JD Concentrations
There are four concentrations available to JD students: Health Law; Civil Litigation and Dispute Resolution; Criminal Law; and Law and Religion. The Health Law and Law and Religion concentrations require an application, but all students can complete the litigation concentrations. Even if you do not complete a concentration, the required and recommended courses can help you prepare for a career in these fields.
JD Concentrations
Eligibility
A concentration in health law is available for J.D. students only. To earn the concentration in health law, students must:
- first be accepted into the health law program through a competitive process,
- complete a minimum of 12 credits in the required and elective health law offerings listed below,
- complete an additional 2-3 credits m the capstone experience requirement.
Required Courses (6 credits)
- Administrative Law
- 1 of Health Law or Health Care Organization, Finance, and Administration
Elective Courses (6 additional credits)
- Health Law
- Health Care Organization, Finance, and Administration
- Law in Public Health
- Insurance Law
- Global Public Health Law
- Mental Health Law
- Veterans Benefits
- Food & Drug Law
- Health Law Research
- Fundaments of Public Health Law (RSPH)
- Seminar: Public Health
- Seminar: Disability Law
- Seminar: Genetics, Ethics, and the Law
- Seminar: Health Law & Ethics in Narrative Seminar: Patents and Global Health
- Seminar: Access to Essential Medicines
- Other health law courses approved by Faculty Advisors
In addition, one of the following courses can also count toward the elective requirement:
- Advanced Torts
- Employment Law
- Family Law
- Intellectual Property
- Patent Law
- Products Liability
- Antitrust
- Business Associations
- Environmental Law
Capstone Experience requirement (2-3 additional credits)
To fulfill the capstone experience requirement, students must either complete an upper-level writing project in health law or an experiential offering in health law.
The writing project could be completed as a student's journal comment, in a seminar, or through directed research. A seminar paper in the following courses would automatically satisfy this requirement:
- Seminar: Public Health;
- Seminar: Disability Law;
- Seminar: Genetics, Ethics, and the Law;
- Seminar: Health Law & Ethics in Narrative;
- Seminar: Patents and Global Health; or
- Seminar: Access to Essential Medicines.
If the writing project is completed through a different seminar, a journal comment, or through directed research, the faculty advisors must approve the writing project topic in advance to ensure that it is a rigorous analysis of a health law issue.
The experiential offering could include either a health law externship or an approved health law related clinic experience. The following externships would automatically satisfy this requirement:
- the CDC-Public Health Law Program;
- the CDC-Legal Counsel Department;
- the American Cancer Society;
- Children's Healthcare of Atlanta;
- U.S. Department of Health & Human Services;
- Health Law Partnership; or
- Feminist Women's Health Center
Alternatively, if a student seeks to fulfill this requirement through another externship or health law related clinic experience, the faculty advisors must approve the experience in advance to ensure that it gives students a significant opportunity to engage hands on with one or more health law issues.
Faculty Advisors
The advisory role for the health law concentration will rotate among our health law faculty and will be part of their annual service obligations.
Selection for the Program
Emory Law students will generally apply for concentration during the spring semester of their first year or their second year. In addition, the advisors may consider awarding the concentration to other students that have met the requirements on a case-by-case basis. The competitive process includes submitting a statement of interest, a resume, academic records, and any other relevant experience. The faculty advisors review the applications using a rigorous selection process. Selection to the program will be based on demonstrated interest, experience, and proficiency in the area of health law. Up to 18 students from each class will be selected to participate. Students who successfully complete the concentration requirements will have "Health Law Concentration" listed on their transcript.
Eligibility: All Emory Law students must successfully complete the following courses that cover important concepts and skills in civil litigation and dispute resolution: Civil Procedure, Evidence, Legal Profession, and Trial Techniques. To earn the Civil Litigation and Dispute Resolution Concentration, students must take an additional 11-15 credits in the following categories. No one course may satisfy more than one requirement, and students cannot satisfy any requirement with a course taken pass/fail.
