Single Photo Page

It’s because one of the most improbable coincidences ever occurred right here at Thomas Jefferson School of Law’s new downtown campus.

While construction crews were excavating the new site, a backhoe operator struck something hard. It turned out to be the tusk of a 300-thousand year old Ice-Age mammoth that was buried in the soil for all those thousands of years!

Paleontologists unearthed both tusks and the skull of the mammoth, in what they describe as a highly significant fossil find.

What made the find such a coincidence was that one of the most ardent scholars of ancient mammoths was none other than President Thomas Jefferson, after whom our law school is named.

Jefferson not only had a “bone room” in the White House where he collected the skeletons of these ancient giants, but he fully expected the Lewis & Clark expedition he sent into the wilds of undiscovered North America to encounter live mammoths during their journey.

“As the father of American paleontology, Thomas Jefferson would be ecstatic that the school that carries his name has such rich paleontological discoveries,” said TJSL Dean Rudy Hasl.

The discovery of the mammoth attracted world-wide media attention to the law school and its fledgling construction project.

Only weeks after the mammoth was removed by the San Diego Natural History Museum paleontologists, lightning struck again. Ten feet directly below where the mammoth had lain, workers found the skeleton of an ancient California Gray Whale. It was about 500-thousand years old and was an ancestor of the gray whales that migrate off the San Diego coast each year.

Amazingly, the paleontological discoveries didn’t slow construction of the new building in the least. Crews continued to excavate in other parts of the dig site and it was full-speed ahead. Other, smaller fossils were discovered during the digging, but nothing like the mammoth and the whale.

What becomes of the treasure trove of fossils? Some of the bones are on display at the museum in Balboa Park and there is a display case in TJSL's library with part of the mammoth's tusk, a molar and several other bones.

Parts of these ancient creatures, however, will always be at the law school site where they have rested for hundreds of thousands of years.

The museum is donating one of the whale’s ribs for display in the lobby of the new law school building, as well as some of the eons-old seashells, like the giant scallops that were hidden in soil that used to be ocean floor. Other shell fragments from the dig have been ground up to become part of the floor tiles in the lobby of the new building, where everyone who enters the law school will be literally walking on ancient history.

It all seems to fit together so perfectly—the law school named after the president who treasured the bones of giant creatures and the fossils that will be part of the law school as long as it stands.  

Thomas Jefferson School of Law is committed to the health and well-being of all of our students. Options are provided for both residential students studying on campus as well as options for all students enrolled in the Law School.

Health Insurance

All residential students are required to maintain health insurance throughout their studies. To assist our residential students to meet the health insurance requirement, Academic HealthPlans (AHP) has been selected to administer a comprehensive student health insurance plan underwritten by Aetna.  The Law School’s health insurance plan offers access regardless of pre-existing conditions. Students can also add dental insurance and vision insurance once their health insurance is active. (There is no dependent option.)

Residential students are automatically enrolled in the health insurance plan each Academic year. (Online students are exempt.) Students who have comparable health insurance coverage can waive out of this plan. If a student wishes to opt-out of the school-offered coverage, they should review the email sent to all students prior to the start of each Academic year. 

For more information about benefits, costs, opt-out process and more please review the page at  https://tjsl.myahpcare.com/

Online Counseling & Health Care Options

In addition to the above health insurance, Thomas Jefferson School of Law has expanded services to provide all students with additional opportunities to see a medical professional or a counselor. Through our partnership with AcademicLiveCare (ALC), students now have access to an extensive online program featuring 24/7 on-demand counseling, urgent medical care, therapy, and psychiatry. Whether you want to make a quick visit between classes, after dinner, or while traveling home on vacation, all students can obtain on-demand virtual visits with a mental health professional on their smartphone, tablet, or computer.

AcademicLiveCare is provided to ALL Thomas Jefferson School of Law Students, not only those enrolled in the student health insurance plan. For more information about the resources available under this plan, please visit https://tjsl.myahpcare.com/telehealth.

Vaccination Policy

Thomas Jefferson School of Law is committed to protecting the health and well-being of its students, faculty, and staff. Therefore, it is highly recommended that all students obtain the following vaccinations and preventative screenings prior to starting classes:

• Tetanus, Diphtheria, and Pertussis (DTap or DTP)
• Measles, Mumps and Rubella (MMR)
• Meningococcal
• Hepatitis B
• Varicella
• Screening for Tuberculosis
• Influenza
• Covid-19

These immunizations and screening are available at no cost for students enrolled in the Law School’s health insurance plan.

