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Part-Time Evening J.D. Curriculum
All students must earn a minimum of 87 hours to complete the J.D. degree. Students in the part-time evening program take the same required courses as full-time students. One of the many advantages of earning an SMU J.D. is that students have a broad range of upper-level elective courses that give them the flexibility to tailor an individual course of study. Many of these classes are small – over one-half of upper-level courses have fewer than 25 students enrolled. The curriculum is designed so that evening students can earn a law degree in four years, including 10 hours of coursework over two to three summer sessions. For degree requirements,
see J.D. curriculum requirements.
We also offer periodic evening program information sessions.
Year One
Fall |
11 hours |
Contracts I |
2 hrs. |
Torts I |
3 hrs. |
Civil Procedure I |
3 hrs. |
Legal Research, Writing, and Advocacy I |
3 hrs. |
Spring |
10 hours |
Contracts II |
3 hrs. |
Torts II |
2 hrs. |
Civil Procedure II |
2 hrs. |
Legal Research, Writing, and Advocacy II |
3 hrs. |
Year Two
Fall |
10-11 hours |
Property I |
2 hrs. |
Criminal Law |
3 hrs. |
Electives |
5-6 hrs. |
Spring |
10-11 hours |
Property II |
3 hrs. |
Constitutional Law I |
2 hrs. |
Electives |
5-6 hrs. |
Years Three and Four
Upper Division Required Courses:
- Professional Responsibility
- Constitutional Law II
- Edited Writing Seminar
- General Writing Course
- Professional Skills Course
Areas of Upper Division Electives Include:
- Banking
- Bankruptcy Law
- Business/Corporate Law
- Commercial Law
- Constitutional Law
- Criminal Law
- Dispute Resolution
- Employment/Labor Law
- Environmental Law
- Estate Planning
- Family Law
- Health Care Law
- Insurance
- Intellectual Property Law
- Internet and E-Commerce Law
- International Law
- Litigation/Trial Advocacy
- Oil & Gas Law
- Real Estate Law
- Tax Law