Wake Forest University School of Law is the law school of Wake Forest University, a private research university in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Established in 1894, Wake Forest University School of Law is an American Bar Association (ABA) accredited law school and is a member of the Association of American Law Schools (AALS). The current dean is Andrew R. Klein.
The entering class in 2026 had 201 students, divided into four sections of approximately 50 students each. The entering class had a median LSAT score of 167 and median GPA of 3.79. As of 2025, Wake Forest University School of Law had 48 resident faculty members, 56 extended faculty members, and 7 law librarians.
According to Wake Forest's official ABA-required disclosures, 89.24% of the class of 2025 obtained full-time, long-term, Bar-required employment (i.e. as attorneys) within 10 months after graduation. Of those graduates, North Carolina was the most popular employment location accounting for over half of graduates’ employment. The bar passage rate in North Carolina for the Class of 2023 was 92.00% and the overall bar passage rate was 92.39%.
Contents
Class profile
For 2026, Wake Forest University School of Law had 2883 applicants, offering admission to 710 (24.63%) and 201 enrolled (a 28.31% yield rate). The incoming class came from 110 different undergraduate colleges and universities from 38 different states, with 78% of students being classified as "out-of-state residents".
The incoming class included 16% identifying themselves as being LGBTQ+, 9% identifying as first-generation college students, and 86% identifying as first-generation law students. 60% of the incoming class also reported having at least 1 year of post-undergraduate experience prior to matriculating.
The incoming class had a median LSAT score of 167, the 75th percentile was 169, and the 25th percentile was 166. The median undergraduate GPA was 3.79, the 75th percentile was 3.90, and the 25th percentile was 3.59.
Publications
The school has three student-run law journals. The school's flagship journal is the Wake Forest Law Review. The school also publishes two specialized journals, the Wake Forest Journal of Law & Policy and the Wake Forest Journal of Business and Intellectual Property Law.
Journal membership is determined primarily through a writing competition that is administered at the end of the first-year. Wake Forest Law Review also extends invitations for membership based on GPA to the top 10% of the first-year class, regardless of performance in the writing competition. The Wake Forest Journal of Business and Intellectual Property Law considers not only academic performance and achievement in the writing competition, but also takes prior experience in intellectual property law into account. By joining a journal, students are eligible to earn two (2) credit hours per year, in the Spring semester, by serving on the Editorial Board or by writing an original piece of scholarship (i.e. a Note or Comment).
Rankings
The Wake Forest University School of Law is ranked tied for 30th in the 2025 U.S. News & World Report ranking.
Student organizations
Student Bar Association
Phi Alpha Delta
Asian Pacific American Law Association
Black Law Students Association
North Carolina Student Bar Association
American Constitution Society
Federalist Society
Christian Legal Society
Moot Court Board
Trial Bar
Transactional Law Competition
Public Interest Law Organization
Wake Forest Law Review
Wake Forest Journal of Law & Policy
Wake Forest Journal of Business and Intellectual Property Law
Texas Young Lawyer Association National Trial Team
AAJ Student Trial Advocacy Competition Trial Team
OUTLaw
Student opportunities
Metropolitan Externship in Washington, D.C. – Students spend approximately 35 hours per week interning in a government agency or non-governmental organization. In addition to this practice component, students attend a weekly class session, which explores issues common to the interns.
Summer Study Abroad Programs in London, Venice, and Vienna.
Inns of Court
Guardian Ad Litem
Pro bono Project
Clinics
The law school offers seven legal clinics, or programs that allow students to attain practical legal experience through providing legal services to real clients.
Appellate Advocacy Clinic – Students represent clients in a variety of appellate courts, including the Fourth Circuit and the Seventh Circuit. Students handle an actual appeal from start to finish, with advice and assistance from their professor, who is counsel of record. Students also travel to Washington, D.C., to observe arguments at the United States Supreme Court.
Child Advocacy Clinic – represent children in custody disputes, domestic violence situations, and in issues involving the public school system.
Community Law and Business Clinic – A new program, this clinic provides law and graduate business students with an opportunity to develop skills needed to practice in the increasingly complex legal and regulatory environment they will encounter as professionals.
Innocence and Justice Clinic – This clinic has its origins in the Innocence Project in which Wake Forest students review and investigate claims of innocence to determine whether DNA evidence existed that could exonerate inmates.
Civil & Criminal Externship Clinic – Formerly referred to as the Litigation Clinic, students have the opportunity to receive real world practice experience by working with local attorneys. During the semester, all students receive civil placements with local firms, in-house counsel offices, and the Office of the United States Attorney for the Middle District of North Carolina. Students also spend half of their semester working in a criminal placement. These placements have included private firms as well as prosecutors' and public defenders' offices.
Veterans Legal Clinic – Students work with former military services members to upgrade their discharge statuses. The lengthy process involves submitting briefs to the pertinent military discharge review board.
Employment
According to Wake Forest's official ABA-required disclosures, within 10 months after graduation 73.3% of the Class of 2016 obtained full-time, long-term, Bar-required employment (i.e. as attorneys) and 13.0% obtained JD Advantage employment.
Cost of attendance
The total cost of attendance (indicating the cost of tuition, fees, and living expenses) at Wake Forest University School of Law for the 2022–2023 academic year is $78,744. Though Wake Forest University School of Law does not provide any "need-based" scholarships (i.e. scholarship based on income or family contribution), most students qualify for and receive some form of "merit based" scholarship (i.e. scholarship based on prior academic performance).
For all students in attendance between 2020-2021, out of 465 students, 443 students received some form of merit scholarship (95% of total students). Of those students, 122 (26% of total students) received scholarships for an amount less than half the cost of tuition. Another 288 (62% of total students) received scholarships for amounts between half and full tuition. And 31 (7% of total students) received scholarships for amounts greater than the cost of tuition. Of the scholarships provided: the 75th percentile was valued at $42,000 per year, the median was valued at $36,000 per year, and the 25 percentile was valued at $22,250 per year.
Outside of traditional scholarship opportunities, Wake Forest students frequently receive Grad PLUS Loans through Federal Student Aid Programs or participate in various approved Federal Work-Study program opportunities throughout the law school.
Notable alumni
Kenneth D. Bell (J.D. 1983), Judge of the United States District Court for the Western District of North Carolina
Joseph Branch, Former chief justice of the North Carolina Supreme Court
Fanny Yarborough Bickett (J.D.), First lady of North Carolina and first female president of the North Carolina Railroad
Rhoda Billings (J.D., 1966), Former justice of the North Carolina Supreme Court
Porter Byrum (J.D., 1942), Attorney and philanthropist
Mary P. Easley (J.D. 1975), Former first lady of North Carolina
William Earl Britt (LL.B. 1958), Former federal judge for the United States District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina
Sidney S. Eagles Jr. (J.D. 1964), Former justice of the North Carolina Court of Appeals
James P. Cain (J.D. 1984), Former U.S. ambassador to Denmark
Elizabeth Kay Dillon (J.D. 1986), Federal judge for the United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia
Robert L. Ehrlich (J.D., 1982), Former governor of and congressman for the state of Maryland
Rocky Fitzsimmons, Member of the West Virginia Senate
Jerome B. Friedman (J.D., 1969), Federal judge for the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia