University of Maine School of Law
The information on this page was provided by the law school.
Official Guide to ABA-Approved JD Programs
The JD Program
By design, our Law School is one of the smallest in the country. We take pride in providing the personal attention few schools can match, a focus on hands-on learning, and a world-class faculty drawn to our incredible setting on the coast of the Atlantic Ocean.
We believe it’s time to reimagine what a law school can be. This means engaging with communities outside of our building and outside our comfort zones. It means renewing our commitment to public service, and standing up for justice, rather than watching from a safe distance. It means collaborating with other institutions of higher education, industry, and nonprofit organizations to help solve complex problems, from economic development in rural Maine, to civil rights in developing nations. It’s a vision that calls on us to break down old barriers.
This expansive approach to legal education is connecting Maine Law to new public and private partners throughout Maine, New England, and beyond. For our graduates, it’s an approach that translates into more opportunities.
From the moment of enrollment, we focus on developing your pathways to employment. You will have access to one-on-one support from faculty, staff, and mentors throughout your time at Maine Law, and the backing of a strong alumni network for the duration of your career. And you will practice socially responsible entrepreneurism as well as lawyering, while obtaining the tools you need to be a leader in the legal profession, in public or non-governmental organizations, in private industry, in pursuit of the public interest, or any other field of your choosing.
Clinics and Centers
Maine Law has one of the oldest live-client clinical programs in the nation. Established in 1970, the Cumberland Legal Aid Clinic houses four distinct clinical courses and is a defining program at the Law School. The mission is two-fold. Law students receive intensive, hands-on experience as they represent real clients in real cases, and the community benefits because hundreds of disadvantaged Mainers are afforded legal representation and access to justice.
The centers at Maine Law – the Center for Oceans and Coastal Law, the Center for Law + Innovation, and the Maine Center for Juvenile Policy and Law – help to drive research and public policy development in Maine and beyond. Scholars from around the world are engaged in a number of projects through the centers, in areas of law ranging from maritime security to data privacy.
The problems our students help solve are intense and complex, from helping immigrants seek political asylum, working on cutting-edge privacy policy, or representing indigent clients before Maine’s highest court.
Externships
Maine Law’s Externship Program allows students to work alongside seasoned attorneys and judges for academic credit. Depending on the placement, students in the Externship Program handle advocacy, policy, regulatory enforcement, and transactional legal matters, and may have the opportunity to practice as a student attorney during their third year of law school. Students in the Externship Program receive valuable feedback and mentoring from their placement supervisors – who are experienced judges and lawyers – and also from the Externship Professor and Director.
Dual Degree Programs
The University of Maine School of Law offers an accelerated dual degree option (J.D./M.B.A.) for students in conjunction with the business school of the University of Maine.
Two accelerated dual degree options are also available with the Muskie School of Public Service at the University of Southern Maine: the Juris Doctor and Master of Public Health (J.D./M.P.H.) and the Juris Doctor and Master of Policy, Planning and Management (J.D/M.P.P.M).