externship Placement, Public Service Internship, or Law School Clinics III. |
| 12 hrs criminal law electives | 12 | Student must complete at least 27 credit hours in criminal law and advocacy related subjects. Four core courses are required. The remainder of the credit hours can be fulfilled by taking courses from a list of approved elective courses. Each student must also complete a clinical and a writing requirement. |