San Joaquin College of Law

San Joaquin College of Law (SJCL) was founded in 1969 by a visionary group of San Joaquin Valley judges and attorneys who believed that capable individuals were being denied a quality legal education because no accredited law school existed in the area. Their goal was to provide the opportunity for San Joaquin Valley residents to become effective legal practitioners.

The founders firmly believed that a sound legal education should combine theoretical and substantive knowledge with practical skills. With the beginning of instruction in fall 1970, the School adopted the uncompromising standards essential to the achievement of this goal.

The Board of Trustees of San Joaquin College of Law is the legally constituted policy-making body of the institution. Members are selected on the basis of their integrity and concern for the community, as well as their ability and desire to work unselfishly for the good of the College.

The San Joaquin Agricultural Law Review, founded in 1990, is published by the students of San Joaquin College of Law, which is located in California’s Central Valley, one of the richest agricultural regions in the world. The San Joaquin Agricultural Law Review presents student and scholar works on legal issues affecting our nation’s most vital industry – agriculture. The topics discussed in each volume are always of current interest to those in agriculture, government, business and law.

Each year, the student editorial board members of the San Joaquin Agricultural Law Review gather, edit and publish articles, written by legal scholars and practitioners, and comments and case notes, written by students of San Joaquin College of Law. The San Joaquin Agricultural Law Review provides an objective, national forum for analyzing issues affecting agriculture.

The San Joaquin Agricultural Law Review has received judicial and critical recognition, and its articles have been cited by the California Supreme Court, the California Appellate Court, the United States District Court, the New Mexico Court of Appeals, the Middle District of Tennessee and the Minnesota Supreme Court. Articles have also been cited in the annotations of several California statutes.

Clinical work heightens a student’s understanding of class content, enhances practical skills and introduces the student to the “real world” of law. Students are eligible for clinical study upon the completion of the first year of law school.

Each unit of clinical study represents 72 hours of work. Up to 8 units of clinical study may be applied toward the Juris Doctor degree. A student is limited to earning 4 credits for hours worked in any single clinical placement absent prior approval by the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs or the Director of Career Services. Relevant factors in approving more than 4 units for a single clinical placement include: diversity of work assignments, special needs of employer for continuity on project, limited availability of clinical opportunities in student’s chosen field and consideration of student’s special circumstances. No distinction will be made between paid and unpaid clinical work on approval clinical placements, except that the New American Legal Clinic Director may set such limitation as they deem advisable. All students, however, are encouraged to participate in uncompensated work, beginning their professional obligation to engage in pro bono work.

IMPORTANT: Students must seek approval, register and pay for clinical units, as they would any other course, prior to beginning the work for which they plan on seeking credit. Failure to complete this process prior to beginning work will result in denial of credit.

The San Joaquin College of Law (SJCL) Library holds approximately 80,000 volumes and volume equivalents including law reviews, annotated codes, appellate court reports of all jurisdictions, and complete Federal and California reporters.

The SJCL Library is a member of several state and national interlibrary loan networks. Many journals, law reviews, manuscripts or treatises can be requested through the SJCL Library.

In addition, hundreds of thousands of volumes are available through Lexis-Nexis and WestLaw. These two proprietary legal research systems, to which students have free unlimited access for academic use, are available via the internet 24 hours a day.

Many other legal materials are also available in the library via microforms and proprietary databases, including the Making of Modern Law collection. Study carrels and two Group Study rooms for meetings are available on the second floor of the SJCL Library. The SJCL Library is available only to faculty, students, and alumni of the Law School.

Six workstations provide student access to the Internet and word-processing programs, during all library hours. The SJCL Library is also wifi compatible for internet use and printing.