On Friday, May 22, 2015, 147 Juris Doctor candidates made their way across the stage of the FIU Arena to receive their diplomas. For the FIU Law faculty, staff and administration being a part of this momentous occasion capped off another successful year.
Over the last three years, these men and women have worked alongside federal and state judges, interned at private law firms, worked cases through the FIU Law clinics, have served on student boards, competition teams and for the FIU Law Review – all while meeting the demands of a rigorous law school program.
“This has been an impressive year for our entire graduating class, which makes all of us at FIU Law very proud,” said Dean R. Alexander Acosta. “This year, our students provided more than 50,000 hours of free legal assistance to the South Florida community, argued before a United States Court of Appeals, led the National Conference of Law Reviews, won or placed in nearly a dozen national and international competitions and took home second place among all U.S. and Canadian law schools at the 2015 American Bar Association Negotiation Competition – it was a good year indeed!”
Along with this new set of practice-ready lawyers are nine foreign attorneys who became part of FIU Law’s inaugural LL.M. class. The LL.M. degree is an internationally recognized post-graduate program in law that is available to individuals who hold their first law degree from universities outside the U.S. The program is FIU Law’s most recent step towards the globalization of its curriculum. This year’s class of foreign attorneys comes from Italy, Lithuania, France, Vietnam and several Latin American countries.
All of these graduates now become part of a growing and successful group of alumni who are excelling in both public and private sectors. Alumni that include elected officials, bar association presidents, general counsels, private-practice partners, business executives, appellate clerks, and many who serve in the Judge Advocate General corps. FIU Law has been recognized as second in the state for full-time employment, and our students continue to be selected for the highly competitive Department of Justice Honors Program.
HIGHLIGHTS OF 2014-2015
HispanicBusiness ranks FIU Law #1 law school for Hispanics
Alumnus earns top score on Florida Bar Examination
FIU Law named to 2014 Super Lawyers Top 10 Law Schools for Value and Quality
1st, 2nd and 3rd Place American Bar Association’s Southeast Regional Competition
Semi-Finalist Honorable E. Earle Zehmer Mock Trial Competition
2015 ICC Mediation Competition, Paris (Quarter Finalists)
2nd Place American Bar Association National Negotiation Competition (191 teams from 110 U.S. and Canadian Law Schools)
3rd Place Vis Arbitral Pre-Moot Court Competition
3rd Place Monroe Price International Media Law Moot Court Competition, Oxford