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Florida Coastal School of Law

Coordinates: 30°13′58″N 81°34′49″W / 30.23278°N 81.58028°W / 30.23278; -81.58028
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Florida Coastal School of Law
MottoLex Ubique Est
(law is everywhere)
Established1996
School typePrivate
DeanScott DeVito
LocationJacksonville, Florida, US
Enrollment1114[1]
Faculty129[1]
USNWR rankingTier 4
Bar pass rate59.3% (Jul. '15) / 8th of 11 [2]
Websitefcsl.edu
The entrance to FCSL on Baypine Road
The lakeside of FCSL at night
Four knowledge bars serve students by providing a forum for students and professors to continue conversations outside of the classroom.[3]
The sun setting on the lake behind FCSL

Florida Coastal School of Law is a private law school in Jacksonville, Florida. Established in 1996, the school is owned by the for-profit educational investment fund InfiLaw System of independent law schools, which also owns Charlotte School of Law and Phoenix School of Law, and is owned by Sterling Partners.[4][5] Florida Coastal School of Law received its license from the state of Florida in 1995 and opened for classes in winter 1996. The class entering in 1996 graduated in spring 1999. The college was provisionally approved by the American Bar Association in 1999 and received its full accreditation in 2002.[6]

Academics

In addition to its curriculum for a juris doctor, Coastal offers several certification programs in specialized areas of the law. Coastal currently offers an environmental law certificate, sports law certificate, international comparative law certificate, family law certificate, and an advanced legal research and writing certificate. Additionally, Coastal, offers accelerated dual degree programs, with Jacksonville University, that allow students to complete a juris doctor and a M.B.A. or a M.P.P. in four years.[7]

Coastal also has an internship and externship clinical program. Criminal law externships in the United States Attorney's Office, the State Attorney's Office, and the Office of the Public Defender throughout Florida and the southeast United States are available to Coastal students.[8] Recently Coastal began offering externships in international criminal law with the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY) in The Hague, the Netherlands. Internships in consumer law are available through Coastal's Consumer Law Clinic, and students can learn to offer general legal assistance through a clinical program with Jacksonville Legal Services, a pro bono organization.[8]

File:FCSL Logistics and Transportation Logo.png
Logistics and Transportation Law Program

Awards

  • In 2010, Florida Coastal was the recipient of the American Bar Association E. Smythe Gambrell Professionalism Award.[9]
  • In 2011, the Jacksonville Area Legal Aid (JALA) awarded Florida Coastal the Robert J. Beckham Equal Justice Award for its partnership with JALA and its commitment to pro bono legal aid to the Jacksonville community.[10]
  • In 2013, the National Jurist ranked Florida Coastal among the top innovative law schools.[11]
  • In 2014, Florida Coastal made the American Bar Association's "Top Ten List" of law schools teaching the technology of legal practice.[12]
  • In 2015, the National Jurist gave Florida Coastal an "A+ or A" for being one of the best law schools that offer practical training.[13][14]

LL.M. in Logistics and Transportation Law

Coastal offers the only LL.M. degree in Logistics and Transportation Law in the United States.[15] The program concentrates in four key areas: maritime law, trucking and rail law, aviation law, and military logistics.[16] In each of those areas, students obtain expertise in litigation, regulation, and contracting skills relating to international and domestic transportation.[17]

The program is entirely on-line and can be completed in one year. Law school graduates are required to complete twenty-four credits in order to obtain a Master of Law (LL.M.). Non-lawyers and law students may enroll in the program and obtain a Certificate in Transportation Regulation after completing twelve credits.

Moot Court

The 2012-2013 Moot Court National Championship ranked Florida Coastal School of Law's Moot Court team second in the nation.[18] In 2010, Florida Coastal gained national attention when they scored a victory against Harvard Law in a moot court contest. Students are only eligible to try out for the Moot Court team after completing their second semester.[19]

Championships: In 2014, Florida Coastal's Moot Court Honor Board finished ranked the #1 Moot Court Program in the country.[20] The Moot Court Honor Board took top honors at the following competitions:

Hispanic National Bar Association Moot Court Competition Rendigs Products Liability Competition Child Welfare and Adoption Law Competition Chicago Bar Association National Moot Court Competition Appellate Lawyers Association Competition Mercer Ethics Moot Court Competition National Latino Law Students Association Competition National Appellate Advocacy Competition Brooklyn Regional

The Honor Board took Second Place at the following competitions:

E. Earl Zehmer National Worker's Compensation Competition Billings, Exum, & Frye Competition National Professional Responsibility Competition Child Welfare and Adoption Law Competition

The Honor Board Finished in the Quarterfinals or Won a Best Brief and/or Best Advocate in the following competitions:

