Law School Grading System

Effective September 2003

*The following grading system applies to J.D. students. LL.M. grades are based on the Graduate School Grading System.

Grades to be assigned to all courses for credit toward the J.D. degree, except courses taken on a Credit/No Credit basis , shall consist of the following: A, A-, B+, B, B-, C, D, and E. (Courses taken in Satisfactory/Not Satisfactory option, available for students to choose, will not count toward a law degree.)

1. The significance of each grade is as follows:

2. The significance of each grade is further subject to the following conditions:

1. These percentage ranges are mandatory for all J.D. courses, subject to the exceptions in (b) or (c) below. There is no discretion outside of these ranges. A faculty member who submits grades for a course subject to the mandatory distribution that fails to comply with the mandatory distribution will have the grades returned to her or him by the Dean, with instructions to re-submit the grades in accordance with the distribution. If the faculty member fails to do so, the faculty member will submit exam scores to the Dean or his designee, and the latter would assign grades at the mid-point of each range (i.e., 10 percent A’s, 20 percent A-’s, 32.5% B+’s, 37.5% B and lower).
2. The mandatory distribution is not applicable to specialized and individualized courses such as seminars, clinical, experiential, and ‘practice’ offerings, independent study, and workshops, nor to summer quarter courses, courses heavily directed to non-law students, and courses in which most of the enrolled students are candidates for post-J.D. graduate degrees. They would also not have significance for classes of fifteen students or less.
3. The mandatory distribution is not applicable to designated “mastery” courses. A faculty member may have her or his course designated as a mastery course by submitting the course syllabus and evaluative elements to the Curriculum Committee, and ultimately the faculty, for approval, subject to the following conditions: (a) the course must require significant, periodic written work and feedback during the course, with stated performance standards for achieving specific grades; (b) first-year courses cannot be designated as mastery courses unless all sections of that course are offered on a mastery basis; and (c) mastery courses will be designated as such, in the catalog and course description.
4. A numerical class rank, based on the numerical equivalencies shown above, shall be computed for the sole purpose of awarding academic honors, including graduation awards, prizes, or membership in scholarly societies, including Order of the Coif, legal journals and reviews. Class rank shall not be disclosed on a student’s transcript or otherwise disclosed except for the purpose of computing eligibility for academic honors.
5. Effective Spring Quarter 2007, transcripts for law students who began in Autumn Quarter 2005 or later will include a full calculated grade point average, with the following numerical conversions: A(4.0), A-(3.7), B+(3.4), B(3.0), B-(2.7), C(2.0), D(1.0), E(0.0). Students who began earlier than Autumn 2005, will have a transcript that only shows their grade point average in classes taken since Autumn 2005.

3. Students completing course work for classes they were enrolled in prior to September 2003 will be assigned grades under the Law School Grading System in place at the time of enrollment in the course.

4. Academic Difficulty and Disqualification Rules.

A student will be in Academic Difficulty if he or she receives, during any two consecutive quarters, a grade of E or two grades of D. A student will regain good academic standing upon completion of two consecutive quarters with no grade of D or E. A student in Academic Difficulty shall be counseled by a Dean concerning ways to improve his or her performance.

Effective Fall Quarter 2005,a student will be disqualified as a candidate for the J.D. degree and will not be allowed to re-enroll in the Law School if he or she receives:

1. During any academic year, grades of E for 9 credit hours or grades of E or D for 12 credit hours;
2. During the first and second years, grades of E for 12 credit hours or grades of E or D for 20 credit hours;
3. During three years, grades of E for 18 credit hours or grades of E or D for 30 credit hours.

A student who has been disqualified as a J.D. candidate for unsatisfactory grades may petition the faculty for readmission.