Last updated: September 4, 2026

Brigham Young University J. Reuben Clark Law School

Brigham Young University J. Reuben Clark Law School (BYU Law) is the law school of Brigham Young University (BYU), located in the J. Reuben Clark Building on the BYU campus in Provo, Utah. Owned and operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, BYU Law is one of the most distinctive law schools in the United States: privately sponsored, institutionally religious, and the only major church-affiliated school to combine a T24 LSAT/GPA median with the lowest full-time tuition of any top-25 law school in the country.

Founded in 1973, the school is named for J. Reuben Clark Jr., an LDS Church leader who served as U.S. Under Secretary of State and U.S. Ambassador to Mexico. Legal education at BYU is explicitly values-based: the curriculum integrates professional ethics and religious principles, and every student — regardless of faith — agrees to live the university's Honor Code. The school operates from a single, self-contained facility adjacent to the Howard W. Hunter Law Library, with an intentionally small entering class (about 120 students) and a tight alumni network that runs deep across the Intermountain West and Washington, D.C.

BYU Law School at a Glance

Category	Latest information
Founded	1973
Type	Private (owned and operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints)
ABA approval or accreditation	Council of the Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar
Location	J. Reuben Clark Building, 340 JRCB, Brigham Young University, Provo, UT 84602
Latest U.S. News rank	#24 (tie, 2026), out of 194
Latest completed applications	649 (Fall 2025 entering class)
Latest acceptance rate	22.80% (148 offers of admission)
Latest LSAT median	170 (25th–75th: 168–172)
Latest GPA median	3.95 (25th–75th: 3.82–3.98)
Latest entering class	122 (120 enrolled from applicant pool, Class of 2028)
Current tuition	$16,472 (LDS member) / $32,944 (non-member), 2026–27
Current estimated cost of attendance	Published via BYU Enrollment Services; no single widely cited figure
Latest first-time bar passage	96.9% (Class of 2025; #7 nationally per school)
Latest bar-required employment	95.3% bar-required/anticipated (121/127); 81.0% FT/LT bar-required per ILRG
Current dean	David H. Moore (ninth dean, since July 1, 2023)

Introduction

BYU Law opened its doors in 1973 with a mandate to combine rigorous professional training with the values of the sponsoring church. One half-century later, the school is a fixture of the national top 25 — ranked #24 (tie) in the 2026 U.S. News & World Report law-school rankings after climbing from #28 — while preserving an intentionally intimate scale that most peer schools abandoned decades ago. The school is housed in the J. Reuben Clark Building on the BYU campus in Provo, a self-contained facility that pairs teaching space with the Howard W. Hunter Law Library and the law school's clinical and student-organization offices.

Two statistics frame the BYU experience. First, the school reports that 100% of job-seeking graduates have secured employment every year since 2020, and that more than half of the Class of 2025 graduated entirely debt-free — a claim almost no other law school in the country can make. Second, the applicant pool is small and remarkably loyal: 649 applicants produced just 122 enrolled students in Fall 2025 (120 enrolled from the applicant pool), an effective yield near 20% of the completed-application pool and roughly 81% of admitted students.

Rankings and Reputation

Overall ranking

Ranked #24 (tie) in the 2026 U.S. News & World Report law-school rankings, out of 194 ranked schools — up from #28 in the 2025 edition and consistent with the school's position in the low-to-mid 20s across recent cycles. The climb reflects strong bar passage, employment outcomes, and peer assessment scores that continue to outpace the school's brand recognition outside the Mountain West.

Specialty rankings

#11 nationally for graduates placed in federal clerkships (U.S. News)
#20 in business/corporate law (U.S. News)
#7 nationally for first-time bar passage (96.85%, per school announcement)
Consistently top-10 in federal clerkship placement among all ABA schools, a strength that belies the school's regional profile

Admissions: What It Takes to Get In

Entering class (Fall 2025)

The 2025 ABA Standard 509 Information Report records the following for the Fall 2025 cycle (Oct 6, 2024 – Oct 5, 2025):

649 completed applications
148 offers of admission
22.80% acceptance rate
120 students enrolled from the applicant pool
122 total students in the first-year class (including 2 deferrals)

The gap between acceptance rate and class size reflects BYU's unusual yield economics: for most admitted students, BYU is their first and only choice, and the admit rate is correspondingly more forgiving than the T14 norm even as median credentials stay elite.

