A Guide to UC Davis Law

A reflection of my time at King Hall

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I wanted to write out a blog post on King Hall since it is admissions decision season and a few people had asked me about my experience at King Hall. The TL;DR: I love UC Davis Law and can only say good things. Read on for a little bit about my experience, some testimony from my classmates, and some facts about our law school!

I just wanted to start this post by saying I did do my undergrad here at UC Davis, so my choice to come to law school here was very much tied to that. I had a great experience at Davis as an undergrad student and loved the town. Davis is a small college town, but it is also located next door to Sacramento, the state’s capital, which has a lot of professional opportunities. When I was a freshman in college, I actually had the chance to take a seminar about free speech Supreme Court cases and it was taught by a law professor at King Hall! The seminar was located in the law school and I was excited to be able to experience a class there and interact with a law professor. Then when it came time to choose a law school, I chose King Hall because I loved the campus, they offered me the most money out of the schools I got into (they’re known for being pretty generous with financial aid), and I wanted to be near the environmental/legal opportunities in Sacramento. I have absolutely loved my time here as a law student. King Hall doesn’t feel as competitive as TV portrays law school, because UC Davis has a huge focus on community and all of the students are so kind. Here’s a quote I really like: “the UC Davis School of Law is relatively diverse compared to other law schools and enjoys a reputation as a kinder, gentler place to study law.”

As an environmental law student, I have felt well connected to the field and network. For law school extracurriculars, I have a role on the Environmental Law and Policy Journal, am a member of the Environmental Law Society, and competed in a national moot court competition for the school. I have made so many great friends in my classes and definitely enjoy doing law school with them. The school provides so many resources that I use regularly (did I mention we have our own in-house psychologist?), and I have always felt so well-equipped to handle law school. But enough about me! Let’s jump into a discussion of what you can expect if you do law school here:

Your First Year

At the start of law school, King Hall puts on a ton of fun welcome events for the first year students. Before orientation we had a welcome bbq! At orientation, you take “intro to law”, attend presentations, and get assigned your carrel and locker. Early on in the first semester, we had club fairs, all kinds of socials, and an event at the California Capitol building to meet alumni. During your first year, you’ll be placed in a section of about 25 students which combines with another section for a couple of your courses, and you stay with that section of students all year. This gives you the opportunity to really get to know your classmates and have people to form study groups with. It’s nice to be able to form strong connections so you have people to send you notes when you’re absent, review your outlines with, etc. Like other law schools, the courses you take your first year are chosen for you and they are graded on a curve. This isn’t unique to UC Davis. You can also expect to take a class called “Lawyering Process” your first year here at UC Davis Law. Lawyering process is a class you will take spring semester, which teaches you more “hands on” skills, like negotiating, client interviewing, etc. I think this class is pretty unique to our first year law school curriculum and I really enjoyed it since we don’t really get to practice or hone those lawyer skills during law school. You’ll have a lot of resources at your disposal when you begin law school here. There are tutors who give presentations on how to outline, brief cases, etc and also hold office hours to help you with each of your classes. They have an office with supplemental materials and flashcards you can check out to study as well. You’ll have one on one meetings with the career services office to formulate a plan and get assistance on finding internships for the summer. When it comes time to use the resources of the library, there are law librarians (who are lawyers themselves) to help you navigate the stacks and legal databases to find what you need. As a first year student, you also have the opportunity to jump right into plenty of extracurriculars, journals, and competitions (some of which I will highlight below). There are moot court, trial practice, and negotiations competitions specifically for the first year students to compete against one another and get a feel for how the competition works. I participated in the moot court competition my 1L year and it was a ton of fun.

Journals, Clinics, Clubs and other extracurriculars

We have plenty of journals, clinics, and other extracurriculars for each and every area of interest here at King Hall. To name a FEW of the groups we have: 

Organizations: Business Law Society, Criminal Law Association, Federalist Society, Students Against Mass Incarceration, Latinx Law Students Assoc., Black Law Students Assoc., Entertainment Law Society, Environmental Law Society, Labor and Employment Law Assoc., Lawcappella, Filipino Law Student Assoc., Asian Pacific American Law Students Assoc., Middle Eastern and South Asian Law Students Assoc., Lambda Law Students Asso., (for LGBTQIA+ students), Water Association of Law and Policy, etc. 

Journals: Business Law Journal, Journal of Int’l Law & Policy, UC Davis Law Review, Environmental Law and Policy Journal, etc.

Clinic: Water Justice Clinic, Immigration Law Clinic, Family Protection Clinic, Civil Rights Clinic, etc.

Competitions: Moot Court, Trial Advocacy, Negotiations, etc.

(You can find a comprehensive list of our organizations here, clinics here, and our journals here)

Commitment to Diversity and Racial Justice

UC Davis Law (known as King Hall) is dedicated to Martin Luther King Jr., and I wanted to highlight some of what our law school does to help further the conversation on racial equality and inclusion. Every year, our law school hosts a day of celebration and service on MLK day where students can volunteer for various service projects. Throughout the year, King Hall has a racial justice speaker series to engage in meaningful conversation with students and the public on issues like systemic racism and police brutality. We also have the Aoki Center for Critical Race and Nation Studies on campus, which hosts lunchtime talks on critical race theory, civil rights, and immigration issues, and a variety of affinity groups, such as some of the ones I listed above (Black Law Students Association, Middle Eastern and South Asian Law Students Association, etc).

The fall 2020 incoming student body profile shows that 56% of incoming students were people of color. (Please reach out if you’d like me to connect you to someone who can speak more to the experience of attending King Hall as a person of color, I’d be happy to connect you with a student who can speak to that.) In addition to a commitment to racial diversity, King Hall also shows their commitment to inclusion of women in the legal field, as the fall 2020 entering class of our school was 71% female!

my classmates, on king hall:

• “Hello everyone! I’m Dominique and I’m a 2L at UC Davis. I have a social justice perspective that I hope to bring to any area of law that I practice in the future since I’m undecided lol. King Hall for me has definitely been a life changing experience. I’ve learned so much and met so many great people. I am the Internal Vice President of the Black Law Students Association (BLSA) and our organization has done so much this past year. BLSA is one of the smaller clubs on campus, yet our impact is growing and will continue to grow. Law school itself is difficult for me, however, the relationships I’ve developed with my classmates has made the law school experience bearable. I created a Youtube channel “The Law Pope Porium” in order to encourage first-gen and minority students to believe they can pursue law school also. I’m grateful to attend a school like King Hall that aligns with my values of giving back to the community all while getting a great education.” -Dominique, 2L at King Hall
• “I could only imagine what my law school experience would have been like if I had not attended King Hall. Being a part of affinity groups not only provides me with access to countless resources, networks, and meaningful mentorship opportunities, but it keeps me grounded in why I came to law school in the first place. Through my involvements with different student and community organizations, I have been able to advance the legal interests of the communities that compelled me to pursue a legal career in the first place.” -Marjan, 2L at King Hall
• “I am so proud to be a member of the King Hall community because the community continuously inspires me. At King Hall, I am surrounded by knowledgeable and understanding professors, and a supportive and engaged network of friends and alumni who challenge me to be the best version of myself. As co-chair of the Filipinx Law Students Association, I have the privilege of being part of a team that is dedicated to empowering more Filiipnx and Filipinx Americans to pursue successful careers in the legal field. I also serve as the chair for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion for the King Hall Labor and Employment Association, where I get to learn about and pursue initiatives that work toward greater diversity in the labor and employment practice areas.” -Matthew, 2L at King Hall