E. Earl Zehmer National Worker's Compensation Competition (Best Advocate) Fredrick Douglass Moot Court Competition (Quarter Finalist) Hispanic National Bar Association Moot Court Competition (Best Brief) Rendigs Products Liability Competition (Best Advocate) Billings, Exum, & Frye Competition (Best Advocate) Duberstein Bankruptcy Competition (Best Advocate) Chicago Bar Association National Moot Court Competition (Semi Finalist) (Best Brief) Appellate Lawyers Association Competition (Best Brief) Mercer Ethics Moot Court Competition (Best Brief) National Latino Law Students Association Competition (Best Brief) Hassell Nation Constitutional Law Moot Court Competition (Best Brief) (Best Advocate)

Mock Trial

Florida Coastal's Mock Trial team competes with law students across the state of Florida and the United States. The team members present their case before a judge and jury. Acceptance into the team is based upon a competitive meritocratic process that judges the student's ability and talent. Students are only eligible to try out for the Mock Trial team during their 1L year in law school.[21]

Law Review

The Florida Coastal Law Review is a legal journal edited by second and third year law students under the guidance of law professors. The journals are retrievable by judges, attorneys, and scholars around the world through the legal databases LexisNexis and Westlaw.[22][23] The journal is published three times a year. Students can join by being in the top 5% of their class or by submitting a high quality writing piece to law review.[24]

Bar passage rate

The Florida Bar passage rate of Coastal graduates compared to the average passing rate from other Florida law schools.

Exam Coastal Total
Feb 2013[25] 79.3 80.2
July 2013 [26] 67.4 77.2
Feb 2014[27] 72.9 72.9
July 2014[28] 58 71.8
Feb 2015[29] 74.5 64.3
July 2015[30] 59.3 68.9
Average 68.6 72.6


Florida Bar Passing Percentage [31]

10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
Feb 2013
July 2013
Feb 2014
July 2014
Feb 2015
July 2015
  •   Coastal Passing
  •   Total Passing

Post-graduation employment and debt

Student debt

According to U.S. News & World Report, the average indebtedness of 2013 graduates who incurred law school debt was $150,360 (not including undergraduate debt), and 91% of 2013 graduates took on debt.[32]

Employment outcomes

Florida Coastal's Law School Transparency score is 29.5%,[33] indicating the percentage of the Class of 2013 who obtained full-time long-term jobs practicing law within nine months of graduation, excluding solo practitioners.

According to the American Bar Association for 2013 Florida Coastal graduates, 40.04% are employed in a position that required for the graduate to pass the bar exam; 13.88% are employed in a position in which the employer sought an individual with a J.D. or in which the J.D. provided a demonstrable advantage in obtaining or performing the job, but which did not itself require an active law license; 7.65% of the graduates are in a professional position in which a J.D. is neither required nor a demonstrable advantage; 0.53% are employed in a non-professional position; 1.6% are pursuing graduate work full-time; 4.09% are unemployed and not seeking employment; and 30.6% are unemployed and seeking employment.[34][35]

ABA Employment Summary for 2013 Graduates [34]
Employment Status Percentage
Employed - Bar Passage Required
 
 40.04%
Employed - J.D. Advantage
 
 13.88%
Employed - Professional Position
 
 7.65%
Employed - Non-Professional Position
 
 0.53%
Employed - Undeterminable
 
 0.0%
Pursuing Graduate Degree Full Time
 
 1.6%
Unemployed - Start Date Deferred
 
 0.0%
Unemployed - Not Seeking
 
 4.09%
Unemployed - Seeking
 
 30.6%
Employment Status Unknown
 
 1.6%
Total of 562 Graduates

Tuition and Cost

Fall 2015 Semester:[36]

  • $21,508.00 for Full-Time Students (13-16 credit hours)
  • $17,444.00 for Part-Time Students (9-12 credit hours)
  • $13,676.00 for Part-Time Evening Students (9-12 credit hours)

The total cost of attendance (indicating the cost of tuition, fees, and living expenses) at Florida Coastal for the 2013-2014 academic year is $62,690.[37] The Law School Transparency estimated debt-financed cost of attendance for three years is $246,459.[38]

In addition to various scholarships, Coastal students may be eligible for Post 9/11 GI Bill funds and the Yellow Ribbon Program.[39]