LSAT and GPA

Median LSAT among enrolled students: 170 (75th percentile: 172; 25th percentile: 168). Median undergraduate GPA: 3.95 (75th percentile: 3.98; 25th percentile: 3.82) (2025 ABA Standard 509). The LSAT median trails the T14 while the GPA median rivals it — a pattern consistent with a self-selected pool of high-achieving students from LDS-heavy undergraduate institutions.

Interpreting the numbers

Read the BYU stats with the school's context in mind. The applicant pool is heavily weighted toward LDS and Intermountain-West applicants for whom BYU is a defining first choice, which inflates yield and keeps the admit rate comparatively high even as median credentials stay elite. Non-LDS applicants are admitted on equal terms and make up a meaningful share of each class, but should understand they are joining a community in which church membership and observance are the norm.

The Honors and scholarship tracks (see below) are exceptionally competitive even by T14 standards. The J. Reuben Clark Scholarship — BYU's premier full-tuition-plus merit award — draws applicants with credentials at or above the median.

Application timing

J.D. applications open September 1, 2026, for Fall 2027 entry. The school's published 2026–27 application timeline:

JD Priority Deadline: March 1, 2027
JD Application Final Deadline: May 1, 2027
Transfer Student Application Deadline: June 30, 2027
Clark Scholarship Application Deadline: December 31, 2026
Clark Scholarship Recruiting Events: February 4–5, 2027
Clark Scholarship Recipients Notified: February 12, 2027
Clark Scholar Acceptance Deadline: February 26, 2027 (note: school lists 2026 in source)
First Seat Deposit Deadline: April 1, 2027
Second Seat Deposit Deadline: June 1, 2027

Application fee: $0. Review is rolling; applicants are encouraged to apply early.

For transfer applicants: candidates who have successfully completed no more than three full-time or four part-time semesters of coursework at another law school's J.D. program may apply. Acceptance of credits earned is at the discretion of the Associate Dean for Research and Academic Affairs, and all transfer credits will appear on the student's BYU Law Progress Report as a pass. Class standing/rank in the top third of a similarly ranked law school is a positive consideration; performance in the bottom half is more likely to result in denial.

Cost, Scholarships, and Debt

Tuition

The 2025–26 ABA 509 lists the following 1L tuition and fees:

Full-time, resident (LDS Church member): $15,992 annually
Full-time, non-resident (non-LDS): $31,984 annually

For the 2026–27 academic year, tuition is $16,472 for members of the LDS Church and $32,944 for non-members — roughly one-quarter to one-half of the tuition charged by private peers ranked alongside BYU. The LDS-member rate is the lowest sticker price of any top-25 law school in the country, and even the non-member rate undercuts the private-school median by more than half.

Cost of attendance

BYU publishes cost-of-attendance detail through BYU Enrollment Services rather than a single widely cited J.D. figure; the tuition tiers are part of a broader university COA schedule that also covers room, board, books, and personal expenses for the Provo market, where living costs run well below the national law-school average. Applicants should treat the published university COA budget as the authoritative figure when completing financial-aid forms.

Financial aid

344 students received grants in the 2025 ABA 509 reporting year, against a total JD enrollment of 348 — meaning essentially the entire student body receives some form of institutional aid. The grant distribution by percentile:

25th percentile grant amount: $3,882
Median (50th percentile) grant amount: $11,646
75th percentile grant amount: $15,528

Conditional scholarship data published in the 509 disclosure: only 3 students had conditional scholarships reduced or eliminated in 2024–25 (2 in 2023–24; 3 in 2022–23). These are among the lowest conditional-scholarship rates in the T25.

The flagship award is the J. Reuben Clark Scholarship, BYU's full-tuition-plus merit scholarship for outstanding LDS applicants, with a separate December 31, 2026 application deadline. The school supplements these with need-based aid administered through BYU's central financial-aid office, which is generous relative to tuition because the church subsidizes the educational enterprise itself.

Debt perspective

More than 50% of the Class of 2025 graduated with zero debt (school announcement), a figure no T14 school approaches. For borrowing students, the combination of low tuition, low living costs, and high employment means average indebtedness is a small fraction of the national law-school norm — the defining financial argument for BYU is that a degree from a top-25 school can cost less than many regional schools.

Employment Outcomes

Employment (Class of 2025)

The Class of 2025 employment summary (ABA Standard 509 reporting cycle, snapshot as of March 16, 2026) records the following for 127 graduates from the J.D. program:

Employed – Bar Admission Required/Anticipated: 121 total (114 full-time long-term; 7 part-time long-term)
Employed – J.D. Advantage: 6
Law-school-funded positions: 5 (3 full-time long-term; 2 part-time long-term)

95.3% of the Class of 2025 obtained jobs that are bar-required or anticipated to require bar admission within ten months of graduation, on a basis that adds to a per-graduate total employment rate of essentially 100% (the school reports 100% employment of job-seeking graduates every year since 2020).

