To serve as a beacon of hope and catalyst for change by providing access to excellent educational training and opportunities to generations of students seeking to serve the needs of traditionally underserved people and communities locally, nationally and internationally.
Located in downtown Orlando, Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University (FAMU) College of Law is recognized for its diversity. Drawing its strength from the multicultural community, the College of Law embraces its population of students, faculty and staff who vary in age, gender, race, ethnicity, geographic background and collegiate experience. For its extraordinary efforts towards establishing a diverse educational institution, it has won numerous recognitions from various renowned media publications.
The reestablished FAMU College of Law reaffirms the college’s historical legacy of excellence and responsibility to serve as a transformative force for the public good. While continuing its historic mission of educating African-Americans, the FAMU College of Law embraces persons of all racial, ethnic, and national groups as members of the university community. In short, the institute claims, “We are dedicated to developing legal professionals and community leaders committed to equitable justice and the rule of law.”
The institute sincerely maintains its core values which includes distinction in teaching, scholarship and service, excellence with caring, experiential learning, professionalism and diversity.
A Location to Boast About
With a dynamic skyline outside its back door and two courthouses outside its front, FAMU College of Law is ideally located in downtown Orlando. The location of the College affords students easy access to major employers, affordable housing and a variety of cultural venues. Downtown Orlando is booming with growth and the FAMU College of Law is poised to benefit from the development of new business and educational ventures.
A Campus that Encourages Learning
With its 160,400-square-feet facility, the College promotes a sound learning environment for the growth and development of its students, faculty and staff. The students have access to the FAMU Law Student Lounge and an outside patio area.
The College organizes special events which are frequently hosted in its ceremonial moot courtroom. The Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces, the Fifth District Court of Appeal, and the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeal has held arguments in its distinguished courtroom. The law school campus houses practice courtrooms, space for student organizations and meetings, and a dedicated clinical program area. Campus technology supports wireless learning, including legal webinars and lectures. The classrooms are videoconference capable and conducive to broadcasting.
The Curriculum that Turns a Student into a Professional
FAMU College of Law offers flexible academic tracks, including a Full-Time Day Program, which appeals to recent college graduates as it requires three years of study. In addition, it offers a Part-Time Evening Program, which caters to working professionals or individuals seeking the slower pace of four years of study.
Complementing its standard curriculum, FAMU College of Law offers international legal opportunities that permit its students to expand their knowledge by exploring the law abroad and through other law schools. Most importantly, the College is equipped with highly experienced faculty in the sectors of Criminal Law, Criminal Procedure, Human Rights, Immigration Law, International Law and Tax Law among many others.
Most interestingly, the tuition fee for Florida Residents is less than $15,000.00 per year, among the lowest in Florida. It also provides financial aid including institutional grants and federal loans programs to help eligible students fulfill the financial obligations attendant with a legal education.
An Alumni Base that Makes the Institute Proud
FAMU College of Law has an alumni base of more than 1,500 renowned lawyers who serve their respective communities across the country at prominent law firms including Holland & Knight, LLP, Morgan & Morgan, P.A., and Greenberg Traurig, LLP; major corporations such as Lockheed Martin Corporation, and Verizon Communications; along with governmental agencies such as the Office of the State Attorney, Office of the Public Defender, the Internal Revenue Service, and the Judge Advocate Generals Corps (JAG) in the armed forces.
Among the notable alumni are Alcee Hastings, Class of 1963, Member of U. S. House of Representatives and former federal judge; Ese Ighedosa, Class of 2013, Attorney for the National Football League’s (NFL) Legal and Business Affairs Division; Kelly Ingram, Class of 2008, Brevard County Judge; Arthenia Joyner, Class of 1968, Former Whip and Minority Leader Pro Tempore in the Florida Senate Democratic Caucus and Former Member of Florida House of Representatives and Carlos Woody, Class of 2005, Deputy General Counsel for the Orlando Utilities Commission.
About the Torchbearer of the Institute
LeRoy Pernell currently serves the law school as Interim Dean and Professor of Law. Previously serving as Dean from January 2008 through June 2015, he is credited with providing the stability that led to the law school acquiring full accreditation from the American BarAssociation in 2009 and reaccreditation in 2014. Dean Pernell is well known for his scholarship in the area of criminal procedure.
He recently joined the Amicus brief on the prevailing position before the United States Supreme Court in Collins v. Virginia, which shined a light on the protected right to privacy under the Fourth Amendment. He was also selected to join the inaugural class of CLEO EDGE Honorees for his outstanding contributions in the field of EDUCATION. The Council on Legal Education Opportunity, Inc. (CLEO), the longest-serving national organization committed to increasing diversity in the legal profession via legal education, is celebrating its 50th Anniversary this year by honoring individuals and organizations that have contributed to Education, Diversity, and Greater Equality in the legal profession. He was selected from over 200 nominees to receive one of only 50 awards in the EDUCATION category.
“Words of Trust”
“The Foundations Boot Camp (New Student Orientation) was one of my most memorable experiences at FAMU College of Law. Without it, I would have been a fish out of water.”
Brandon Acevedo will be a second-year law student during the 2018-2019 academic year.
“The faculty and staff make me feel as if I am at home and that I belong here. The intimate classroom environment was another reason I chose FAMU Law. I actually feel as if I’m being taught personally and not just a number in a big classroom.”
Dyzhane Bellamy will be a second-year law student during the 2018-2019 academic year.