References

  1. ^ a b "Florida Coastal School of Law". U.S. News and World Report. 2015. Retrieved 2015-05-15.
  2. ^ Florida Board of Bar Examiners, July 2015 General Bar Examination. https://www.floridabarexam.org/__85257bfe0055eb2c.nsf/52286ae9ad5d845185257c07005c3fe1/ecae5e5b478cbdfb85257ec8004e2917
  3. ^ Academic Technology Resources for Students. Retrieved on February 22, 2014. http://www.fcsl.edu/sites/fcsl.edu/files/Academic%20Technology%20Resources%20for%20Students.pdf
  4. ^ Infilaw Corp. (2012). "Home". Infilaw Corp. Retrieved May 13, 2012.
  5. ^ Sterling Partners (2011). "Portfolio:InfiLaw". Sterlings Partners. Retrieved May 13, 2012.
  6. ^ "ABA grants Florida Coastal School of Law accreditation". The Florida Bar News. Tallahassee, Florida: The Florida Bar. September 15, 2002. Retrieved 2009-12-19.
  7. ^ Dual Degrees. http://www.fcsl.edu/academics/dualdegrees Retrieved on Jan. 15, 2014.
  8. ^ a b Law School Public Interest Programs - Summer Fellowships
  9. ^ Archive Reward Recipients, American Bar Association, (Retrieved January 28, 2015).
  10. ^ "Florida Coastal recognized by Jacksonville Area Legal Aid". Daily Record. January 9, 2012.
  11. ^ prelaw, A National Jurist Publication, 25 Most Innovative Ideas. http://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/cypress/prelaw_2013backtoschool/#/30, Retrieved on 9 Sept. 2013.
  12. ^ American Bar Association, Teaching the Technology of Practice, the Top 10 Schools. http://www.americanbar.org/publications/law_practice_magazine/2014/july-august/teaching-the-technology-of-practice-the-10-top-schools.html Retrieved on August 10, 2014
  13. ^ "Best law schools for practical training: 2015". National Jurist. February 6, 2015.
  14. ^ "Florida Coastal School of Law Named a Best Law School for Practical Training". GlobeNewswire. March 16, 2015.
  15. ^ http://www.fcsl.edu/logistics.
  16. ^ http://www.fcsl.edu/logistics/curriculum/courses
  17. ^ http://www.fcsl.edu/logistics/proposed-curriculum
  18. ^ Florida Coastal School of Law, Moot Court Honor Board. https://www.fcsl.edu/content/moot-court-honor-board
  19. ^ Jacksonville law students gain national respect in courtroom competitions, Feb 16, 2010. http://jacksonville.com/news/metro/schools/2010-02-16/story/jacksonville_law_students_gain_national_respect_in_courtroom_com Retrieved Sept. 3, 2012
  20. ^ http://www.law.uh.edu/blakely/mcnc/2014/rankings.asp
  21. ^ Coastal Law, Mock Trial. http://www.fcsl.edu/content/mock-trial Retrieved on Sept. 10, 2013.
  22. ^ Westlaw Database Directory. http://directory.westlaw.com/default.asp?GUID=WDIR00000000000000000000095385201&RS=W&VR=2.0 Retrieved on Sept 9, 2013
  23. ^ Florida Law, Flat Rate Library, LexisNexis. http://www.lexisnexis.com/store/images/samples/AML/FL%20General%20Practice%20-%20Bronze.pdf Retrieved on Sept 9, 2013
  24. ^ Florida Coastal Law Review. http://www.fcsl.edu/sites/fcsl.edu/files/LR%20informational%20sheet_0.pdf Retrieved on Sept 9. 2013.
  25. ^ "Examination Results and Statistics". Florida Board of Bar Examiners. Retrieved September 28, 2015.
  26. ^ "Examination Results and Statistics". Florida Board of Bar Examiners. Retrieved September 28, 2015.
  27. ^ "Examination Results and Statistics". Florida Board of Bar Examiners. Retrieved September 28, 2015.
  28. ^ "Examination Results and Statistics". Florida Board of Bar Examiners. Retrieved September 28, 2015.
  29. ^ "Examination Results and Statistics". Florida Board of Bar Examiners. Retrieved September 28, 2015.
  30. ^ "Examination Results and Statistics". Florida Board of Bar Examiners. Retrieved September 28, 2015.
  31. ^ Florida Board of Bar Examiners http://www.floridabarexam.org Retrieved on April 15, 2014.
  32. ^ http://grad-schools.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-graduate-schools/top-law-schools/grad-debt-rankings
  33. ^ http://www.lstscorereports.com/schools/floridacoastal/2013/
  34. ^ a b American Bar Association, Section of Legal Education And Admissions to the Bar, Florida Coastal School of Law. http://employmentsummary.abaquestionnaire.org/, Retrieved on 6 Aug. 2014
  35. ^ "Employment Statistics" (PDF).
  36. ^ "JD Tuition and Fees". Florida Coastal School of Law. Retrieved June 1, 2015.
  37. ^ "JD Tuition and Expenses".
  38. ^ "Florida Coastal Profile".
  39. ^ Yellow Ribbon Program Information 2013-2014. http://benefits.va.gov/gibill/yellow_ribbon/2013/states/fl.asp Retrieved on Jan. 15, 2014
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