St. John's University School of Law is a Roman Catholic law school in Jamaica, Queens, New York, United States, affiliated with St. John's University.
The School of Law was founded in 1925, and confers Juris Doctor degrees and degrees for Master of Laws in Bankruptcy and Master of Laws in U.S. Studies. Over 15,000 St. John's Law graduates are practicing law in the United States and foreign jurisdictions. In 2022, 85.53% of the law school's first-time test takers passed a bar exam.
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LL.M. in Bankruptcy law
St. John's University School of Law offers the only LL.M. in bankruptcy law in the United States. The program is a 30 credit LL.M., with 6 credits devoted towards a thesis. St. John's School of Law offers over two dozen classes focusing on various issues in bankruptcy. Required courses for the program are: Reorganization Under Chapter 11; Bankruptcy Fraud, Ethics, and Malpractice; Bankruptcy Taxation; Bankruptcy Jurisdiction; Bankruptcy Procedure; and Consumer Bankruptcy. Classes are taught by a mixture of law professors, Federal Bankruptcy Court judges, and practicing attorneys. The St. John's LL.M. in Bankruptcy Program is fully accredited. It has been approved by the New York State Department of Education, and has received the acquiescence of the American Bar Association.
Admissions
For the class entering in 2023, St. John's University School of Law accepted 41.48% of applicants, with 26.50% of those accepted enrolling. The average enrollee had a 162 LSAT score and 3.71 undergraduate GPA.
Bar passage rates
In 2023, 87.10% of St. John’s first-time takers passed a bar examination. St. John's University School of Law typically ranks in the top 4 – 7 in bar exam passage for first-time test takers among the fifteen New York State law schools:
July 2004 – 87% / Overall New York State Average – 76.5%
July 2005 – 89% (4th) / Overall New York State Average – 75.9%
July 2006 – 91% (4th) / Overall New York State Average 79.4%
July 2007 – 90% (6th) / Overall New York State Average – 79.1%
July 2008 – 91.8% (7th) / Overall New York State Average – 83.2%
July 2009 – 92.1% (4th) / Overall New York State Average – 79.8%
July 2010 – 87% (6th) / Overall New York State Average – 86%
July 2011 – 88% (7th) / Overall New York State Average – 86%
July 2013 - 87.5% (7th) / Overall New York State Average – 88%
July 2014 - 87% (4th) / Overall New York State Average - 83%
July 2019 - 89% (5th) / Overall New York State Average - 88%
Ranking
National Ranking: for 2025, U.S. News & World Report ranked St. John's Law tied for 63rd.
Employment
According to St. John's University School of Law's official 2018 ABA-required disclosures, 82.3% of the Class of 2018 obtained full-time, long-term, JD-required employment ten months after graduation. St. John's University School of Law's Law School Transparency under-employment score is 7.1%, indicating the percentage of the Class of 2018 unemployed, pursuing an additional degree, or working in a non-professional, short-term, or part-time job ten months after graduation.
Costs
The total cost of attendance (indicating the cost of tuition, fees, and living expenses) at St. John's University School of Law for the 2014–2015 academic year is $76,614. The Law School Transparency estimated debt-financed cost of attendance for three years is $285,041.
Conrad B. Duberstein Moot Court Competition
The Conrad B. Duberstein Moot Court Competition is an annual bankruptcy moot court competition sponsored by St. John's University School of Law and the American Bankruptcy Institute (ABI). The competition is named in memory of former Chief Judge Conrad B. Duberstein, who was a St. John's alumnus and former ABI Director. The competition focuses on significant issues in bankruptcy practice. It is the largest single site appellate moot court competition, with approximately 60 law school teams participating. It is also the only bankruptcy moot court competition in the nation. Bankruptcy practitioners judge the preliminary rounds and briefs. New York-area bankruptcy judges from around the country judge the later rounds of the competition.
St. John's Moot Court Honor Society and American Bankruptcy Institute Law Review members organize and run the competition. Additionally, they prepare the bench memo for the judges, field ghost teams, and serve as bailiffs during the competition. The competition winners, best briefs and best advocates are recognized at an awards banquet.
