Florida Coastal School of Law

Florida Coastal School of Law is a for-profit law school in Jacksonville, Florida. Established in 1996, the school was founded upon three mission pillars: serving the underserved, providing an education that is student-outcome centered, and graduating students who are practice ready.[7] The school is part of the InfiLaw System of law schools owned by Sterling Partners.[8][9] Florida Coastal has filed an application with the American Bar Association Section of Legal Education and Accreditation to convert to non-profit status.[10]

Florida Coastal School of Law
MottoLex Ubique Est
(law is everywhere)
Established1996
School typeFor-Profit[1]
DeanPeter Goplerud[2]
LocationJacksonville, Florida, US
Enrollment184 (total)[3]
Faculty13 (full-time) 37 (total)[3]
USNWR ranking146-192 (bottom 25%)[4]
Bar pass rate71% (July 2019 first-time takers)[5]
Websitefcsl.edu
The entrance to FCSL on Baypine Road
The lakeside of FCSL at night
Four knowledge bars serve students by providing a forum for students and professors to continue conversations outside of the classroom.[6]
The sun setting on the lake behind FCSL

Accreditation

The school was fully accredited by the American Bar Association (ABA) in 2002.[11] In October 2017, the school received a letter from the ABA stating that Florida Coastal was not in compliance with several ABA academic standards, and requiring the school to submit a report by November 1, 2017, regarding the school's efforts to return to compliance, in advance of an appearance before the ABA Accreditation Committee in March 2018.[12] The school's dean sent a letter to the student body, responding to the ABA letter, in order to dispel what he deemed to be "misconceptions" about the ABA's letter.[13] At its May 2019 meeting, the ABA found Florida Coastal fully in compliance with the ABA standards.[14] Florida Coastal remains a fully ABA accredited law school.[14]

On May 15, 2020, the council of the American Bar Association’s Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar met remotely and determined this school and nine others had significant noncompliance with Standard 316.[15] This Standard was revised in 2019 to provide that at least 75% of an accredited law school’s graduates who took a bar exam must pass one within two years of graduation.[15] The school was asked to submit a report by Feb. 1, 2021; and, if the council did not find the report demonstrated compliance, the school would be asked to appear before the council at its May, 2021 meeting.[15] By August 2020, Florida Coastal School of Law was able to demonstrate compliance, asserting that 75% of its 2018 graduates had passed a bar exam, and the 2019 cohort was on track for similarly-qualifying results.[16]

Academics

In addition to its curriculum for a juris doctor, Coastal Law offers several certification programs in specialized areas of the law. Coastal Law currently offers an environmental law certificate, sports law certificate, international comparative law certificate, family law certificate, and an advanced legal research and writing certificate. Additionally, Coastal Law, offers accelerated dual degree programs, with Jacksonville University, that allow students to complete a juris doctor and a M.B.A. or a M.P.P. in four years.[17]

Awards
  • In 2010, Coastal Law was the recipient of the American Bar Association E. Smythe Gambrell Professionalism Award.[18]
  • In 2011, the Jacksonville Area Legal Aid (JALA) awarded Coastal Law the Robert J. Beckham Equal Justice Award for its partnership with JALA and its commitment to pro bono legal aid to the Jacksonville community.[19]
  • In 2013, the National Jurist ranked Coastal Law among the top innovative law schools.[20]
  • In 2014, Coastal Law made the American Bar Association's "Top Ten List" of law schools teaching the technology of legal practice.[21]
  • In 2015, the National Jurist gave Coastal Law an "A+ or A" for being one of the twenty best law schools for practical training.[22]

Bar passage and ranking

Bar passage

The Florida Bar passage rate of Coastal Law graduates compared to the average passing rate from other Florida law schools.