Two of the following foundational courses (6 credits):
- Complex Litigation
- Federal Courts
- Administrative Law
- Conflict of Laws
- Remedies
Two of the following litigation advocacy courses (4-6 credits):
- Advanced Appellate Advocacy
- Advanced Civil Trial Practice
- Trial Practice Advocacy
- Pretrial Litigation
- Advanced Pretrial Litigation
- Negotiations
- Expert Witness Examination
- Cross-Examination
- Civil Trial Practice: Family Law
- Deposition Practice (future class)
One of the following alternative dispute resolution courses (2-3 credits):
- Alternative Dispute Resolution
- Mediation Advocacy
- Arbitration Law: Survey
- International Commercial Arbitration
- Negotiations
- Landlord-Tenant Mediation Practicum
- Advanced International Negotiations
Other Recommended Organizations and Courses in Specialized Areas:
- Mock Trial
- Moot Court
- Transnational Civil Litigation
- Antitrust
- Products Liability
- Family Law
- Securities Regulation
- Employment Law
- Employment Discrimination
- Constitutional Litigation
Faculty Advisors:
The advisory role for the concentration will rotate among our civil litigation faculty and will be part of their annual service obligations.
Completion of Concentration Requirements:
The concentration webpage will include a link to a form where students can indicate the courses, they've completed that fulfill the concentration requirements. The courses listed by the students will be audited to ensure that students have completed the concentration requirements. Students who successfully complete the concentration requirement will have "Civil Litigation and Dispute Resolution Concentration" listed on their transcript.
Click here to view the form where you can verify that you’ve completed all requirements for the Concentration in Civil Litigation and Dispute Resolution.
Eligibility for Concentration: All Emory Law students must successfully complete the following courses that cover important concepts and skills in criminal litigation: Criminal Law, Evidence, and Trial Techniques. To earn the Criminal Litigation Concentration, students must take an additional 12-18 credits that include Criminal Procedure: Investigations and one of each course in the following categories. No one course may satisfy more than one requirement, and students cannot satisfy any requirement with a course taken pass/fail.
Required Courses (3 credits):
- Criminal Procedure: Investigations
One of the following substantive courses (2-3 credits):
- Criminal Procedure: Adjudication
- Kids in Conflict with the Law
- White Collar Crime
- International Criminal Law
- Rights of Prisoners
- Criminal Procedure: Sentencing
One of the following skills courses (2-3 credits):
- Criminal Competency practicum
- Criminal Pre-Trial Motions Workshop
- Cross Examination
- Trial Practice Advocacy
- Expert Witness Examination
- Negotiations
- Advanced Criminal Trial Advocacy
- Federal Prosecution Practice
- DUI Trials
One of the following justice-focused courses (2-3 credits): 61
- Ethics of Criminal Justice Practice
- Access to Justice
- Mental Health Issues in Criminal Justice
- Wealth-Based Justice
- Miscarriages of Justice
- Crimmigration
One Capstone Experience requirement (3-6 credits):
To fulfill the capstone experience requirement, students take one of the following:
- Juvenile Defender Clinic
- Capital Defender practicum
- Any of our criminal practice externships, including City of Atlanta Office of the Public Defender, Immigration Defense Unit; Cobb County District Attorney's Office; DeKalb County District Attorney's Office; DeKalb County Public Defender's Office; Douglas County District Attorney's Office; Federal Defender Program Northern District of Georgia; Georgia Innocence Project; Georgia Justice Project; Georgia Public Defender Council - Appellate Division; Mosaic Georgia (formerly Gwinnett Sexual Assault & Children's Advocacy Center); Southern Center for Human Rights; The Georgia Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers; or U.S. Attorney's Office, Northern District of Georgia
If a student seeks to fulfill the capstone requirement through another externship or capstone experience, the faculty advisor must approve the experience in advance to ensure that it gives students an opportunity to engage hands on with a criminal practice issue.
Other Recommended Courses in Specialized Areas:
- Legal Issues in Domestic Violence
- Human Sex Trafficking
- Advanced Issues in White Collar
- Courtroom Persuasion and Drama
- Transnational Criminal Litigation
- Criminal Defenses
- Forensic Science
- Law and the Unconscious Mind
Faculty Advisors: The advisory role for the criminal litigation concentration will rotate among our criminal law faculty and will be part of their annual service obligations.
