Transfer Policies

Transfer of course work occurs in two circumstances.  One is the student who originally enrolled at Lewis & Clark, and who does course work at another ABA-accredited school, bringing that course work in to count toward the L&C degree.  The second is the student who originally enrolled at another law school, and who has been admitted to transfer to Lewis & Clark and finish the degree at Lewis & Clark.  Below are the rules that apply to both, and the specific rules according to the student’s original enrollment.

All students wishing to transfer in courses are subject to the following rules:

1. Courses must be taken at a law school approved by the American Bar Association and must be recognized for credit by that law school.
2. A grade of “C” or higher or its equivalent as defined by the host school, must be received in the course taken at the other law school. The grade received will not be used to compute grade point averages at Lewis & Clark Law School.
3. In no case may a student transfer credit earned at another law school for practical experience in an externship or similar program, whether or not the other law school confers a grade for such work.

Students who originally enrolled as a first year student at Lewis & Clark law school who wish to transfer in course work taken at other law schools are subject to the following conditions:

1. In no case will a student be allowed more than 15 semester hours of credit in courses taken at other law schools without prior permission from the Associate Dean of Student Affairs. Under ABA accreditation rules, a student must complete a minimum of two-thirds of his/her course work requirements at the school granting the JD degree. The total credits required to graduate from Lewis & Clark is 90.  Students can transfer in no more than a total of 30 credits. 
2. Students must notify the Registrar’s Office by petition if they wish to visit or transfer. Any student who visits for one semester or longer at another school should counsel with the Associate Dean of Student Affairs regarding the transfer of credit, before registering for courses at another school.
3. In no case may a student transfer credit earned at another law school for practical experience in an externship or similar program, whether or not the other law school confers a grade for such work.
4. Lewis & Clark graduation requirements must generally be done through courses at Lewis & Clark; however, requirements may be done at another ABA-accredited school if the Associate Dean of Student Affairs approves the course work as substantially meeting the Lewis & Clark graduation requirement(s).
5. A grade of “C” or higher, or its equivalent as defined by the host school, must be received in the course taken at the other law school in order for the course to transfer to Lewis & Clark.  The grade received will not be used to compute grade point averages at Lewis & Clark Law School.  Students earning credits in a school on a quarter system will have those credits adjusted downward to their equivalent in the semester system.
6. The law school does not accept for credit work done at a foreign institution prior to the time a student enrolled at Lewis & Clark Law School.  Lewis and Clark students who have completed one year at Lewis & Clark may apply to enroll at a foreign institution with whom the law school has a Memorandum of Understanding.  Such study and transfer of credit requires pre-approval.  The approval process and list of approved schools can be found here.

In the case of students not originally enrolled as first year students at Lewis & Clark, who are admitted to transfer in to Lewis & Clark, the amount of credits accepted, and the further required curriculum to graduate from Lewis & Clark, will be determined by the Associate Dean of Student Affairs or his/her designate.

Transfer of course work taken at other law schools by students admitted to transfer into Lewis & Clark Law School is subject to the following conditions:

1. Courses must be taken at a law school approved by the American Bar Association and must be recognized for credit by that law school.
2. A grade of “C” or higher, or its equivalent as defined by the host school, must be received in the course taken at the other law school. The grade received will not be used to compute grade point averages at Lewis & Clark Law School.
3. Students earning credits in a school on a quarter system will have those credits adjusted downward to their equivalent in the semester system.
4. Students are limited to transferring in no more than 30 credits, which is 1/3 the total number of credits required to graduate from Lewis & Clark.  A student must complete a minimum of two-thirds of their course work requirements at Lewis & Clark Law School in order to receive a degree from Lewis & Clark Law School. 
5. Transfer students must complete two (2) semesters of residency at Lewis & Clark Law School before commencing an externship placement.  For transfer students, grades received at Lewis & Clark will be given the most significant weight in determining eligibility to extern, but grades from prior law institutions will also be considered by the Curriculum Committee.  Exceptions to this rule may be considered by the Curriculum Committee.