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.
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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 2023 rankings named University of Virginia - Main Campus the best school in the United States for legal research students. University of Virginia is a fairly large public school located in the suburb of Charlottesville.
Full Legal Research at University of Virginia - Main Campus Report
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.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend University of Pennsylvania. The school came in at #3 on this year’s Best Legal Research Schools list. Located in the city of Philadelphia, UPenn is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.
The excellent programs at Georgetown University helped the school earn the #4 place on this year’s ranking of the best legal research schools in the United States. Georgetown is a very large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Washington.
The excellent programs at Stanford University helped the school earn the #5 place on this year’s ranking of the best legal research schools in the United States. Stanford is a large private not-for-profit school located in the suburb of Stanford.
Harvard University landed the #6 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best legal research programs. Located in the medium-sized city of Cambridge, Harvard is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.
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.
With a ranking of #8, California University of Pennsylvania did quite well on this year’s best schools for legal research students. Located in the suburb of California, Cal U is a public school with a moderately-sized student population.
Full Legal Research at California University of Pennsylvania Report
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 city of New York.
Read full report on Legal Research at Columbia University in the City of New York
University of Michigan - Ann Arbor ranked #10 on this year’s Best Legal Research Schools list. Located in the city of Ann Arbor, U-M is a public college with a very large student population.
University of California - Berkeley ranked #11 on this year’s Best Legal Research Schools list. Located in the medium-sized city of Berkeley, UC Berkeley is a public school with a very large student population.
With a ranking of #12, Vanderbilt University did quite well on this year’s best schools for legal research students. Located in the city of Nashville, Vanderbilt is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.
Hodges University ranked #13 on this year’s Best Legal Research Schools list. Located in the small city of Naples, International College is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.
University of Florida landed the #14 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best legal research programs. Located in the medium-sized city of Gainesville, UF is a public college with a fairly large student population.
With a ranking of #15, Northwestern University did quite well on this year’s best schools for legal research students. Located in the city of Evanston, Northwestern is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.
With a ranking of #16, University of Notre Dame did quite well on this year’s best schools for legal research students. Located in the large suburb of Notre Dame, Notre Dame is a private not-for-profit school with a large student population.
Boston University ranked #17 on this year’s Best Legal Research Schools list. Located in the large city of Boston, Boston U is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.
Loyola University Chicago ranked #18 on this year’s Best Legal Research Schools list. Located in the city of Chicago, Loyola Chicago is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.
Additional 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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