Experience is everything

From what you’ll do in our classrooms and clinics to what you bring to the table

As the only law school founded to train outstanding public interest lawyers, CUNY Law provides an experience unlike anything or anywhere else. Located in New York City, our community of students, faculty, and staff reflects the diversity of experiences, backgrounds, and perspectives needed to diversify the profession and create a more representative justice.

Discover What Sets CUNY Law Apart

Clinical Innovation

Renowned Clinical Education

Our top-ranking clinical program guarantees every student an immersive semester of real-world practice. You’ll represent clients, collaborate on policy initiatives, and partner with government agencies and community organizations to create real change.

CUNY Law: The Border

Immigrant & Non-Citizen Rights Clinic students redefine what it means to be advocates, collaborators, and border lawyers.>

Human Rights & Gender Justice Clinic Creates World’s First Gender Persecution Observatory

How the clinic is influencing international law and policy while building a global gender justice movement. >

Dynamic & Diverse Student Body

Enhanced access and resources for all

Our student body reflects our commitment to public interest and social justice lawyering and our programs and supports offer the tools lawyers need for careers dedicated to using law in the service of human needs. From wellness programming to no-cost bar preparation, we support the full law student experience.

Student Organizations – Key to Fostering Community and Belonging

Groups dedicated to housing justice to environmental advocacy, these initiatives reflect our student body’s diversity. >

A Welcoming Space for LGBTQI+ Connections

The LGBTQI+ Hub at CUNY Law stands as a pillar of community and support, providing vital resources and connections for students. >

Alumni in Action

What a CUNY Law degree can do

Alumni like Dalourny Nemorin ’14, are driving systemic change. Selected for the Obama Foundation Leaders program, she exemplifies how the school’s focus on public interest and access to justice produces trailblazers dedicated to their communities.

Alumni Stay Ahead with CLE Programs

Topics from criminal justice to immigration law, these sessions maintain professional competency. >

City Counseling Initiative Expands Access to Justice

Alumni connecting New Yorkers citywide with free legal support and community education. >

Access Initiatives

Creating Pathways to Legal Careers

a large group of people in yellow graduation stoles reading "Pipeline to Justice" Pipeline to Justice, our signature access initiative, recognizes that traditional admissions metrics often miss exceptional talent. The holistic program provides aspiring law students with LSAT preparation, mentorship, and academic resources, creating powerful cohorts and an innovative approach to recruiting students.

Low Cost, Big Impact: Affordable Legal Degrees

As New York City’s only public law school, CUNY Law boasts some of the lowest tuition rates nationwide. >

Balancing Life and Law: Evening Programs

CUNY Law’s evening program offers flexibility for professionals and caregivers.>

Rankings and Numbers that Matter

A+

Rating for Racial Justice

preLaw Magazine, 2024

Most Racially Diverse Faculty

Princeton Review, 2024

In Clinical Training

U.S. News & World Report

Placing Students in Public Interest Jobs

ABA Data, 2023

Need to Know

The Latest News and Events

CUNY Law Faculty Share Insight and Innovation at AALS Clinical Conference 2025

students and Prof. Nermeen Arastu accept the 2025 CLEA Award

CUNY Law’s Immigrant & Non-Citizen Rights Clinic Receives National Award for Innovative Clinical Education Project

A butterfly and text on an orange field:

Freedom to Be: Ms. X’s Victory Against Deportation

CUNY School of Law Recognized as Nation’s Leading Producer of Public Interest Graduates by U.S. News & World Report

For the first time, the U.S. News & World Report ranked law schools based on the percentage of graduates entering public interest law and CUNY Law was ranked #1.

HRGJ Clinic Report to UN Highlights the Misuse of Laws to Criminalize Abortion and Punish Pregnant People

The HRGJ Clinic, If/When/How, and Pregnancy Justice submitted a report to the United Nations exposing how criminal and civil laws in the United States are misused to punish people based on pregnancy outcomes, such as abortion, and those who help them access care. The report, endorsed by several organizations, urges the U.S. to end these practices, address structural discrimination, and ensure equitable access to reproductive healthcare ahead of its November 2025 Universal Periodic Review.

Institute Executive Director Speaks at Global Launch of the United Nations Beijing+30 Action Agenda

Nobel Peace Laureate Leymah Gbowee, Executive Director of the Institute on Gender, Law, and Transformative Peace, spoke on peace and security during the 69th UN Commission on the Status of Women to inform accelerated policy action on global gender equality.

Spotlight

Who We Are

Talia Peleg, Co-Director, Immigration & Non-Citizen Rights Clinic and Associate Professor of Law