New York Law School is proud to receive honors from preLaw magazine’s fall 2022 issue. preLaw noted NYLS for our business, tax, and criminal law programs, assigning top grades and listing us as leaders in those fields. NYLS was also noted as a top school for racial justice.
Racial Justice
preLaw noted NYLS as a top school for racial justice—and much of our curriculum and programming is designed with racial justice as a priority.
At NYLS, students have an opportunity to work at the forefront of racial justice through the Racial Justice Project, a legal advocacy organization dedicated to protecting the constitutional and civil rights of people who have been denied their rights on the basis of race. The Project also works to increase public awareness of racism and racial injustice in the areas of education, employment, political participation, economic inequality, and criminal justice.
Since its founding in 2006, the Project has filed amicus briefs, authored original research and publications, and served as co-counsel in lawsuits. The Project worked with Clemency Project 2014—a group of lawyers and advocates—to file clemency petitions on behalf of federal prisoners convicted of nonviolent drug crimes seeking to have their sentences reduced.
Students also work on current racial justice issues, including assisting with the Carr v. de Blasio litigation and the judicial inquiry into Eric Garner’s death in 2014 and helping prepare testimony government committees on the jurisdiction of New York City’s Civilian Complaint Review Board.
Among our many other offerings, Wilf Impact Public Interest Scholars and Postgraduate Fellows can concentrate their work in racial justice. A wide array of The Plumeri Center’s clinics and simulation courses also focus on racial justice, and our students have the opportunity to gain critical education about the myriad ways that they can become agents for change and justice.
Business Law
NYLS received an A grade in business law, and the School’s new Mini M.B.A. program distinguished NYLS as a business law leader. The honor acknowledges NYLS’s exceptional history of preparing graduates for careers in the business sector, including at innovative businesses, storied financial institutions, regulatory agencies, and top law firms.
Opportunities to deepen one’s understanding of and expertise in business law abound at NYLS: The Center for Business and Financial Law allows students to participate in cutting-edge research projects, attend special events and programming, and take advantage of the School’s extensive network of business leaders.
For students looking to gain real-world experience, the School offers the Securities Arbitration Clinic. In this one-semester course, students practice lawyering skills like interviewing prospective clients, conducting factual and legal analysis, analyzing documents, conducting legal research, developing case theory, drafting pleadings, and actually representing clients in securities arbitration proceedings before the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) under the supervision of NYLS faculty.
Students can also take advantage of the new James Tricarico Jr. Institute for the Business of Law and In-House Counsel, which provides best-in-class business, legal, and technology skills training to current and aspiring in-house counsel.
Criminal Law
preLaw magazine awarded NYLS an A grade for the School’s comprehensive criminal law program, which includes robust coursework mixed with extensive real-world experience.
The School’s two Criminal Prosecution Clinics partner with the Manhattan and Brooklyn District Attorney’s Offices, and NYLS students work with law enforcement, victims, and witnesses to prosecute misdemeanor cases. NYLS’s Criminal Defense Clinic partners with The Legal Aid Society, and students represent low-income defendants in misdemeanor cases from arraignment through trial.
Students have the opportunity to work with the Post-Conviction Innocence Clinic, which invites students to represent clients in post-conviction matters under the direct supervision of a faculty member.
NYLS also offers a restorative justice course which encourages students to think critically about the criminal justice system and the current system of punishment.
Finally, the newly established 21st Century Policing Project (P21) boldly advances the racial justice and police reform demanded by communities locally, statewide, nationally, and globally. The Project develops strategies with law enforcement departments and municipalities around the country to implement police reforms and to improve the relationship between police departments and the diverse communities they serve. Recently, The P21 project played a key role in advising the City of Peekskill, New York to create a Civilian Complaint Review Board (CCRB). The P21 project is currently engaged with New York MTA to prepare a response to fare evasion enforcement.
Tax Law
NYLS received an A- grade for the School’s tax law program. The School offers innovative tax courses and events as part of our Graduate Tax Program and Center for International Law.
The Graduate Tax Program serves those engaged in every aspect of tax practice—from established tax professionals to business executives, real estate specialists, financial product designers and advisors, recent law school graduates, and others. Some students pursue their graduate tax studies full-time, but most study part-time while working for major corporations, banks, insurance companies, other financial institutions, or elsewhere.
The School’s LL.M. in Taxation has been ranked No. 1 by New York Law Journal readers for the last 13 years straight.
NYLS also offers a summer intensive in tax and estate planning which allows students to take two or three specialized courses that advance their legal knowledge and skills. Credits earned in these classes may be eligible for advanced standing in our LL.M. in Taxation program.