At Cumberland School of Law, our student experience ranks near the top on our list of priorities, outside of training superb legal advocates, of course. Traditions that date back to Cumberland’s roots continue to captivate students year after year, and the personalized interaction our students receive from professors is unlike any other law school experience in the country. More than 30 student organizations, numerous social activities, and upper level mentorship programs connect our students in ways that remain with them even years after they graduate. 

Fun Cumberland School of Law Activities

Barrister's Ball
Rascal Day
Law Week Kickball Tournament
Law Week Bowling Challenge
Halloween Party
Faculty/Student Social
Cumberland Classic Golf Tournament
Bar Review Trivia Night

Law Week

Law Week is a long-standing springtime tradition put on by the Student Bar Association (SBA) that provides and opportunity for students to come together and create community. While students must maintain their class attendance, Law Week provides a much-needed break from the rigors of law school. In addition to Freshman Follies, Rascal Day and Barrister's Ball, past Law Week events have also included bowling night, a golf tournament, a kickball tournament, raffles, free meals and more. 

Rascal Day

Rascal Day remains a much-anticipated event during Law Week in the spring at Cumberland School of Law. This event brings together the law school’s community, students, faculty, families, and, of course, dogs. It’s a day of fun festivities that captures the Cumberland experience and its ability to develop well-rounded lawyers.

The celebration honors a mongrel pup named Rascal. According to tradition, Rascal faithfully attended classes, beginning in 1933, at the law school’s original campus in Lebanon, Tennessee. In 1937, he was awarded the rare degree of doctor of canine jurisprudence. Legend states the diploma was awarded in recognition of the hundreds of classes and mock trials at which Rascal’s attendance had been difficult to ignore.

When he passed away in 1940, Rascal was buried beneath the window of the law classroom where he had spent so much time.

When Cumberland School of Law moved to Birmingham in 1961, Rascal’s tombstone and a few spadefuls of dirt from his grave were brought to Samford’s campus and reinterred on the west side of Robinson Hall.

Each year, a procession of two- and four-legged creatures commemorates one of the law school’s most memorable graduates.

 

Barrister’s Ball

Barrister’s Ball, nicknamed “law prom,” is a formal event, complete with live music, good food and dancing. The Student Bar Association plans and hosts the event.