Best Law Libraries

It’s not as easy as it once was to figure out what makes a great law library. In the digital age, the traditional standards of comparison – number of volumes, titles and subscriptions – no longer seem adequate.

What makes a good law library in the 21^st century includes a variety of factors: comfort, accessibility, convenience and, most of all, availability of the latest technological tools.

 

So when The National Jurist set out to determine just how to figure out the best law school, we wanted to take a variety of factors into consideration.

 

The National Jurist compared 199 law libraries, using the most recent ABA data, and calculated scores in those six categories.

 

Our methodology has changed slightly over the years. We no longer measure for number of computer workstations, as wireless technology has replaced the old school-provided hard-wired stations.

 

But the core measurement system is the same, using data from the ABA: The number of volumes and titles make up 50 percent of the score. The ratio of library study seating to enrollment counts for 20 percent. The ratio of full-time professional librarians to enrollment, and the number of hours that the library is open each week account for 15 percent each. We translated each raw figure or ratio to percentile form on a 1-10 scale.

Ranking	School Name	Volumes	Titles	Library seats per student	Students per librarian	Hours open
1	The University of Iowa College of Law	1,233,072	769,596	1.10	38.50	106
2	Yale Law School	1,230,913	389,383	0.70	32.67	133
3	Indiana University Maurer School of Law–Bloomington	756,331	267,800	1.12	21.14	115
4	University of Pennsylvania Law School	866,087	413,677	0.66	52.47	115
5	Louisiana State University, Paul M. Hebert Law Center	855,368	338,281	0.80	44.31	113
6	New York University School of Law	1,097,200	670,595	0.60	35.58	101
7	University of Texas School of Law	1,058,750	476,414	0.84	82.20	99
8	Harvard Law School	2,287,183	870,406	0.46	44.36	121
9	Northwestern University School of Law	771,593	364,102	0.83	71.00	105
10	Cornell Law School	748,889	246,819	0.73	84.43	168
11	University of Minnesota Law School	1,070,498	330,556	0.99	70.91	81
12	University of Virginia School of Law	896,639	335,490	0.78	82.57	112
13	University of Alabama School of Law	607,336	186,031	1.04	26.05	110
14	Georgetown University Law Center	1,174,417	409,419	0.54	80.20	107
15	The University of Michigan Law School	989,117	322,471	0.74	95.92	112
16	The Ohio State University Moritz College of Law	815,550	216,095	0.99	95.71	107
17	Boston University School of Law	654,713	521,843	0.72	75.64	102
18	Washington & Lee Univ. School of Law	439,347	191,232	1.30	48.88	168
19	Duke University School of Law	646,042	248,367	0.91	71.11	104
20	Tulane Unversity Law School	649,211	387,083	0.74	106.57	113
21	University of Colorado Law School	719,893	209,480	0.85	57.78	106
22	University of Illinois College of Law	775,377	300,108	0.50	65.22	102
23	Columbia University School of Law	1,142,994	438,436	0.29	70.39	102
24	The University of Chicago Law School	644,602	309,449	0.80	59.30	90
25	Brigham Young University J. Reuben Clark Law School	507,614	212,952	1.98	38.17	105
26	University of Georgia School of Law	534,017	397,907	0.66	82.50	121
27	William & Mary Law School	399,092	205,312	0.90	57.09	168
28	University of California, Berkeley, School of Law	893,966	330,854	0.38	66.54	100
29	Stanford University Law School	484,986	306,030	0.94	53.90	103
30	Florida State University College of Law	521,781	250,225	0.54	77.10	168
31	Texas Southern University-Marshall School of Law	695,187	190,280	0.69	68.75	108
32	Saint Louis University School of Law	657,923	603,515	0.42	98.10	107
33	University of California at Los Angeles School of Law	653,441	266,929	0.76	72.29	97
34	University of Tulsa College of Law	407,689	228,553	1.55	51.11	113
35	University of Tennessee College of Law	587,152	153,751	0.93	52.00	112
36	Lewis & Clark Law School	528,877	440,798	0.54	102.29	113
37	University of Wisconsin Law School	574,936	321,873	0.75	81.10	104