ExamCoastal LawState Average
Feb 2014[23] 72.9 72.9
July 2014[24] 58 71.8
Feb 2015[25] 74.5 64.3
July 2015[26] 59.3 68.9
Feb 2016[27] 32.7 54.8
July 2016[28] 51.9 68.2
Feb 2017[28] 25.0 57.7
July 2017[29] 47.7 71.3
Feb 2018[30] 62.1 57.9
July 2019[5] 71.0 73.9

Ranking

US News and World Report ranks Coastal Law 146-192, the bottom quartile of law schools.[31]

Post-graduation employment and debt

Student debt

According to U.S. News & World Report, the average indebtedness of 2016 graduates who incurred law school debt was $158,878 (not including undergraduate debt), and 70% of 2016 graduates took on debt.[32]

Employment outcomes

Coastal Law's Law School Transparency score is 48.4%, indicating the percentage of the Class of 2018 who obtained full-time long-term jobs practicing law within nine months of graduation, excluding solo practitioners.[33]

ABA Employment Summary for 2018 Graduates [34] Percentage
Employed - Bar Passage Required
 
 52.1%
Employed - J.D. Advantage
 
 14.0%
Employed - Professional Position
 
 8.0%
Employed - Non-Professional Position
 
 8.0%
Pursuing Graduate Degree Full Time
 
 2.2%
Unemployed - Not Seeking
 
 2.2%
Unemployed - Seeking
 
 18.8%
Employment Status Unknown
 
 1.1%
Total of 186 Graduates

Tuition and cost

The total cost of attendance (indicating the cost of tuition, fees, and living expenses) at Coastal Law for the 2019-2020 academic year is $63,022.[35] The Law School Transparency estimated debt-financed cost of attendance for three years is $217,870.[36]

Extracurricular activities

Moot Court

Each year, the University of Houston Law Center's Blakely Advocacy Institute ranks the top moot court programs in the United states by assessing the quality of the competition a school participated in, the size of the competitions, and the school's performance in those competitions.[37] Florida Coastal has consistently ranked in the top 10 in those rankings:

Academic Year Rank
2018-2019 2[38]
2017-2018 9[39]
2016-2017 20[40]
2015-2016 15[41]
2014-2015 1[42]
2013-2014 1[43]
2012-2013 2[44]
2011-2012 5[45]

Mock Trial

Coastal Law's Mock Trial team competes with law students across the state of Florida and the United States. The team members present their case before a judge and jury. Acceptance into the team is based upon a competitive meritocratic process that judges the student's ability and talent. Students are only eligible to try out for the Mock Trial team during their 1L year in law school.[46]

Law Review

The Florida Coastal Law Review is a legal journal edited by second and third year law students under the guidance of law professors. The journals are retrievable through the legal databases LexisNexis and Westlaw.[47][48] The journal is published three times a year. Students can join by being in the top 5% of their class or by submitting a high quality writing piece to law review.[49]

