Frequently Asked Questions - Prospective Students
To ensure our graduates are professionally prepared for practice, we offer a large contingent of courses that focus on professional skills and allow practice through simulation.
In addition students may work under the supervision of fulltime faculty members in our legal clinics. There, students work with real clients and gain the kind of insight and understanding that can’t be found in classrooms or textbooks.
Five clinics are currently offered.
- Family and Child Advocacy Clinic
- Juvenile Law Clinic
- Consumer Law Clinic
- Immigration Law Clinic
- Caribbean Law Clinic
In addition to our clinics, students may apply for various for-credit externships and judicial internships. Some placement opportunities include:
- Florida Supreme Court
- Florida District Courts of Appeal
- U.S. Attorney
- State Attorney
- Public Defender
- City of Jacksonville General Counsel
- Jacksonville Area Legal Aid
- Florida Department of Children and Families
- Florida Attorney General
- Social Security Administration Office of Hearings and Appeals
- Numerous state courts in Florida and Georgia
Coastal Law’s moot court teams continue to establish an impressive record at statewide, national and international moot court competitions. Moot court is an extracurricular activity in which appellate court proceedings are simulated. Coastal Law teams consistently place at or near the top of the state’s most prestigious statewide moot court competitions, including The E. Zehmer Moot Court Competition, as well as The Robert Orseck Moot Court Competition. Likewise, Coastal Law has solidified national recognition, taking top honors at competitions including The Chicago Bar Association National Constitutional Law Competition. Internationally, Coastal Law has been ranked among the top 10, as recognized at The Philip C. Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition in Washington D.C.
Coastal Law mock trial teams enjoy similar successes, having advanced to regional rounds of numerous national competitions, including The National Trial Competition, The American Association of Justice Competition, and The Buffalo Niagara Invitational Competition. Mock Trial allows students to develop and demonstrate trial advocacy skills in competitive state and national simulated jury trials.
Among the many advantages that set Coastal Law apart from our comparator schools is the curriculum, which allows our students to align career interests with specialized areas of expertise. A certificate program is a formal course of study within the curriculum that is comparable to a college major. Coastal Law offers five certificate programs.
- Sports Law
- Family Law
- Environmental Law
- Research, Writing and Drafting Certificate
- International and Comparative Law
Coastal Law’s faculty has earned international legal acclaim; from authoring case books and articles to counseling the Iraqi Constitutional Commission and advising the UN war crimes tribunal in The Hague. They create a challenging and motivating academic environment, yet as former judges, practicing attorneys, government officials, and corporate executives, they offer realistic legal perspectives.
However, in addition to providing a time-honored, fully accredited legal education, the professors here are accessible to the students and are able to share realistic, experience-based approaches that are valuable to someone studying to become a lawyer.
Jacksonville is a metropolitan center of more than 1,000,000 people, including one of the youngest populations in Florida. Boasting 68 miles of ocean coastline, 300 miles of riverfront, and one of the largest park systems in the country, the city offers an outstanding array of outdoor activities of all types. Dotted with unique neighborhoods & restaurants, exceptional arts & culture, and an astounding variety of entertainment options and professional sports -- including NFL, PGA Tour, LPGA, ATP Tennis, hockey and baseball -- Jacksonville will provide you with the idyllic setting for a legal education while you enjoy warm winters and beach-filled summers.
Individual Academic Success Counseling
First year students meet with an Academic Success Counselor for individual attention to review grades and course selection, discuss life issues that may affect, or may have affected, academic performance.
In addition, the department assists students in adjusting to law school and its unique stresses and challenges.
P.A.S.S. Assistant Program
This program designed especially for first-semester students as part of Coastal’s commitment to providing every student with resources needed to succeed.
Each P.A.S.S. section will be assigned to an upper division student called a “P.A.S.S. Assistant” (“PA”); PAs are chosen from upper-level students demonstrating high academic achievement.
PAs are available to meet one-on-one with students for additional assistance on topics including note-taking, case briefing, synthesis of material, case analysis, time management, outlining, and test-taking strategies. Meeting with a PA is voluntary and open to all first-semester students as a supplement to P.A.S.S.
Writing Center
The practice of law requires students to acquire a unique style of writing in order to be successful both in law school and in the future practice of law.
The Writing Specialist and/or Writing Center teaching assistants are available to meet with students undertaking any kind of legal writing, discuss/review writing samples, and learn to improve grammar and writing style.
In addition Coastal Law conducts several skills workshops covering a wide range of topics including punctuation, organization, and style.
As a Coastal Law student, you’ll have convenient access to our Academic Success Counselors and to bar preparation classes and study groups. Coastal Law graduates consistently pass the bar in Florida, most recently with an 85.2 percent pass rate in February 2008. That rate placed Coastal Law third among Florida's 10 law schools and was almost nine points higher than the state average.
