In addition to core courses to prepare students with the fundamental skills every lawyer must have, Chase offers collections of courses – known as “concentrations” or “certificates” – that allow students to focus their elective courses in specific areas of law for their future practices. These focus areas are the Child and Family Law Concentration, Certificate for Excellence in Advocacy, Certificate in Transactional Practice Law, and Certificate in Labor and Employment Law.
Child and family law work forms a significant part of many Chase graduates’ practice. This Certificate of Concentration is designed to make its holders more qualified to practice in the area of child and family law and more desirable to employers. Moreover, participation in the program provides a supportive community within the law school and networking opportunities in the practice community.
The Child and Family Law Concentration is a course of study and a set of experiences that are designed to elevate a student’s familiarity with child and family law while developing important professional skills and contacts in the legal community. Students who complete the program will have knowledge of the law and basic competence in the subject area so that they may enter the legal profession ready to practice.
Students must complete 15 credit hours in order to complete a certificate in this concentration. Students who successfully complete the concentration will receive a Certificate of Concentration and a notation on their Chase transcript. Students must pass all courses within the program with a 2.5 or higher. They must include:
Students must complete 15+ hours of community service in a child or family-serving agency approved in advance by Chase faculty.
Students must complete a minimum of two hours of observation in a domestic relations/family court and complete a reflection. A reflection form will be available on the Concentration web page.
Students must complete a minimum of 20 hours participating in a child or family law-related leadership activity. Sample activities may include: writing an article for a bar journal, sitting on the board of a legal non-profit, participating in a leadership training program for lawyers, or providing community education workshops on a particular issue. This activity must be approved in advance by Chase faculty.
Chase faculty will offer annual twice-a-year cohort meetings and advising sessions, and annual networking opportunities with practitioners, Chase graduates and employers in the local area.
Submit this checklist form to the registrar, Jenny Young, at youngj3@nku.edu or to NH 317 (or GH 330E) upon completion.
If you have questions or need information about the Certificate of Concentration, please contact:
The Certificate for Excellence in Advocacy allows students through course work and mock competitions to develop essential skills in various aspects of advocacy: pre-trial and trial, writing, client interaction and Alternative Dispute Resolution. Award of the certificate requires earning a grade of B or better in designated courses and an overall cumulative Chase GPA of 3.000 or better. Detailed requirements may be found in the Chase Student Handbook.
The Certificate in Transactional Practice Law allows students to develop important skills for practices in business and finance, such as drafting agreements, utilizing accounting and finance principles and providing pro bono services. Award of the certificate requires earning a grade of B or better in designated courses. Detailed requirements may be found in the Chase Student Handbook.
The Certificate in Labor and Employment Law allows students to develop skills in such underlying fields as administrative law, labor and employment law, employment discrimination, mediation and employment benefits. Students must complete either a research project with a grade of B or better or complete a field placement with a lawyer in a relevant field. Detailed requirements may be found in the Chase Student Handbook.
To achieve the concentration, a student must:
Submit this checklist form to the registrar, Jenny Young, at youngj3@nku.edu or to NH 317 (or GH 330E) upon completion.
Detailed explanations of requirements to receive the Employment and Labor Law Concentration can be found in the Chase Student Handbook, available online. Questions about the concentration or specific requirements may be addressed to the associate dean for academics at rosenthall@nku.edu.