Honors Program
Advance your learning and work closely with members of the College of Law faculty.
Designed to provide talented and motivated students with a background in the historical and theoretical bases of the profession to prepare them for the practice of law.
The Stetson Law Honors Program is for full-time J.D. students who have demonstrated exceptional ability and achievement in their first and second semesters in law school, and part-time students who have demonstrated exceptional ability and achievement in their first and second years in law school.
Honors Program students will be eligible to take part in special programs, such as works-in-progress presentations by faculty, talks by prominent scholars from other schools, and meetings with members of the bench and bar. Students who complete both the colloquium and honors seminar will receive a certificate at graduation signifying their participation in the Honors Program.
The Program
Full-time students who are ranked in the top 15% of their entering class after either their first or second semester will be invited to interview for the Honors Program during the summer following their first full year. Part-time J.D. students who are ranked in the top 15% of their entering class after their second or fourth semesters will be invited to interview for the Honors Program after their second spring semester.
In addition, any part-time student who (1) had a cumulative GPA after their second semester equal to or exceeding the lowest cumulative GPA of the top 15% of the equivalent cohort of full-time students after their first semester, or (2) had a cumulative GPA after their fourth semester equal to or exceeding the lowest cumulative GPA of the top 15% of the equivalent cohort of full-time students after their second semester will be invited to interview for the Honors Program after their second spring semester.
The Honors Program Director will determine which students will participate in the Program. Typically, the Program will include between 15 and 25 students. Students who enter the Program may remain so long as they stay in the top 20% percent of their class.
Academic Requirements
Honors Colloquium
LAW 3535
The Honors Colloquium is designed for students accepted into Stetson's Honors Program based on academic performance in the first and second semesters. The Colloquium will explore various topics concerning the history and theory of law. Conducted in a seminar format, various professors will lead students in discussion of the assigned topics.
Jurisprudence Honors Seminar
LAW 3605
An introduction to legal theory and the broad knowledge necessary in the professional use of case law and legislation. The course examines the system of political, economic, moral, and psychological ideas that lies at the root of modern jurisprudence and focuses on the origin, nature, function, and development of the law.