Completion of Concentration Requirements: The concentration webpage will include a link to a form where students can indicate the courses and capstone experience, they've completed that fulfill the concentration requirements. The courses and externships listed by the students will be audited to ensure that students have completed the course requirements. Students who successfully complete the concentration requirements will have "Criminal Litigation Concentration" listed on their transcript.
Click here to view the form where you can verify that you’ve completed all requirements for the Concentration in Criminal Litigation.
Description: The law and religion concentration contains two possible tracks: (1) a practice track and (2) an academic track. The practice track emphasizes the skills and knowledge relevant to practicing law with a specialization in law and religion. The practice track prepares students to litigate cases that involve religious freedom questions, to represent and advise religious organizations, to practice religious arbitration or within religious legal systems, and to work in legal advocacy with or on behalf of religious communities. The academic track emphasizes the skills of academic research and writing. The academic track prepares students for teaching and scholarship in the legal academy and for PhD or SID study in the areas of law, religion, theology, or associated fields.
Eligibility for the Concentration: To earn the Law and Religion Concentration, students must (1) be accepted into the Law and Religion Concentration and (2) complete 11 to 15 credits in law and religion, including the two required courses, one religious legal systems course, one law and religion elective, and a capstone experience. A thesis option, in addition to the capstone, is also available and encouraged for students pursuing the academic track. No one course may satisfy more than one requirement, and students cannot satisfy any requirement with a course taken pass/fail.
Two Required Courses (6 credits)
- Law and Religion: Theories, Methods & Approaches
- First Amendment: Religious Freedom
One of the following courses in religious legal systems (2-3 credits)
- Canon Law
- Christianity and Law
- Indigenous Legal Systems
- Islamic Law
- Jewish Law
One of the following law and religion electives (2-3 credits)
- Canon Law
- History of Church-State Relations
- Indigenous Law
- Islamic Finance
- Islamic Law
- Jewish Law
- Religion, Culture, and Law in Comparative Perspective
- Religious Organizations Law
- A seminar in law and religion
- A course from another division approved by the concentration advisor
One of the following capstone experiences (1-3 credits)
- The student completes a law and religion seminar, which will be offered each spring.
- The student completes a relevant externship experience, either from a list of pre-approved externships to be created in consultation with the externship office or an externship experience approved by the concentration advisor.
- The student completes a relevant internship (without receiving credit) approved by the faculty advisor and the student completes a one credit, ungraded directed study with a faculty member in which the student writes 10-15 pages of substantive analysis on an issue they encountered during the internship. The analysis may take the form of a legal memo, research paper, or other form as determined by the supervising faculty member.
Thesis (optional)
Students pursuing the academic track are encouraged to write an original thesis on a subject of their interest under the supervision of a faculty member for 3 hours of graded directed research credit. The thesis should be written in the final year of coursework.
Other Recommended Courses
- Alternative Dispute Resolution
- Arbitration
- Asylum Law
- Comparative Constitutional Law
- Constitutional Litigation
- Employment Law
- Family Law
- Federal Indian Law
- Human Rights Advocacy
- International Human Rights Law
- Jurisprudence
- Land Use and Zoning
- Nonprofit Law
- Roman Law
Faculty Advisors: The advisory role for the concentration will rotate among the Emory Law faculty and residential fellows affiliated with the Center for the Study of Law and Religion. The Executive Director of the Center may also serve as or appoint a Center staff person to serve as concentration advisor. Concentration advising will be part of the annual service obligations of faculty or otherwise recognized within the job duties of the advisor.
Selection for the Concentration: Emory Law students will apply for concentration during the spring semester of their first year or fall of their second year. The application process includes submitting a statement of interest, a resume or CV, and an unofficial transcript. The faculty advisor(s) review the applications and selection to the program will be based on demonstrated interest, experience, and proficiency in the area of law and religion. Students who successfully complete the concentration requirements will have "Law and Religion Concentration" listed on their transcript.