By employer category (full-time long-term column):

Law firms, 501+ lawyers: 29
Law firms, 251–500 lawyers: 8
Law firms, 101–250 lawyers: 7
Law firms, 51–100 lawyers: 7
Law firms, 26–50 lawyers: 5
Law firms, 11–25 lawyers: 10
Law firms, 1–10 lawyers: 15
Solo practice: 0
Government: 12
Public Interest: 8
Business & Industry: 5
Education: 3
Federal clerkships: 9
State, local, and territorial clerkships: 9

40 Class of 2025 graduates secured judicial clerkships (9 federal + 9 state/local) — 31.5% of the class.

What these numbers mean

The 121/127 bar-required/anticipated number understates BYU's placement quality in a specific way: a substantially larger-than-average portion of each class goes into judicial clerkships (the school is ranked #11 nationally for federal clerkship placement). BigLaw placement (firms of 501+ lawyers) accounts for 29 graduates, or 22.8% of the class — lower than at T14 peers by both preference and geography. However, smaller law firms (1–100 lawyers) absorb an additional 36 graduates, so a meaningful share of each class enters traditional private practice in Mid-Sized Mountain West firms; states like Utah (66), Texas (11), and California (10) dominate the destination list.

Bar passage

96.9% first-time pass rate for the Class of 2025 (LawHub). The school reports 96.85% and a #7 national ranking for first-time bar passage. Provo's bar-prep culture and small classes give BYU one of the most reliable licensing outcomes in legal education.

Where graduates go

The published employment-location table for the Class of 2025 ranks the top destinations as:

Utah: 66 graduates
Texas: 11 graduates
California: 10 graduates

Other major destinations include Washington, D.C., Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Nevada, and New York. The J. Reuben Clark Law Society and the broader BYU alumni network operate chapters in nearly every U.S. legal market, giving graduates a far-flung safety net that compensates for the school's regional center of gravity.

Academics and Programs

Curriculum and special strengths

The J.D. is a six-semester, 90-credit course of study. Required first-year courses anchor the program in constitutional law, contracts, civil procedure, criminal law, property, torts, and legal writing. Upper-division offerings include concentrations in:

Constitutional law
International and comparative law
Intellectual property and technology law
Law and religion
Corporate and business law
Criminal law
Environmental and natural-resources law

BYU also offers a two-semester (eight-month) full-time LL.M. program designed for foreign lawyers who intend to enhance employment opportunities in their home countries. The program begins each August and ends the following April.

The signature curricular feature is the first-year Academies — small, thematic learning communities (such as law and entrepreneurship and law of the family) that pair doctrinal work with applied projects.

Joint degrees

Five joint J.D.–graduate degree programs are offered:

JD/MBA (Sam O. Turner College of Business): 12 shared credits
JD/MPA (Master of Public Administration): 11.5 shared credits
JD/MPP (Master of Public Policy): 9 shared credits
JD/MAcc (Master of Accountancy): 12 shared credits
A fifth combined program through BYU's graduate divisions

Clinics and experiential learning

The clinical program includes the Law Skills Lab and the Law and Entrepreneurship Clinic, alongside externships, simulation courses, and field placements that place students in real client work from the second year. The school's research centers include the internationally renowned International Center for Law and Religion Studies (ICLRS), which convenes scholars and jurists worldwide and anchors BYU's distinctive niche in comparative religious-freedom law, and related centers in international law and environmental law.

Moot court, mock trial, and alternative-dispute-resolution competition teams are particularly strong at BYU; the school's appellate advocacy program has placed at the top of national competitions in recent years.

Journals

BYU students publish on several student-edited journals, including:

BYU Law Review
BYU Journal of Public Law
BYU International Law & Management Review

Edits and articles feed the school's clerkship and academic pipeline through supervised student writing.

Centers and institutes

The major centers and institutes housed at BYU Law include:

International Center for Law and Religion Studies (ICLRS)
BYU Center for Global Law (a forum for student-scholars pursuing academic competition abroad)

Student Life and Location

Living in Provo

Provo, Utah sits at the foot of the Wasatch Range beneath Y Mountain, roughly 45 minutes from Salt Lake City. The J. Reuben Clark Law Building is a self-contained facility on the main BYU campus, immediately adjacent to the Howard W. Hunter Law Library and within walking distance of the university's broader student-life machinery — Welcome Week, homecoming, intramurals, and the hundreds of clubs that surround the law school. The law school itself maintains its own student-affairs office that prioritizes wellness programs for physical, mental, and emotional health, and the culture is famously collegial rather than competitive.

