Dual Degree in Law and Urban and Regional Planning (JD+MURP)

Students entering the Law School must complete the required first-year law curriculum. Students must take one elective course of three or four credit hours during their second semester. All students must complete the following before graduation: at least one international or comparative law course of two or more credit hours, at least one upper-level course with a rigorous writing component, one statutory or regulatory course of three or more credit hours, one course in professional responsibility of two or more credit hours, and two credit hours of experiential learning. 

Separate courses must be taken to fulfill the upper-level course with a rigorous writing component, the professional responsibility course, and the experiential learning course.

The JD requires a minimum total of 83 credits, earned between Law School courses and courses through the A. Alfred Taubman College of Architecture and Urban Planning within the Rackham School of Graduate Studies. Students must earn at least 71 credits toward the JD through courses taken in the Law School.

Twelve (12) credit hours may be taken from the satisfaction of requirements for the MURP. If you are admitted to the Taubman College of Architecture and Urban Planning and you choose to pursue the JD/MURP program, you must notify both the Law School’s Office of Student Records and Office of Student Life.

The MURP requires a minimum of 48 credit hours, including core courses. Students must earn a minimum of 33 credit hours toward the MURP, 30 of which must come from UP courses.

Fifteen (15) credit hours may be satisfied by appropriate courses taken in the Law School.

Applicants must gain separate and independent admission to both schools. Applicants should contact the Law School Admissions and the A. Alfred Taubman College of Architecture and Urban Planning Program offices for application and admission information. If you are enrolled in a graduate program in another school or department at the University, the Law School will accept a valid GRE, GMAT, or MCAT score in lieu of an LSAT score; otherwise, a valid LSAT score is required.

Students must satisfy the degree requirements of each school, and should consult with advisers in each school for the precise graduation requirements for each degree and for information about course offerings. Law School courses are not offered in the summer term. Students will not receive credit toward the JD for non-law coursework taken prior to matriculation at the Law School. Students should consult with the adviser at the companion school concerning credit toward the MURP for Law coursework.

Students are required to enroll in either the Land Use Planning and Control course through the Law School, or the Legal Aspects of the Planning Process course through the School of Architecture and Planning.

During the third and fourth years of the program, students are permitted to elect courses in both schools. Students generally are not restricted in their selection of courses in each school beyond the first year in Law School and the core curriculum in the Urban and Regional Planning Program. Tuition will be assessed at either the Law School or the Graduate School rate, whichever is higher, when courses toward both degrees are taken in one term.

At the beginning of their final year of study in the combined program, students should consult with their Master of Urban and Regional Planning academic adviser and the Law School’s Office of Student Records regarding forms that need to be completed prior to graduation. 

Also at this time, students should submit a Dual/Joint Degree Election Form for approval from both the Law School and the Taubman College of Architecture and Urban Planning. Students may also consult with the Law School’s Office of Student Records if there are any questions regarding completion of this form.

Dual/Joint Degree Election Form

The combined degree is not open to those who have already earned either the JD or the MURP. Students who are registered in the first or second year at the Law School or the first year of the Urban and Regional Planning Program may apply for admission to the dual degree program.

Any JD who enrolls concurrently in another degree program will be awarded the JD degree after completing all of the requirements for the dual, joint, or combined degrees. (As a practical matter, this means that the student will receive the JD degree either after or at the same time as they receive the degree(s) in the other program(s).) This policy will not affect the student’s class year for purposes of the Law School’s commencement ceremony or alumni events, and it will not apply if a student discontinues the other degree program(s). A law student who believes that they will experience some hardship as a result of this policy may petition the Associate Dean for Academic Programming for an exception.

JD courses traditionally have a later grading deadline than other degree programs. On some occasions, this later JD grading deadline may affect a student in their final term if another degree program desires all of the student’s grades prior to the JD grading deadline.