The Catholic University of America, Columbus School of Law

• Center for Law and the Human Person

The Catholic University of America Columbus School of Law aims to achieve distinction in the Catholic intellectual tradition and to promote the ideals of the dignity of each human person, respect for the inviolability of all human life, justice rooted in the common good, the recognition and protection of human rights as gifts of the Creator, care for the poor, the neglected, and the vulnerable, and the obligation of love for one another.

The Center for Law and the Human Person serves as our central resource for thinking about how these core commitments ought to inform the study, teaching, and practice of law. The Center will support relevant scholarly research and curricular development, emphasize student formation, and engage broader academic, professional, and public policy communities.

 

• Center for Religious Liberty

The Center for Religious Liberty at The Catholic University of America Columbus School of Law, is an academic center dedicated to the study and articulation of the Catholic approach to religious liberty as a fundamental human right for all persons, regardless of faith. This right is recognized by the United States Constitution, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and the Church's teaching in Dignitatis Humanae.

The Center will aim to increase discussion and understanding of these issues by hosting speakers, organizing conferences, awarding writing prizes, providing educational programming, and commenting on religious liberty issues in the public square.

 

• Center for the Constitution and the Catholic Intellectual Tradition

The Center for the Constitution and the Catholic Intellectual Tradition (CIT) promotes scholarship that explores the relationship between the Catholic intellectual tradition and American constitutionalism. That tradition is deep and rich, including philosophical and theological accounts of law and politics by such figures as St. Augustine and St. Thomas Aquinas. Although the Center’s primary focus is on theories of constitutional law, such as originalism, CIT’s ambit is broad and covers the relevance of the Catholic intellectual tradition for constitutional history, doctrine, and other fields of study.

 

• Separation of Powers Institute

The Separation of Powers Institute (SPI) promotes and hosts scholarship, student programs, and educational initiatives that examine the federal constitutional structure, with an emphasis on a historical understanding of the role of divided power in the preservation of “justice,” the “general welfare,” and “the blessings of liberty.” SPI will serve as a hub of academic research and debate on legal and constitutional questions related to the role of the three federal branches of government and the allocation of their role and functions within the federal constitutional system.

Elevate Your Skills With A Certificate From Catholic Law

The Law School’s certificate programs encompass five vibrant and enriching areas of legal practice. Certification from any of these longstanding and highly regarded programs and institutes endorses the student as a specialist — a graduate who offers employers a level of subject mastery that is significantly beyond that which may be learned in the general J.D. curriculum.

Four of the Catholic Law’s certificate programs have a 25-year track record of producing industry leaders within their areas of legal specialization. Their reputation, reach, and influence have grown steadily over the years, opening limitless career doors and options for today’s students. 

• Comparative and International Law Institute
• Compliance, Investigations, and Corporate Responsibility
• Law and Public Policy Program
• Law and Technology Institute
• Securities Law Program

Gain Skills Through Real-World Experience

The commitment to ensuring that our graduates are practice-ready directs the Catholic Law experience. Recognizing that classwork and textbooks alone do not quite complete the transformation of student to lawyer, all academic programs include transition-to-practice requirements. Many also require participation in clinics, externships, trial or moot court teams, or other hands-on experience.

Through "live client" and simulated lawyering experiences, students learn practical trial techniques, research and writing skills, and other important lawyering skills, such as counseling, interviewing, negotiating, and mediating.

• International Business and Trade Summer Law Program in Kraków Poland

Catholic University's joint venture with the Jagiellonian University in Kraków provides students with intensive training in law of the European Union and global aspects of modern trade, comparative perspectives on regulated industries and antitrust laws in the U.S. and the EU, international business transactions, and other substantive areas of law, international business transactions, and other substantive areas of law. Classes are conducted in English at the 14th-century Jagiellonian University, one of the oldest and most prestigious universities in Europe. Unlike most summer abroad programs, a number of English-speaking law students from Polish universities also participate. The Polish and American students attend classes together and participate in all co-curricular activities together. This cross-cultural aspect of the Kraków program is unique and has resulted in many lasting friendships and business contacts.

• International Human Rights Summer Law Program in Rome, Italy*

This program allows students to earn four credits over an intensive three-week program of study. Because the program is concentrated in three weeks, from mid-May through the first week in June, students can pursue summer employment after the program is over. It also makes the program particularly accessible to evening students who are employed. During the three-week session, students will be able to select from a group of courses focusing on different aspects of human rights law. Formal study will be supplemented with visits to local legal institutions and organizations, as well as the opportunity to explore the city of Rome and enjoy some of Italy’s religious, cultural, and historic treasures.

*The Program is offered in even years and will take place again in Summer 2026.

Journals

The Columbus School of Law's strong co-curricular program includes two major student-edited publications: The Catholic University Law Review and The Catholic University Journal of Law and Technology (formerly known as The CommLaw Conspectus: Journal of Communications Law and Policy).

Founded in 1950, The Catholic University Law Review is the flagship publication of the Columbus School of Law. The Law Review is dedicated to covering a wide variety of issues at the forefront of the legal profession from authors around the globe. The highly-competitive Law Review experience provides student editors and contributors with valuable skills to further prepare them for the legal careers that lie ahead of them.

The Journal of Law and Technology is for rising 2L day students and evening students who are interested in honing their writing and editing skills through a legal publication. Through Journal's focus on Law and Technology, students will gain insight into the most pressing and advanced legal issues relating to technology's impact on the law. Students will gain valuable bluebooking, writing, and editing skills that will allow them to stand out when applying for internships and jobs. 

National Mock Trial Team and the Moot Court Association

As individual competitors or members of a National Mock Trial Team or Moot Court, Catholic Law students are at their best in the crucible of high-level competition as demonstrated by an impressive record of achievement over the past several years.

• The National Mock Trial Team requires students to hone and demonstrate their advocacy skills by arguing motions, responding to opposing counsel, cross-examining witnesses, and delivering opening or closing statements in a realistic trial setting. In competition, students may deal with ethics, criminal justice, direct examination, or other aspects of the legal system. Teams compete in national events from California to Puerto Rico.
  
   
• Moot Court Association is composed of second-and-third year students who share a strong interest in oral and written advocacy training in an appellate courtroom setting. The teams compete annually in nearly a dozen national and interschool competitions, covering topics such as securities law, telecommunications law, environmental law, and constitutional law, among others.