The Florida International University College of Law is the law school of Florida International University, located in University Park, Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States. The law school is accredited by the American Bar Association, and is the only public law school in South Florida. FIU College of Law is the third highest ranked law school in the state of Florida. The College of Law had the highest July bar exam passage rate in the state of Florida consecutively for eight years (2015–2023).
History
thumb|right|300px|Rafael Diaz-Balart Hall, home of the FIU College of Law
Florida International University worked towards the creation of a public law school in South Florida for many years, beginning with the 1986 appointment of Modesto A. Maidique as University president. Maidique met resistance from the Florida Board of Regents, which had a number of graduates of other Florida law schools, and opposed the opening of any new public law schools in the state. The establishment of this institution was finally realized in 2000, when Governor Jeb Bush pushed the project through the state legislature, along with the re-establishment of a law school at Florida A&M University.
Shortly thereafter, the College of Law hired Leonard Strickman as its inaugural Dean. Strickman, a Yale Law School graduate, had previously served as Dean of the Northern Illinois University College of Law and the University of Arkansas School of Law, and had been a member of the ABA Accreditation Committee during the 1990s, and had chaired 15 ABA accreditation site visits.
The College of Law is one of the university's 26 schools and colleges and was founded in 2000. It officially opened its doors in August 2002, received provisional accreditation from the American Bar Association in August 2004, and was granted full accreditation on December 1, 2006. The inaugural class graduated on May 22, 2005.
On February 10, 2007, the new law school building, the Rafael Diaz-Balart Hall, was dedicated.
In May 2009, the institution announced that U.S. attorney for the Southern District of Florida Alexander Acosta had been selected to replace Strickman as Dean, with the latter's retirement from the position. Acosta left in 2017 to become United States Secretary of Labor.
Rankings and reputation
The 2026 U.S. News & World Reports "Best Law School Rankings" ranked the FIU College of Law 77th (tied) out of 196 in the United States. It ranked 40th among public law schools in the nation.
Employment
According to FIU's official 2024 ABA-required disclosures, 90.6% of the Class of 2024 obtained full-time, long-term, JD-required or JD Advantage employment ten months after graduation. FIU's Law School Transparency under-employment score was 7%, indicating the percentage of the Class of 2024 unemployed, pursuing an additional degree, or working in a non-professional, short-term, or part-time job ten months after graduation.
!Bar passing rate
|-
|February 2020||81.8% (2nd in Florida)
|-
|October 2020||89.3% (1st in Florida)
|-
|February 2021||75.0% (2nd in Florida)
|-
|July 2021||88.8% (1st in Florida)
|-
|February 2022||70.8% (3rd in Florida)
|-
|July 2022||81.2% (1st in Florida)
|-
|February 2023||72.2% (1st in Florida)
|-
|July 2023||91.1% (1st in Florida)
|-
|February 2024||82.6% (1st in Florida)
|}
Admissions and tuition
<div style="float:right" class="left" >
{| class="wikitable" border="1" style="text-align:center"
|+FIU College of Law admissions
|-
! !! 2025 !! 2024 !! 2023 !! 2022 !! 2021
|-
! Applicants
| 3,100 || 2,667 || 2,121 || 2,183 || 2,364
|-
! Admits
| 582|| 561 || 534 || 482 || 486
|-
! % Admitted
| 18.7 || 21.0 || 25.1 || 22.6 || 20.5
|}
<small>This table does not account deferred applications or other unique situations.</small>
</div>
The College of Law only admits students during the fall to its full-time day program or its part-time evening program. Admissions is done on a rolling basis.
For Fall 2025, 3,100 students applied for admissions into the FIU College of Law, 582 were accepted, and 175 enrolled. The Fall 2025 entering class had a median LSAT score of 161 and a median 3.80 GPA (on a 4.0 scale). 61.7% of students were ethnic minorities.
Annual tuition for in-state students in the day program is $21,407 and $14,501 for those in the evening program. Annual tuition for out-of-state students in the day program is $35,650 and $24,150 for those in the evening program. The first graduate was Rosann Spiegel, also a previous FIU alumnus, who finished the program a semester ahead of schedule. Spiegel graduated in December 2004 and passed the February 2005 bar examination - briefly making FIU the only law school in the country with a 100% bar passage rate.
In January 2010, FIU College of Law students placed first among the Southeastern States Regional American Bar Association negotiation competition. Students also placed second in the Zehmer Mock Trial Competition and second on the brief at the Skadden Arps International FDI moot competition.
The student body has also formed two Law Reviews and a Moot Court team, as well as a Student Bar Association and other student organizations, such as a chapter of the Federalist Society, a student newspaper called "Ipsissima Verba", and a Sports and Entertainment Law Society (SELS). Currently, the institution has about 450 students, including part-time and full-time first, second, and third year students.
Law journals
FIU Law Review
Established in 2004, the FIU Law Review is the law school's official student law review. Articles Editors and Staff Members also write about current changes in the law on the Law Review’s blog.
FIU World Arbitration and Mediation Review
The FIU World Arbitration and Mediation Review ("WAMR") was established to provide a contemporary resource for arbitrators and mediators.
Curriculum
The FIU College of Law requires all students to take a course entitled An Introduction to International and Comparative Law during their first year. Other required first year courses are more typical - Constitutional law, Torts, and Contracts in the first semester, Criminal law, Civil Procedure, and Property in the second, and legal writing classes (called Legal Skills and Values, or simply LSV) throughout. However, each of the substantive classes also dedicates a portion of its discussion to international and comparative issues in that area of law.
Upper level requirements also include an additional course relating to international law, an additional LSV class, a writing seminar, and a course in Professional Responsibility.
Clinical programs
The FIU College of Law offers six in-house clinics:
- The Carlos A. Costa Immigration and Human Rights Clinic
- The Community Development Clinic
- Consumer Bankruptcy Clinic
- Family Law and Education Advocacy Clinic
- The H.E.L.P. (Health, Ethics, Law and Policy) Clinic, and the Education Advocacy Clinic.
- The Immigrant Children's Justice Clinic
- The Investor Advocacy Clinic
Facilities
thumb|300px|Rafael Díaz-Balart Hall
The Florida International University College of Law operates out of the Rafael Díaz-Ballart Hall, designed by architect Robert A. M. Stern. A groundbreaking ceremony was held for the law school's building on May 22, 2005 (the same day as the inaugural commencement). $34 million was budgeted for the construction of the facility. The new building is also on the University Park campus, across from the FIU Arena and adjacent to the Recreation Center and a 1,000-car parking garage.
On-campus housing is available for graduate students in the College of Law at the University Park Towers and the University Park Apartments through the graduate housing community.