Upper Division Requirements
Upper Division Unit Requirement: Students must complete a total of 30 upper division units (the change from 32 to 30 upper div units was effective Su22) for the Legal Studies major.
Legal Studies Requirements – Take 4 courses from the list of Core classes below, including at least one course designated as Humanities (H) and at least one course designated as Social Sciences (SS). Students are strongly encouraged to take 100 early in pursuing the major as it provides a foundation for the Legal Studies curriculum.
NOTE: The 4 courses taken for Core requirements cannot be double-counted toward the Distribution Requirements.
NOTE: The Core classes must be taken at UCB in the Legal Studies department from the following list. There is no flexibility.
NOTE: All courses for the major must be taken for a letter grade, except for those that can only be taken for a letter grade.
*****NOTE: P/NP and DPN grades in prerequisite courses, upper div Area courses and Core classes Sp20, Fa20, Sp21, Su21, and Fa22 will be accepted for the major.******
Core Classes – (4 courses, 4 units each for a total of 16 upper div units)
100: Foundations of Legal Studies (H or SS)
103: Theories of Law & Society (H or SS)
107: Theories of Justice (H)
138: The Supreme Court & Public Policy (SS)
145: Law & Economics I (SS)
160: Punishment, Culture & Society (H or SS)
177: American Legal & Constitutional History (H)
182: Law, Politics & Society (SS)
184: Sociology of Law (SS) (Soc 114 cannot be counted as a Core in place of LS 184.)
Distribution Requirements – Take 2 courses* in one of the following Areas and 1 course each in two distinctly different additional Areas for a total of 4 courses.
See the ‘Courses’ page for a list of Legal Studies courses.
NOTE: Some courses may be worth 3 units, so be sure you will meet the total 30 upper division units required for the major.
Area I: Crime, Law & Social Control
Area II: Law & Culture
Area III: Law & Markets
Area IV: Law, Rights & Social Change
Area V: Law & Sovereignty
* LS H195B Honors Thesis or 4 units of LS 199 Independent Study may substitute for one of the two courses.
LS 110 Special Topics Lectures – These courses have lecture with a required discussion section. The topics change from term to term and we recycle the numbers, so the only way to find out which Areas they may fall under, you must look under ‘Course Offerings’ for the semester in which you are taking the course.
LS 190 Seminars – These are upper division courses that do not have discussion sections or GSIs. Seminars are designed to be smaller in size and involve more discussion. LS 190’s count towards the Distribution requirements. Because we recycle the numbers every semester, check under ‘Course Offerings’ for the semester in which you are taking the course to find which Area(s) it falls under.
Law-Related Courses – You may use up to 2 law-related courses from outside the Legal Studies Program to count towards the Distribution Requirements, for a maximum of 8 units from the U.S. or a maximum of 12 units from abroad.
Outside courses are an option, not a requirement. Outside courses should normally be drawn from the pre-approved list of law-related UCB courses, but may be approved from other four year institutions, study abroad programs, and UCDC. If a course you are considering is not on the pre-approved list or listed in 'Course Offerings by Semester', you must submit a syllabus and description to the Legal Studies Academic Advisor for approval. Submitting via e-mail is preferred.
Submit no more than two syllabi for consideration. See the law-related courses page.
Capstone Experience – Legal Studies students are strongly encouraged to enroll in one Legal Studies seminar course (LS 190), preferably in their senior year, to complete their remaining units. Alternatively, students who meet eligibility requirements are strongly encouraged to enroll in LS H195A, B and C, the Honors Program, for their capstone experience. Students who have a faculty mentor and a desire to do a research project but do not meet the eligibility requirements for Honors, may enroll in 4 units of LS 199 for their capstone experience provided that they meet the eligibility requirements for Independent Study. See the research page for eligibility requirements for 199 and H195A/B/C.