About the Program

The Center for Legal Studies at Northwestern University provides an environment where scholars and students combine the study of legal issues with the methodology and perspectives of the social sciences and humanities.

Undergraduate Study

Legal Studies offers undergraduates the chance to engage in exciting, critical work with professors from all over Northwestern, the Law School, and the professional world, with courses in a variety of innovative topics. Recent favorites include Trial Advocacy, International Human Rights, the Politics of the Medical Malpractice Crisis, and Environmental Law and Politics.

Graduate Study

At the graduate level, Legal Studies provides programmatic content for Graduate Fellows in Legal Studies (GFILs) which include JD/PhD students, PhD students who entered graduate school with JDs earned elsewhere, and graduate students in a variety of disciplines (economics, anthropology, sociology, political science, theater, and English, to name just a few) interested in the inter-disciplinary study of law.  Together with faculty, GFILs attend significant lectures and events, graduate students and faculty participate in on-going reading and writing seminars. 

News & Bulletins

Chicago's Red Eye newspaper recently interviewed Legal Studies director Laura Beth Nielsen regarding the "CSI effect.” Legal Studies director Laura Beth Nielsen was interviewed for an article on pay bias.

Upcoming Events

Law in Motion: Legal Studies Lecture Series
February 23, 2012 • 4:00 PM - 5:30 PM