38	University of Connecticut School of Law	553,811	190,364	1.21	74.11	89
39	University of California, Hastings, College of the Law	714,309	252,537	0.64	113.73	102
40	Washburn University School of Law	388,881	293,909	0.94	47.67	101
41	American University Washington College of Law	598,029	262,293	0.41	85.94	119
42	Washington Univ. School of Law	712,344	219,056	0.58	119.86	120
43	Albany Law School	695,905	197,188	0.60	91.88	104
44	University of Cincinnati College of Law	433,450	204,457	0.93	45.13	95
45	Notre Dame Law School	661,959	240,432	0.62	62.00	95
46	Fordham University School of Law	645,001	305,324	0.29	52.97	119
47	Rutgers University School of Law–Newark	568,200	232,850	0.64	45.33	95
48	Temple University-Beasley School of Law	609,458	146,596	0.72	48.70	96
49	University of Washington School of Law	627,947	172,450	0.75	59.33	89
50	University of Pittsburgh School of Law	463,297	264,245	0.63	49.86	101
51	University of San Diego School of Law	534,858	335,389	0.57	102.50	112
52	Quinnipiac University School of Law	434,035	163,449	0.90	55.29	99
53	Ohio Northern University–Claude W. Pettit College of Law	416,504	238,105	0.99	77.25	113
54	Wayne State Univ. Law School	624,517	316,450	0.78	148.25	97
55	Villanova University School of Law	548,055	150,046	0.49	67.64	168
56	Loyola Law School, Loyola Marymount University	600,346	293,988	0.43	107.25	108
57	George Washington University Law School	620,592	271,984	0.38	84.15	110
58	University of North Carolina School of Law	536,732	148,943	0.65	61.25	109
59	Creighton University School of Law	378,266	183,702	0.80	35.62	106
60	Emory University School of Law	409,740	198,628	0.71	38.72	109
61	Wake Forest University School of Law	422,392	325,317	1.23	156.67	108
62	University of Richmond School of Law	397,075	200,755	1.40	80.33	106
63	SMU Dedman School of Law	630,282	288,656	0.77	158.83	104
64	The University of Kansas School of Law	355,176	160,830	1.00	61.13	95
65	The Catholic University of America, Columbus School of Law	428,123	174,066	0.55	43.81	115
66	University of South Carolina School of Law	543,112	82,055	0.74	48.79	107
67	Howard University School of Law	632,218	31,699	0.82	64.86	105
68	University of Louisville’s Brandeis School of Law	417,747	82,950	1.05	29.93	89
69	Cleveland State University–Cleveland-Marshall College of Law	536,990	165,877	0.72	74.00	94
70	Arizona State University Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law	423,204	122,575	1.03	77.00	111
71	Stetson Unversity College of Law	418,297	714,559	0.66	128.38	105
72	Indiana University School of Law–Indianapolis	603,531	203,221	0.52	95.30	104
73	North Carolina Central University School of Law	378,233	318,510	0.57	71.56	100
74	University of Utah Quinney College of Law	351,853	137,051	1.73	48.13	95
75	University of Missouri School of Law	396,211	230,503	1.04	64.71	70
76	University of the District of Columbia–David A. Clarke School of Law	257,629	156,202	0.92	41.83	101
77	Drake University Law School	330,399	71,975	1.58	40.45	109
78	Vanderbilt University Law School	609,706	191,026	0.43	96.33	111
79	Whittier Law School	439,591	208,127	0.76	84.33	102
80	Willamette Univ. College of Law	297,027	39,464	1.15	85.60	168
81	University of Florida, Fredric G. Levin College of Law	625,336	203,215	0.63	122.40	96
82	University of Puerto Rico School of Law	460,962	83,718	0.61	19.94	112
83	Boston College Law School	474,937	111,442	0.82	72.82	105
84	The University of New Mexico School of Law	431,576	136,225	0.82	49.43	90
85	University of Arkansas School of Law	334,135	193,584	0.85	57.57	105
86	University of Kentucky College of Law	485,493	77,346	0.80	56.43	100
87	University at Buffalo Law School, State University of New York	577,774	121,528	0.63	62.08	105
88	New York Law School	526,951	317,924	0.33	114.00	98
89	Thomas M. Cooley Law School	592,374	336,364	0.26	141.46	124
90	Florida A&M University College of Law	354,300	146,957	0.92	100.50	100
91	Regent University School of Law	396,856	90,287	0.78	37.64	109