Frank S. Polestino Trial Advocacy Institute (PTAI)
The Frank S. Polestino Trial Advocacy Institute is the mock trial program for St. John's University School of Law.
Deans
Jelani Jefferson Exum: 2024 – present
Michael A. Simons: 2009 – 2024
Andrew Simons (Interim/Acting): 2008 – 2009
Mary C. Daly: 2004 – 2008
Joseph W. Bellacosa: 2000 – 2004
Vincent C. Alexander: 1999 – 2000
Brian Z. Tamanaha: 1998 – 1999
Rudolph C. Hasl: 1991 – 1998
Patrick J. Rohan: 1981 – 1991
John J. Murphy: 1970 – 1981
Harold F. McNiece: 1961 – 1970
Rev. William F. Cahill (Acting): 1960 – 1961
Notable alumni
Government
Joseph P. Addabbo, US representative from New York (1961–86)
Howard E. Babbush (1941– 2004), Member of the New York State Senate
Michael Balboni, former deputy secretary of state, public safety – New York State, former NYS senator
Ralph Elihu Becker (1907–1994), U.S. Ambassador to Honduras
Sam Berger, Member of the New York State Assembly
Alessandra Biaggi (born 1986), New York State senator
Jeremiah B. Bloom, (1913-1983), member of the New York City Council, member of the New York State Senate
Albert H. Bosch, former US representative
Leonard B. Boudin, civil rights attorney, noted for his representation of anti-war activists during the Vietnam war era.
Ron Brown, former US secretary of commerce and chairman of the Democratic National Committee
Hugh Carey (1919–2011), governor of New York
Gregory W. Carman, former chief judge and judge, US Court of International Trade; former US representative
William J. Casey (1913–1987), director of Central Intelligence and chairman of the US Securities and Exchange Commission
Alfred C. Cerullo III, former New York City commissioner and council member, professional actor in theater and television
Judges
Harold Birns, former associate justice, Appellate Division of the New York Supreme Court, First Judicial Department
P. Kevin Castel, judge, US District Court for the Southern District of New York
Raymond J. Dearie, judge and former chief judge, US District Court for the Eastern District of New York; Judge, United States Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court
Stanley R. Chesler (born1947) , Senior Judge of the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey
Carmen Beauchamp Ciparick, former judge, New York Court of Appeals
Janet DiFiore, Chief Judge, New York Court of Appeals
Patricia DiMango, former Justice, New York Supreme Court
John Francis Dooling Jr., former judge, U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York
Conrad B. Duberstein, former chief judge of the US Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of New York
Randall T. Eng, presiding justice, New York Supreme Court, Appellate Division
Theodore T. Jones Jr., former Judge, New York Court of Appeals
Guy James Mangano, former Presiding Justice of New York Supreme Court, Appellate Division
Edward D. Re, former Chief Judge and Judge, US Court of International Trade
Media and entertainment
Dane Clark (1912–1998), actor
Norman Krasna (1909 –1984), screenwriter, playwright, producer, and film director
Herbert Mitgang (1920–2013) , author, editor, journalist, playwright, and producer of television news documentaries.
Michael Tucci, actor
Terence Winter, Emmy Award-winning screenwriter and producer of television and film
Sports
Mickey Fisher (1904/05–1963), basketball coach
Michael Goldberg (1943–2017), executive director of the National Basketball Coaches Association
Sam Nahem (1915–2004), Major League Baseball pitcher
Elliot Steinmetz (born 1980), basketball coach
Elaine Weddington Steward, lawyer working for Major League Baseball
Fred Thompson (1933–2019), Hall of Fame track and field coach
Other
Anthony Bevilacqua, Roman Catholic Cardinal and Archbishop of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Leonard Boudin, lawyer and civil rights activist
Joseph Cammarata, lawyer and partner at Chaikin, Sherman, Cammarata & Siegel, P.C.; represented Paula Jones
Clarence Dunnaville, lawyer and civil rights activist
Vincent W. Lanna, (1925–2010) (LL.B. 1952), US Army major general
Kate O'Beirne, journalist, political commentator, and magazine editor
Ian Schrager, hotelier and real estate developer
David D. Siegel, law professor, legal scholar and commentator