Our policies & procedures provide law students with critical information regarding graduation requirements, curricular guidelines, and academic integrity.
Each first year law student acknowledges receipt of the academic policies and procedures, which are posted here for ongoing reference.
Submit a GARP Acknowledgement Form.
Students at the University at Buffalo School of Law must meet certain standards to achieve a predictable level of competence across the range of knowledge and skills expected of practicing lawyers in accordance with American Bar Association and other industry standards.
Externships and Judicial Clerkships Policies and Procedures:
Students requesting a formal leave of absence from the School of Law must contact the Vice Dean for Student Affairs. If a leave of absence is granted students must file a Petition for Waiver of Faculty Policy.
A leave of absence may be granted for one academic year. If a leave of absence is needed longer than one academic year you must speak with the Vice Dean for Student Affairs.
Students approved for a leave of absence remain liable for any outstanding tuition and fee charges.
International students are advised to consult with the Vice Dean for International and Graduate Programs, as well as, UB's International Student Services, 210 Talbert Hall, North Campus, 716-645-2258, prior to applying for a leave of absence.
Failure to register for classes or secure a leave of absence by the last day of classes of the semester in which the leave is to begin, will result in the student losing their access to register for classes in a future semester.
An academic withdrawal is a formal process available to students who experience events outside of their control that impact their ability to perform academically. This can include, but is not limited to a significant medical issue, the death of an immediate family member, or active military service. If approved, an academic withdrawal replaces all grades in a given term to W. An academic withdrawal can be requested by a student after the drop/add period.
Withdrawing from courses can affect your graduation date, since you may need to retake courses with W grades in future terms.
Withdrawal can also impact your financial aid package. Your financial aid advisor will be able to assist you with questions related to this topic.
Students requesting an Academic Withdrawal should also consider if a leave of absence or other change to their enrollment status would be a better option for their situation.
Consult with the Vice Dean for Student Affairs to discuss the appropriate procedures and the required justification and documentation needed to request an academic withdrawal (grade of W).
Academic withdrawals are approved only in circumstances where impact to academic performance due to a personal or immediate-family medical event, disability, death or active military service is documented sufficiently. In a policy approved by the Faculty Senate, requests for academic withdrawal that are based upon extraordinary circumstances are only considered for all the registered courses in a given semester. Requests for academic withdrawal for select courses in a given semester will not be approved.
Requests for academic withdrawal can only be approved if submitted within one semester of the event. If you have already received a semester of academic withdrawals due to an ongoing medical event, you may not receive approval for a subsequent semester. However, if you have received an academic withdrawal because of one medical event and then a different medical event occurs, such circumstances will be considered.
If it is decided you are able to receive an academic withdrawal and you want to petition the university for a tuition and fees refund for the semester, you must file the Academic Withdrawal Petition with the law school's Records and Registration office. The petition will then be filed on your behalf with the university Academic Withdrawal committee and you will receive their decision after the committee meets and reviewss your petition.