The defining feature of student life is the Honor Code, which applies to every BYU student: modest dress and grooming standards, no alcohol, tobacco, or drugs, no premarital sexual intimacy, and regular church attendance for LDS members. The environment is explicitly religious — prayers open many events, and LDS devotional culture shapes the calendar. Married students are common, family obligations are respected, and the social scene revolves around activities, outdoor recreation, and church community rather than the bar-and-club culture of urban law schools.

Student body

BYU's student body is intentionally small: 120 students enroll from the applicant pool in the Fall 2025 entering cohort, and total J.D. enrollment is 348 across three years. The student body skews toward LDS, with a substantial share of married students and second-career applicants bringing prior work experience into the classroom. Active student organizations include the Moot Court Board, Mock Trial, and a number of affinity and practice-area groups; the J. Reuben Clark Law Society is the alumni organization that maintains the network across generations.

How BYU Compares

Choose BYU if

You want a top-25 law-school credential at the lowest full-time tuition of any T25 program.
You want elite bar-passage rates, top-11 federal clerkship placement, and a strong Intermountain-West firm and government pipeline.
You want to graduate essentially free of debt, or close to it — over half of each class leaves BYU Law with zero debt.
You want a small, tight, family-oriented cohort where classmates know one another for life.
You have personal compatibility with the BYU Honor Code and the values-based learning environment, regardless of faith background.

Consider alternatives if

You want immediate access to a major metropolitan legal market (NYU, Columbia, Penn, or Stanford).
Your career plan runs primarily through government, regulatory practice, or DC-bar placement — programs like Georgetown and GW offer deeper DC externship and clerkship pipelines.
You want a larger cohort with broader internal specialty options.
You have a strong preference for a major coastal city or a non-religious environment during law school.
You are not comfortable with the Honor Code environment or the values-based culture of the school.

The TLS Verdict

BYU Law provides the cheapest elite law education in America — with elite bar results, 31.5% of graduates in clerkships, 22.8% in BigLaw at 501+ firms, top-10 federal clerkship placement, and essentially unique debt outcomes. BYU Law is an outstanding — arguably unmatched — choice for LDS applicants and for any values-aligned applicant seeking a small, supportive, low-debt path to a top-25 credential. Applicants who are not comfortable with a religious Honor Code environment, or who are fixed on immediate coastal BigLaw placement, should look elsewhere regardless of the price.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is BYU Law School's acceptance rate?

22.80% — 649 completed applications and 148 offers of admission (Fall 2025, ABA Standard 509), with 120 enrolling from the applicant pool and a total first-year class of 122.

What LSAT score do I need?

Median 170, with a 25th–75th percentile range of 168–172 (Fall 2025). Scores at or above 170 place you at the median; the range is tighter than at most top-25 schools.

What GPA do I need?

Median 3.95, with a 25th–75th percentile range of 3.82–3.98 — one of the highest GPA medians in the country.

How much is tuition?

$16,472 per year for LDS Church members and $32,944 for non-members (2026–27) — the lowest full-time J.D. tuition among top-25 schools.

Does BYU Law give scholarships?

Yes — 344 of 348 total students received grants in the 2025 ABA 509 reporting year (effectively the entire student body). Median grant amount $11,646 (25th: $3,882; 75th: $15,528). The J. Reuben Clark Scholarship is the school's premier full-tuition-plus merit award.

What is BYU's bar passage rate?

96.9% first-time (Class of 2025, LawHub); the school reports 96.85% and a #7 national ranking for first-time passage.

Is BYU good for BigLaw?

22.8% of the Class of 2025 placed at law firms of 501+ lawyers. While lower than at T14 peers by both preference and geography, BYU's clerkship and Mountain-West firm pipeline is strong; the school places 31.5% of graduates in judicial clerkships.

Do I have to be a member of the LDS Church?

No — applications are considered without regard to faith, and non-members make up a meaningful share of each class. However, all students, regardless of religion, must comply with the BYU Honor Code and participate in the school's values-based culture.

Contact and Key Links

J. Reuben Clark Law School

Brigham Young University, J. Reuben Clark Building

340 JRCB, Provo, UT 84602

Admissions Phone: 801-422-4274

Admissions Email: <[email protected]>

Career Development: 801-422-7871

Main Office: 801-422-4572

Help Desk: 801-422-3884

Official links

TLS Forum Links

Sources

BYU Law School

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