2023 Best Legal Research Schools
Finding the Best Legal Research School for You
Legal Research is the #107 most popular major in the country with 6,874 degrees and certificates awarded in 2020-2021.
There are lots of options to pick from today when trying to decide which program is right for you. You're no longer limited to schools in your local area, either, since online programs are becoming more prevalent. Or you may find the programs at a trade school to be a better alternative for you.
The Best Legal Research Schools ranking is one of many tools that Course Advisor has developed to help you make your educational decision. This report analyzed 120 schools in the United States to see which ones offered the best programs for students.
View our full ranking methodology.
2023 Best Legal Research Schools in the United States
The following schools top our list of the Best Legal Research Colleges.
Top 15% Best Legal Research Schools
Our analysis found University of Virginia - Main Campus to be the best school for legal research students who want to pursue a degree in the United States. University of Virginia is a fairly large public school located in the suburb of Charlottesville.
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A rank of #2 on this year’s list means University of Chicago is a great place for legal research students. UChicago is a large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Chicago.
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The excellent programs at University of Pennsylvania helped the school earn the #3 place on this year’s ranking of the best legal research schools in the United States. Located in the large city of Philadelphia, UPenn is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly large student population.
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A rank of #4 on this year’s list means Georgetown University is a great place for legal research students. Georgetown is a very large private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Washington.
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Out of the 120 schools in the United States that were part of this year’s ranking, Stanford University landed the # 5 spot on the list. Stanford is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the suburb of Stanford.
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Harvard University landed the #6 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best legal research programs. Located in the midsize city of Cambridge, Harvard is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.
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New York University came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Best Legal Research Schools ranking. Located in the city of New York, NYU is a private not-for-profit college with a very large student population.
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California University of Pennsylvania ranked #8 on this year’s Best Legal Research Schools list. Located in the suburb of California, Cal U is a public college with a medium-sized student population.
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Columbia University in the City of New York did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for legal research students. It came in at #9 on the list. Columbia is a very large private not-for-profit school located in the large city of New York.
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University of Michigan - Ann Arbor ranked #10 on this year’s Best Legal Research Schools list. Located in the midsize city of Ann Arbor, U-M is a public college with a very large student population.
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University of California - Berkeley landed the #11 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best legal research programs. Located in the midsize city of Berkeley, UC Berkeley is a public school with a fairly large student population.
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Vanderbilt University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for legal research students. It came in at #12 on the list. Located in the city of Nashville, Vanderbilt is a private not-for-profit college with a large student population.
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Hodges University ranked #13 on this year’s Best Legal Research Schools list. Located in the city of Naples, International College is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.
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University of Florida did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for legal research students. It came in at #14 on the list. Located in the midsize city of Gainesville, UF is a public school with a fairly large student population.
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Northwestern University came in at #15 in this year’s edition of the Best Legal Research Schools ranking. Located in the city of Evanston, Northwestern is a private not-for-profit college with a very large student population.
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University of Notre Dame landed the #16 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best legal research programs. Located in the suburb of Notre Dame, Notre Dame is a private not-for-profit school with a large student population.
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Boston University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for legal research students. It came in at #17 on the list. Located in the large city of Boston, Boston U is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly large student population.
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With a ranking of #18, Loyola University Chicago did quite well on this year’s best schools for legal research students. Located in the large city of Chicago, Loyola Chicago is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly large student population.
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Request InformationAdditional Noteworthy Schools
These are some additional schools worth mentioning that are also great but just didn't quite make the cut to earn our top Best Legal Research Schools award.
| Rank | College | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 19 | University of San Diego | San Diego, CA |
| 20 | George Washington University | Washington, DC |
| 21 | Fordham University | Bronx, NY |
| 22 | Loyola Marymount University | Los Angeles, CA |
| 23 | Widener University | Chester, PA |
| 24 | The University of Texas at Austin | Austin, TX |
Legal Research by Region
View the Best Legal Research Schools for a specific region near you.
| Region |
|---|
| Southeast |
| New England |
| Rocky Mountains |
| Plains States |
| Middle Atlantic |
| Far Western US |
| Southwest |
| Great Lakes |
More Legal Research Rankings
Legal Research Related Rankings by Major
One of 4 majors within the area of study, legal research has other similar majors worth exploring.
Most Popular Majors Related to Legal Research
| Related Major | Annual Graduates |
|---|---|
| Law | 36,216 |
| Legal Support Services | 11,545 |
| Non-Professional General Legal Studies | 4,407 |
| Legal Professions (Other) | 2,013 |
Notes and References
*These averages are for the top 25 schools only.
- Read more about our ranking methodology.
- The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) serves as the core of the rest of our data about colleges.
- Some other college data, including much of the graduate earnings data, comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard).
More about our data sources and methodologies.
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