Cumberland School of Law is approved by the Council of the Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar of the American Bar Association, 321 North Clark Street, Chicago, IL 60654, 312-988-6738.

American Bar Association (ABA)

• ABA 2023
• ABA 2022
• ABA 2021

The law school seeks a diverse student body that will make a contribution to the law school and the legal profession. To that end, every applicant’s file is thoroughly reviewed for admission. In addition to the LSAT and GPA, difficulty of major, personal challenges overcome, graduate work completed, scholarly achievements and volunteer and work experience are also considered. Applications are evaluated on a rolling basis, so it is important to apply early.

Fall 2023 Entering Class Profile

Fall 2021

157 entered with conditional scholarships; 33 conditional scholarships were eliminated

Fall 2020

149 entered with conditional scholarships; 0 conditional scholarships were eliminated

Fall 2019

156 entered with conditional scholarships; 0 conditional scholarships were eliminated

Cumberland School of Law’s scholarship retention policy was first implemented with the fall 2011 entering class. Conditional scholarships are suspended for those recipients who are not in good scholarship standing. Good scholarship standing requires recipients to maintain a cumulative law school GPA of 2.6 or higher at the conclusion of each spring semester. Scholarships will be considered for reinstatement for a subsequent academic year where a recipient restores his or her GPA to be within the academic requirement.

Generous merit-based scholarship assistance is awarded to Cumberland School of Law’s entering and current law students annually. In addition, numerous other scholarships are provided to those students who distinguish themselves academically, make outstanding contributions through leadership in the law school, or demonstrate financial need.

Cumberland School of Law's student budget chart, including all tuition and fees, may be found here.

Cumberland School of Law Student Budget

For a detailed Flex-Time budget, contact Samford University's Office of Financial Aid.

Tuition costs are subject to change.  Costs associated with one term only of the academic year subject to change.

The cost of attendance, the total estimated amount it will cost a student to complete one year of law school, is determined using rules established by the U.S. Congress. Contact the Samford University Office of Financial Aid if you have any unusual expenses that might affect your cost of attendance.

The Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) form

Joint Degrees Offered

• J.D./M.B.A.
• J.D./M.Acc.
• J.D./M.S.E.M.
• J.D./M.Div.
• J.D./M.T.S.
• J.D./M.P.H.
• J.D./M.P.A.
• J.D./LL.M.

The law faculty has established the following student learning outcomes and performance criteria for Cumberland’s Juris Doctor (J.D.) program of legal education. Upon successful completion of a J.D., Cumberland’s graduates will demonstrate the following skills, knowledge, and values at the level needed for effective and ethical participation in the legal profession.

Learning Outcome 1: Graduates will demonstrate competent knowledge and understanding of substantive and procedural law.

Graduates will demonstrate competent knowledge and understanding of substantive and procedural law by

1. Identifying and applying foundational concepts of business organizations; civil procedure; constitutional law; contracts; commercial law; criminal law; evidence; property; professional responsibilities; torts; and wills, trusts, and estates.
2. Identifying and applying legal doctrine and theory in other areas of law not otherwise required by the law school curriculum so that graduates can productively apply the law in practice.

Learning Outcome 2: Graduates will be able to engage in legal analysis and reasoning to resolve legal problems.

Graduates will demonstrate competency in legal analysis and reasoning skills by

1. Critically reading applicable authorities, identifying key rules within each authority, and synthesizing multiple authorities into a cohesive rule.
2. Applying rules to relevant facts to support a clear conclusion, by analogizing and distinguishing cases and by analyzing all sides of an issue.
3. Using legal, policy, and practical considerations to determine and explain how case-based or hypothetical fact scenarios will likely be resolved.

Learning Outcome 3: Graduates will be able to undertake effective legal research.

Graduates will demonstrate competency in legal research skills by

1. Identifying relevant legal issues raised by clients’ legal problems.
2. Identifying and effectively employing legal research tools.
3. Distinguishing binding authorities from persuasive ones and appropriately assessing their weight.

Learning Outcome 4: Graduates will be able to communicate effectively in the legal context in both written and oral forms.

Graduates will demonstrate competency in written and oral communication by

1. Writing documents that are clear, concise, well-reasoned, organized, professional in tone, appropriate to the audience and the circumstances, and if appropriate, contain proper citation to authority.
2. Speaking in a clear, concise, well-organized, and professional manner that is appropriate to the audience and the circumstances.
3. Actively listening to clients, colleagues, judges, and others.

Learning Outcome 5: Graduates will be able to advise clients appropriately, with a focus on problem solving.

Graduates will demonstrate competency in advising clients appropriately by

1. Identifying a client’s legal and practical problems, including non-legal interests and effects on other people, through attentive listening.
2. Determining the steps necessary to obtain and investigate facts relevant to their client’s case.
3. Selecting and using legal research tools, strategies, and methods to identify legal authority that is relevant to actual or hypothetical fact scenarios.
4. Using basic professional skills employed by lawyers, in actual or hypothetical fact scenarios, such as interviewing, counseling, analyzing data, negotiating, or drafting formal or technical legal documents, legislation, or policy positions.
5. Advocating persuasively to achieve a client’s objectives or otherwise solve a problem in a legal context or advance a legal position in actual or hypothetical fact scenarios.
6. Generating alternative solutions and strategies to solve clients’ problems within legal and ethical boundaries.
7. Informing and counseling clients about the legal and non-legal ramifications of a decision.

Learning Outcome 6: Graduates will be able to exercise proper professional and ethical responsibilities to clients and the legal system.

Graduates will demonstrate competency in fundamental skills in exercising their professional and ethical responsibilities by

1. Demonstrating knowledge of the rules and canons that govern lawyers.
2. Using and applying the laws governing lawyers to recognize ethical and other professional dilemmas.
3. Exercising professional judgment through conduct consistent with the legal profession’s values and standards, including exhibiting civility and treating others with respect.

Learning Outcome 7: Graduates will demonstrate competency in other professional skills and values needed for competent and ethical participation as a member of the legal profession.

Graduates will demonstrate competency in other professional skills and values by

1. Conducting themselves in a professional manner.
2. Collaborating with others in legal settings.
3. Recognizing practical considerations, such as costs and effects on other people, of a chosen legal resolution and considering alternative dispute resolutions when appropriate.
4. Participating in opportunities to increase their professional knowledge and skills.
5. Exhibiting self-directed learning skills that will allow them to understand areas of the law and legal practice with which they were previously unfamiliar.
6. Identifying ways to meet clients’ goals and interests while adhering to the basic economics of law practice.