Part-Time Evening J.D.

As of Fall 2019, first-year part-time evening program students can slash commuting time.  Southwestern's re-imagined part-time program utilizes distance education technology so students attend about half of their classroom hours remotely.  

Southwestern is committed to utilizing learning science and distance education technology in exciting ways specifically designed to enhance the part-time student experience.  We want our students to spend a little more time doing what is important to them (and not driving back and forth to school).

Southwestern’s re-imagined evening program disrupts the traditional drive-across-town four-nights-a-week model. You can now complete our part-time J.D. program in four years while commuting to campus only two evenings per week Attend the remaining class hours from anywhere with an internet connection; and round out the graduation requirements by taking a handful of additional courses during the academic year, summer, and/or intersession terms.  This is our most flexible part-time format ever!

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Southwestern is actively seeking ways to introduce more flexibility and remote learning opportunities throughout all of our programs!

Southwestern's evening program is a four-year part-time J.D. program designed for students who are unable to devote full-time to the study of law. For many working professionals, this program provides a financially feasible way to attend law school while maintaining a full-time work schedule. Students in the evening program bring the unique perspectives of their working lives into the classroom, enriching the law school experience for everyone.

Students enrolled in the evening program receive the same comprehensive legal education as that presented in the day program. 

Southwestern's part-time program is unique among J.D. evening divisions in several ways: All core courses for evening students are taught by full-time faculty; the evening program is overseen by two full-time faculty members who serve as Co-Directors and who advocate for the evening students and advise and counsel them; the law school's services and resources are available during evening and/or weekend hours and appointments; evening students also have a dedicated Career Service Professional who has been assigned to counsel and advise them throughout law school, and special experiential learning opportunities are designed to accommodate evening students' schedules. Southwestern also offers individualized social support and events to help part-time students adjust to law school. 

Part-time evening students take the designated curriculum during the first two years, and a mix of required courses and electives during the third and fourth years when they are also able to take advantage of externships, clinics, practica and honors programs. They take 8 to 11 units each semester, and two summer sessions are required to complete the 87 units to earn the J.D. degree in four years.

Required Courses

Courses Fall Units   Spring Units
FIRST YEAR EVENING      
     Contracts I & II 3   2
     Criminal Law 3   -
     LAWS I & II1 3   3
     Torts -   4
     Total 9   9
SECOND YEAR PART-TIME EVENING      
     Civil Procedure I & II 2   3
     Constitutional Law I & II 3   3
     Electives2 2   2 to 5
     Property 4   -
     Total 9 to 11   8 to 11
THIRD YEAR PART-TIME EVENING      
     Business Associations3 -   4
     Evidence3 4   -
SECOND, THIRD, OR FOURTH YEAR PART-TIME EVENING      
     Constitutional Criminal Procedure4

3

or

3

     Experiential Requirement5 TOTAL  OF 6
     Legal Profession4 3 or 3
     Upper-Division Writing Requirement 2 or 3 or 2 or 3
BAR READINESS CURRICULUMSECOND, THIRD, OR FOURTH YEAR  PART-TIME EVENING7      
Cal Bar Writing: Skills and Strategies or  3
Community Property 2 or 2
MBE: Skills and Strategies or 3
Remedies 2 or  2
Wills and Trusts 4 or  4
SUMMER OPTIONS      
     Electives 2 to 6

*NOTE: Part-Time Day/PLEAS Program required courses are similar to the Evening, but may differ slightly by semester in the second, third, and fourth years

1. Legal Analysis, Writing, and Skills
2. Elective choices include such courses as Constitutional Criminal Procedure, Copyright Law, and Legal Profession
3. Part-Time Day/PLEAS Program students have Fall or Spring options for these courses.
4. If not taken as an elective in second
 year (required for graduation). 
5. 
Students must take a minimum of six credit hours of coursework that has been specifically approved and designated as meeting the Experiential Requirement. 
6. At the end of the second year, students with a GPA of at least 3.33 in subjects tested on the bar exam may opt out 

7. For part-time students, the bar-tested courses used to calculate the opt-out eligibility GPA include:  Contracts I/II, Criminal Law, Civil Procedure I/II, Torts, Property, Constitutional Law I/II

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Super Blue Blood Moon Eclipse Behind Bullocks Wilshire Tower -  January 31, 2018