Vision

The ever-changing world we live in requires skillsets and knowledge that reach beyond the practice of law. That, coupled with reality that the profession of law is comprehensive, drives us to equip our lawyers with the skillsets they need in areas they may want to pursue. We now offer curricular opportunities for students to learn fundamental business skills, including financial acumen and accounting, to prepare our graduates for modern law practice.

We train our lawyers to acquire extensive expertise on principles, rulings, and theories of law while at the same time preparing them with the skills they need to succeed in practice. Recognizing the rapidly changing landscape unfolding before us, we are committed to equipping our lawyers for modern law practice. As part of our Vision, we are integrating critical skills such as financial fluency and business acumen along with a sophistication and command of emerging technology trends that are transforming our society and global economy. 

To enhance the financial fluency of our graduates, we created a course titled "Financial Toolkit for Lawyers." This week-long, intensive class provides our students with a practical introduction to finance and its application to law. The overarching goal is to is to help our students become more intelligent consumers of accounting information, such as balance sheets, assets, and income statements. They profit from studying financial numeracy, and taking a fiscal proficiency into the marketplace.

Additionally, our students may enroll in a variety of externships to gain valuable, real world experience. Students may engage in private practice, government, judicial, and public interest externships, gaining meaningful, hands-on training with close faculty and practitioner oversight.

Always forging toward the future, we developed a "Business Essentials" micro-credential to accompany our J.D. degree. Working with the Palumbo-Donahue School of Business, this micro-credential aligns with the future of work and learning, and provides our graduates students with the business acumen and the financial tools needed to succeed in contemporary law practice.

Law students are also able to register for graduate courses offered through other schools on campus including courses in the health sciences, business, and natural and environmental sciences.

As the world continues to evolve so does technology. Alongside the law and financial literacy, our faculty keep our students well-versed in emerging technology and trends. This critical component ensures they understand the use of technologies and the implication they have on the practice of law.

If you are interested in learning more about how our Thomas R. Kline School of Law of Duquesne University can prepare you for collaborative success, contact our admissions team today.

Law is critically important for our society. The legal profession shapes societies, forms governments, and is the bedrock of justice and rule of law. Possessing a degree in law unlocks doors and opportunities with endless career possibilities-government, public sector, or private entities just to name a few. But the post is not as important as the integrity and mindset you bring to your work. Leadership development expands character and places within our students a deep desire to serve others, pursue justice, and demonstrate honor in any role they choose.

The world we occupy is in demand of ethical professionals who will dutifully serve society according to the constitutional and moral obligations of the law. Our Spiritan mission is a vocation of that honor-and we take our calling one step further by offering our students leadership development opportunities. Our goal is to place within them the necessary tools to step into the world as well-rounded individuals who are similarly poised to lead as conscientious citizens.

We recently created a Vision to guarantee we are providing our students with the elements critical to leading with integrity. As part of our vision, we developed and launched our Leadership Fellows Program. The purpose of this program is to have our students focus on cultivating their own leadership development.

Students in this program reflect on the qualities and skills of great leaders to increase their own competency in leadership and cultural awareness. They evaluate and grow their values through relevant topics-such as behavior assessments-and by articulating their own leadership goals and core values. Many of our alumni participate in the program, giving the students valuable connections while showcasing the wide variety of leadership roles our program of legal education fosters in the community.

Tailoring our modules to better reflect our leadership development ethos, we recently modernized our required Professional Responsibility and Legal Ethics course to offer a more robust framework for excellence. We still teach Rules of Professional Responsibility, but structure it in a way that inspires our law students to always strive for the utmost integrity in their professional work, while at the same time expressing the significance of honing leadership and character development.

At our School of Law, we strive to impart complex law and leadership skills on tomorrow's trailblazers. If you are interested in a legal education fueled by Spiritan principles and servant leadership, we urge you to contact our admissions office for more information.

Understanding diversity and embracing inclusiveness enables our students to be well-rounded champions of justice who honor the human dignity of others. There will always be differences in opinions, but our lawyers are taught to model graceful discourse and dissent. We likewise coach our students on a fundamental awareness of their own well-being and resilience. By simulating these behaviors to our students, our goal is that they remain mindful lawyers who prioritize their own health and welfare of others.

We created a Vision for our students that we customized to encompass our Spiritan mission coupled with our high quality, transformative law degree. We consider this the most important aspect of our Vision-our focus on community well-being. It is under this pillar that we concentrate on providing a safe, welcoming environment for all our students. This is at the heart of our mission, our vision, and why Thomas R. Kline School of Law of Duquesne University was founded in 1911—to provide all with an opportunity for advancement.

Our academic law community is based on guiding principles that truth is paramount and that our Catholic and Spiritan foundations are ever critical complimentary aspects of the law. We model our studies on the guide that all people are equal and are such deserving of respect and reverence.

With this in mind, we formed our Dean's Diversity Action Council in 2019. The objective is to guarantee we are a sanctuary that delivers a culture of inclusion for our students of color and for other underrepresented communities.

In accordance with this pledge, our faculty unanimously voted to approve our Promise Statement on Race & Justice, an affirmative statement against racism and a commitment to positive change. We also remain committed greater understanding of the plight of others through our faculty's participation in a series of Mitigating Classroom Bias modules and workshops that is informed by our students and faculty.

Understanding and recognizing that we have a responsibility to treat every person with respect, we started a year-long Speaker Series on Race, Poverty and Democracy. Our purpose is to provide vital discussions to the wider legal community.

Another fundamental aspect of the law is expressing dissent because within our opposition we can learn and find knowledge and truth. Our students have an obligation to seek the truth, no matter how difficult. Our intent is that they discover it and provide contrasting discourse in ways that are logical and respectful.

We realize that law instruction is demanding. That is why we dedicate part of what we do to incorporating sustainable life habits that center on healthy and fulfilled living. Our Docket newsletter is a weekly roundup of mindfulness tips and social activities intended to recharge our students. We want our students to recognize how mental and physical health impacts other aspects of life and similarly want to aid them in creating healthy, lifelong habits.

If you are interested in changing the world in inclusive and respectful ways and want to learn more about how our School can assist your growth, contact our admissions office.

The Association of American Law Schools, formed in 1900, is a non-profit organization of 176 law schools in the United States. An additional 19 schools pay a fee to receive services but are not members. AALS incorporated as a 501 non-profit educational organization in 1971.