92	University of Wyoming College of Law	294,733	71,476	1.26	74.33	107
93	St. John’s University School of Law	394,554	240,339	0.65	90.10	100
94	University of Nebraska College of Law	414,698	96,821	0.92	80.80	109
95	Western New England College School of Law	350,710	135,421	0.84	63.67	103
96	University of Hawaii at Manoa–William S. Richardson School of Law	356,649	48,901	1.36	50.00	94
97	South Texas College of Law	522,951	172,908	0.69	115.18	106
98	Faulkner University, Thomas Goode Jones School of Law	191,082	293,102	0.69	60.80	98
99	Texas Tech University School of Law	322,339	101,247	0.86	92.43	168
100	Marquette University Law School	358,494	191,767	0.54	83.11	117
101	University of Arizona James E. Rogers College of Law	397,982	123,708	0.78	46.90	99
102	Mississippi College School of Law	348,664	206,234	0.72	109.80	108
103	University of Nevada, Las Vegas, William S. Boyd School of Law	318,198	196,080	0.64	60.88	101
104	University of North Dakota School of Law	331,516	124,662	0.86	60.75	99
105	University of Miami School of Law	639,360	127,533	0.56	137.22	111
106	University of Houston Law Center	534,531	116,782	0.58	105.33	107
107	Hofstra University School of Law	578,270	173,137	0.43	87.92	101
108	University of Southern California, Gould School of Law	436,096	196,147	0.38	60.50	100
109	George Mason University School of Law	462,730	212,429	0.55	112.00	98
110	University of Oklahoma College of Law	360,336	173,018	0.79	73.86	96
111	St. Thomas University School of Law	332,325	212,969	0.74	106.50	106
112	Pace University School of Law	393,691	135,805	0.70	71.36	102
113	Southwestern Law School	491,065	161,916	0.60	112.33	108
114	William Mitchell College of Law	350,450	212,616	0.65	128.88	109
115	Charleston School of Law	26,267	561,141	0.58	55.55	104
116	University of Maryland School of Law	508,792	153,951	0.58	81.55	103
117	Roger Williams University School of Law	305,533	160,992	0.73	78.57	110
118	University of Arkansas at Little Rock  William H. Bowen School of Law	311,972	135,720	0.80	65.14	99
119	Syracuse University College of Law	482,143	95,871	0.61	64.00	106
120	University of Toledo College of Law	357,323	57,004	0.91	98.80	109
121	Franklin Pierce Law Center	303,639	106,373	0.71	54.13	105
122	Penn State University, The Dickinson School of Law	534,835	138,662	0.42	63.60	94
123	Texas Wesleyan University School of Law	263,297	186,775	0.47	58.00	112
124	Western State University College of Law	202,929	45,582	0.87	24.19	109
125	Brooklyn Law School	567,943	205,165	0.45	149.00	108
126	Case Western Reserve University School of Law	411,139	114,034	0.54	59.82	104
127	University of san Francisco School of Law	360,208	195,846	0.63	111.50	98
128	Southern Illinois University School of Law	418,826	79,593	0.97	72.20	78
129	Valparaiso University School of Law	337,284	161,374	0.64	82.14	113
130	West Virginia Univ. College of Law	353,581	81,425	0.89	107.00	106
131	Samford University, Cumberland School of Law	306,758	38,599	0.96	61.75	105
132	Georgia State University College of Law	354,660	95,516	0.53	44.33	103
133	University of St. Thomas School of Law–Minneapolis	197,078	177,322	0.84	64.43	83
134	California Western School of Law	341,131	180,809	0.49	98.56	110
135	University of Denver Sturm College of Law	406,659	231,391	0.30	99.27	108
136	Pepperdine University School of Law	413,138	129,173	0.65	80.00	106
137	University of Maine School of Law	334,393	104,300	0.77	38.43	97
138	Chicago-Kent College of Law, Illinois Institute of Technology	554,761	186,849	0.48	136.71	96
139	Seattle University School of Law	382,182	154,335	0.41	104.30	119
140	University of the Pacific, McGeorge School of Law	516,053	129,223	0.53	143.86	108
141	Rutgers–The State University of New Jersey–School of Law–Camden	451,712	106,650	0.54	106.71	103
142	University of Dayton School of Law	326,375	43,212	1.02	95.80	102
143	University of Idaho College of Law	247,523	67,352	1.12	38.38	86
144	Gonzaga University School of Law	303,256	80,689	0.92	109.80	110
145	University of Montana School of Law	130,932	24,560	1.08	40.83	106