References
  1. "College Navigator". U.S. Department of Education. Retrieved 2016-04-07.
  2. "Peter Goplerud named dean of Florida Coastal School of Law | Jax Daily Record". Jacksonville Daily Record - Jacksonville, Florida. January 17, 2020.
  3. "Standard 509 Disclosure". www.abarequireddisclosures.org.
  4. "US News & World Report Best Graduate Schools - Florida Coastal School of Law". U.S. News. Archived from the original on 2017-04-11. Retrieved 2019-12-19.
  5. "July 2019 General Bar Examination". Florida Bar Exam. Retrieved 2019-12-19.
  6. "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2017-09-17. Retrieved 2017-09-16.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  7. "Changing the Face of the Legal Profession: Two Law Schools' Commitment to Serving the Underserved". INSIGHT Into Diversity. 2016-06-24. Retrieved 2018-01-29.
  8. Infilaw Corp. (2012). "Home". Infilaw Corp. Archived from the original on May 26, 2012. Retrieved May 13, 2012.
  9. Sterling Partners (2011). "Portfolio:InfiLaw". Sterlings Partners. Archived from the original on April 25, 2012. Retrieved May 13, 2012.
  10. Marbut, Max (February 5, 2019). "Florida Coastal School of Law Seeking Not-For-Profit Status". Jacksonville Daily Record.
  11. "ABA grants Florida Coastal School of Law accreditation". The Florida Bar News. Tallahassee, Florida: The Florida Bar. September 15, 2002. Retrieved 2009-12-19.
  12. "October 2017 Florida Coastal Notice of Noncompliance" (PDF). American Bar Association. October 12, 2017.
  13. "Should Florida Coastal Be Sanctioned by the ABA?". The Faculty Lounge. November 8, 2017.
  14. American Bar Association Section on Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar (June 12, 2019). "Council Decision Notice of Removal of Requirements of Specific Remedial Actions Florida Coastal School of Law" (PDF). American Bar Association Section on Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar.
  15. "10 law schools are out of compliance with bar passage standard, ABA legal ed section says". Stephanie Francis Ward, ABA Journal, May 28, 2020. Retrieved May 30, 2020.
  16. "2 law schools dinged for bar pass standard are now found to be in compliance". Stepanie Francis Ward, ABA Journal, August 25, 2020.
  17. Law, Florida Coastal School of. "Dual Degrees". Fcsl.edu. Retrieved 16 September 2017.
  18. Archive Reward Recipients Archived 2015-09-08 at the Wayback Machine, American Bar Association, (Retrieved January 28, 2015).
  19. "Florida Coastal recognized by Jacksonville Area Legal Aid". Daily Record. January 9, 2012.
  20. "PreLaw - Back To School 2013". Nxtbook.com. Archived from the original on 8 January 2015. Retrieved 16 September 2017.
  21. "Teaching the Technology of Practice: The 10 Top Schools - Law Practice Division". Americanbar.org. Archived from the original on 2016-10-22. Retrieved 2019-12-19.
  22. "Best law schools for practical training: 2015". National Jurist. February 6, 2015.
  23. "February 2014 Examination Results and Statistics". Florida Bar Exam. April 14, 2014. Retrieved September 28, 2015.
  24. "July 2014 Examination Results and Statistics". Florida Bar Exam. September 22, 2014. Retrieved September 28, 2015.
  25. "February 2015 Examination Results and Statistics". Florida Bar Exam. April 13, 2015. Retrieved September 28, 2015.
  26. "July 2015 Examination Results and Statistics". Florida Bar Exam. September 21, 2015. Retrieved September 28, 2015.
  27. "February 2016 General Bar Examination". Florida Bar Exam. April 11, 2016. Archived from the original on June 23, 2017.
  28. "February 2017 General Bar Examination". Florida Bar Exam. April 10, 2017. Archived from the original on April 15, 2017.
  29. Zaretsky, Staci (September 18, 2017). "Florida Law Grads Weathered The Storm When It Came To The Bar Exam". Above The Law.
  30. Florida State Bar (April 26, 2018). "Press Release: February 2018 General Bar Examination". Florida State Bar.
  31. "US News & World Report - Florida Coastal School of Law". Archived from the original on 2017-04-11. Retrieved 2019-12-19.
  32. "Which law school graduates have the most debt?". U.S. News.
  33. "Florida Coastal School of Law". Lstscorereports.com. Retrieved 2019-12-19.
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  35. "JD Tuition and Expenses". 1stscorereports.com. Retrieved 2019-12-19.
  36. "Florida Coastal Profile". 1stscorereports.com. Retrieved 2019-12-19.
  37. "TaxProf Blog: The Top 20 Moot Court Programs (2010-2016)". taxprof.typepad.com. Retrieved 2018-02-05.
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  45. "2011- 2012 Rankings". law.uh.edu. Retrieved 2018-02-05.
  46. Law, Florida Coastal School of. "Mock Trial". Fcsl.edu. Retrieved 16 September 2017.
  47. "Westlaw Sign In - Thomson Reuters". directory.westlaw.com. Retrieved 16 September 2017.
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