Thomas Jefferson School of Law is accredited by the State of California’s Committee of Bar Examiners (CBE).  The Law School welcomes transfer applications from students at law schools accredited by the CBE,the American Bar Association (ABA), and from accredited foreign law schools. Students offered admission to Thomas Jefferson will be enrolled in the CBE program. The Law School does not accept transfer applications from students at unaccredited law schools.  All transfer applicants must have a bachelor’s degree and current LSAT score.  Passing the First-Year Law Students’ Examinationis not required to apply as a transfer student.   

Students seeking to transfer from law schools accredited by the CBE or ABA must submit:

• To LSAC:
  • A “Transfer Application,” which includes the following:
    • Personal Statement
    • Resume  
  • CAS Report, which includes the following:
    • Law School transcripts
    • College transcripts, showing bachelor’s degree granted
    • LSAT score
    • Writing sample
    • One current letter of recommendation  
• To Thomas Jefferson School of Law:
  • A letter of good standing from your current law school
  • Course syllabi for each course you are seeking to transfer units 

In accordance with the California Business and Professions Code and the regulations of the State Bar of California, transfer credit is awarded at the discretion of the Law School. However, the Law School generally accepts credit for courses completed within 36-calendar months of the anticipated date of enrollment and only for courses in which the applicant received a grade at the “good standing” level or higher from the originating law school.  The number of units of credit allowed for any course completed at a prior law school cannot exceed the number of units the Law School awards for the same or similar course and corresponding classroom hours. The Law School may not award credit for prior externships or clinics.  Transfer credit is limited to a maximum of 40 units, which is half the credit required for graduation. The determination regarding unit transfer is made by the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs after reviewing the syllabi for the courses for which the applicant is seeking transfer units. 

The Law School does not have a transfer or articulation agreement with any other college or university. 

In addition to a bar examination, there are character, fitness, and other qualifications for admission to the bar in every U.S. jurisdiction. Applicants are encouraged to determine the requirements for any jurisdiction in which they intend to seek admission by contacting the jurisdiction. Addresses for all relevant agencies are available through the National Conference of Bar Examiners.  

Thomas Jefferson asks applicants to answer a series of character and fitness questions on the application. Students who provide an affirmative response to the character and fitness questions are required to submit an explanatory addendum with their application. Because of the high ethical standards to which lawyers are held, the failure to disclose an act or event can lead to more serious consequences than the act or event itself. Failure to provide truthful answers, or failure to inform the Office of Admissions of any changes to your answers in advance of matriculation or during school enrollment, may result in revocation of admission or disciplinary action by the School of Law, or denial of permission to practice law by the state in which you seek bar admission.

For more information about the California Bar Requirements, please visit: http://www.calbar.ca.gov.

Practice in California

Thomas Jefferson School of Law is accredited by the Committee of Bar Examiners of the State Bar of California. The legal education provided by Thomas Jefferson School of Law meets all requirements under the rules and regulations pertaining to admission to the practice of law in California. 

In accordance with the California Business and Professions Code and the regulations of the State Bar of California, a student who intends to seek admission to practice law in California must meet all eligibility requirements set forth in the Rules of the State Bar, Title 4 Division 1, Chapter 2 and California Code, Business and Professional Code – BPC Sec. 6060.  An application of admission to the California Bar consists of an application for registration, an application for determination of moral character, an application for any required examination, and payment of the required fees.

In addition to the determination of moral character required by the State Bar, Thomas Jefferson School of Law also considers the moral character of each applicant during the admissions process. Each applicant must disclose all required information on their application and if admitted, has the continuing duty of disclosure through graduation. 

California requires that students intending to practice in California register with the State Bar of California within 90 days of the commencement of their law studies. Registration forms for the State Bar of California are available online at www.calbar.org.

Practice Outside of California

Study at, or graduation from, this law school may not qualify a student to take the bar examination or be admitted to practice law in jurisdictions other than California.  A student who intends to seek admission to practice law outside of California should contact the admitting authority in that jurisdiction for information regarding its education and admission requirements. 

See also the National Conference of Bar Examiners Comprehensive Guide to Bar Admission Requirements, which includes this state-by-state review. 

Check out the TJSL Library Blog! We’ll keep you up to date on all exciting Library happenings plus let you know about cool legal and information technology developments. We hope you'll visit often!

ThomChat http://tjsllibrary.wordpress.com/

Thomas Jefferson School of Law has two centers of academic excellence, the Intellectual Property, Sports & Entertainment Law Center and the Center for Criminal Law and Policy. The centers were created to take advantage of Thomas Jefferson's existing academic strengths. Each center addresses profound changes in our society that are giving rise to new fields of law, while rapidly transforming virtually traditional areas of law practice.

The centers combine a substantial body of faculty research, a large collection of courses and speaker programs and colloquia.