146	University of Oregon School of Law	388,187	91,661	0.58	75.86	107
147	University of Missouri–Kansas City School of Law	338,153	138,612	0.71	79.17	100
148	Liberty University School of Law	246,630	216,009	1.14	219.00	95
149	Northern Kentucky University–Salmon P. Chase College of Law	336,367	76,726	0.40	81.57	168
150	Charlotte School of Law	101,099	101,540	1.27	48.33	95
151	Widener University School of Law (Wilmington)	393,763	69,258	0.43	59.38	107
152	The University of South Dakota School of Law	211,337	42,272	1.14	199.00	168
153	Loyola University New Orleans College of Law	380,288	146,399	0.44	83.50	106
154	Northern Illinois University College of Law	257,303	42,363	0.72	59.40	98
155	Touro College-Fuchsberg Law Center	449,583	96,621	0.65	81.00	85
156	Suffolk University Law School	380,058	186,885	0.53	127.08	103
157	Ave Maria School of Law	118,420	65,933	0.94	33.56	105
158	Elon University School of Law	169,180	116,928	1.07	103.67	101
159	Mercer University–Walter F. George School of Law	347,461	76,038	0.88	73.83	68
160	The University of Mississippi School of Law	331,718	105,261	0.65	82.33	105
161	Oklahoma City University School of Law	324,800	123,593	0.61	86.71	102
162	Campbell University, Norman Adrian Wiggins School of Law	196,328	77,153	1.10	120.33	99
163	University of La Verne College of Law	311,025	40,753	0.84	70.80	94
164	Seton Hall University School of Law	459,904	199,058	0.49	122.11	81
165	Santa Clara University School of Law	378,399	140,746	0.47	107.00	106
166	University of Akron School of Law	287,066	74,884	0.60	69.71	105
167	Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law, Yeshiva University	549,105	110,679	0.44	122.44	88
168	Chapman University School of Law	300,372	176,269	0.55	108.60	104
169	Northeastern University School of Law	331,858	162,810	0.67	88.00	88
170	Vermont Law School	251,185	88,392	0.71	89.83	110
171	Nova Southeastern University–Shepard Broad Law Center	342,978	156,847	0.53	125.00	104
172	University of Detroit Mercy School of Law	384,277	188,027	0.44	122.67	92
173	Hamline University School of Law	280,247	162,940	0.47	119.33	116
174	Michigan State University College of Law	291,529	174,462	0.48	95.50	109
175	Florida International University College of Law	221,251	101,727	0.61	76.00	107
176	Golden Gate University School of Law	380,316	84,018	0.65	93.43	95
177	Baylor University School of Law	237,743	54,838	0.67	59.71	108
178	Widener University School of Law (Harrisburg)	201,080	32,193	0.73	76.17	105
179	Thomas Jefferson School of Law	234,757	173,424	0.34	88.00	115
180	Loyola University Chicago School of Law	402,327	71,044	0.51	110.88	101
181	New England Law–Boston	364,417	64,269	0.42	76.93	104
182	Duquesne University School of Law	304,627	89,165	0.58	100.43	102
183	Southern University Law Center	484,489	94,206	0.54	175.00	99
184	Drexel University, Earle Mack School of Law	39,260	143,044	0.68	60.29	93
185	University of California, Davis, School of Law	450,528	103,741	0.54	115.60	78
186	St. Mary’s University School of Law	419,963	81,832	0.48	116.29	104
187	Appalachian School of Law	217,450	132,619	0.66	87.50	88
188	Phoenix School of Law	107,142	127,741	0.51	67.20	106
189	Capital University Law School	262,687	51,529	0.71	108.50	92
190	Barry University Dwayne O. Andreas School of Law	273,067	117,550	0.44	109.00	100
191	The John Marshall Law School	404,449	96,713	0.55	150.44	96
192	Florida Coastal School of Law	221,992	128,329	0.35	77.37	104
193	Atlanta’s John Marshall Law School	251,870	154,993	0.43	99.20	86
194	University of Baltimore School of Law	369,236	53,368	0.29	119.67	110
195	City University of New York School of Law	289,262	43,854	0.62	96.75	61
196	The University of Memphis–Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law	277,125	50,953	0.49	138.00	100
197	DePaul University College of Law	397,732	103,814	0.39	148.00	94
198	Inter American University School of Law	200,581	29,101	0.35	124.14	103
199	Pontificial Catholic University of Puerto Rico School of Law	232,073	29,025	0.31	148.00	92