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2023 Best Legal Research Schools

118 Colleges
$66,544 Avg Salary
$26,000 Avg Student Debt

In 2020-2021, 6,659 people earned a degree or certificate in legal research, making the major the #40 most popular in the United States.

When it comes to higher education, there are a lot of options for students. Along with traditional schools that require in-person attendence, you can attend one of many reputable online schools. Some programs even offer a hybrid experience. Alternatively, you may choose a trade school that prepares you to enter the workforce with knowledge in a specific field.

The Best Legal Research Schools ranking is one of many tools that Grad Degree Search has developed to help you make your educational decision. Our analysis looked at 118 schools in the United States to see which programs offered the best educational experiences for students.

View our full ranking methodology.

Check out the legal research programs at these schools if you want to get the best education that money can buy.

Our analysis found University of Virginia - Main Campus to be the best school for legal research students who want to pursue a degree in the United States. University of Virginia is a very large public school located in the suburb of Charlottesville.

Full Legal Research at University of Virginia - Main Campus Report

#2

University of Chicago

Chicago, IL

The excellent programs at University of Chicago helped the school earn the #2 place on this year’s ranking of the best legal research schools in the United States. UChicago is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Chicago.

Read full report on Legal Research at University of Chicago

#3

University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, PA

Out of the 118 schools in the United States that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Pennsylvania landed the # 3 spot on the list. Located in the city of Philadelphia, UPenn is a private not-for-profit college with a very large student population.

Full Legal Research at University of Pennsylvania Report

#4

Georgetown University

Washington, DC

The excellent programs at Georgetown University helped the school earn the #4 place on this year’s ranking of the best legal research schools in the United States. Georgetown is a very large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Washington.

Full Legal Research at Georgetown University Report

#5

Stanford University

Stanford, CA

Out of the 118 schools in the United States that were part of this year’s ranking, Stanford University landed the # 5 spot on the list. Stanford is a large private not-for-profit school located in the large suburb of Stanford.

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#6

Harvard University

Cambridge, MA

Harvard University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for legal research students. It came in at #6 on the list. Located in the medium-sized city of Cambridge, Harvard is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.

Full Legal Research at Harvard University Report

#7

New York University

New York, NY

New York University landed the #7 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best legal research programs. Located in the large city of New York, NYU is a private not-for-profit college with a very large student population.

Read full report on Legal Research at New York University

Columbia University in the City of New York ranked #8 on this year’s Best Legal Research Schools list. Columbia is a very large private not-for-profit school located in the large city of New York.

Full Legal Research at Columbia University in the City of New York Report

With a ranking of #9, University of Michigan - Ann Arbor did quite well on this year’s best schools for legal research students. Located in the city of Ann Arbor, U-M is a public school with a very large student population.

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University of California - Berkeley came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Best Legal Research Schools ranking. Located in the medium-sized city of Berkeley, UC Berkeley is a public college with a fairly large student population.

Full Legal Research at University of California - Berkeley Report

#11

Vanderbilt University

Nashville, TN

Vanderbilt University came in at #11 in this year’s edition of the Best Legal Research Schools ranking. Located in the large city of Nashville, Vanderbilt is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.

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#12

University of Florida

Gainesville, FL

University of Florida landed the #12 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best legal research programs. Located in the medium-sized city of Gainesville, UF is a public school with a very large student population.

Read full report on Legal Research at University of Florida

#13

Northwestern University

Evanston, IL

Northwestern University came in at #13 in this year’s edition of the Best Legal Research Schools ranking. Located in the city of Evanston, Northwestern is a private not-for-profit college with a very large student population.

Full Legal Research at Northwestern University Report

#14

University of Notre Dame

Notre Dame, IN

University of Notre Dame ranked #14 on this year’s Best Legal Research Schools list. Located in the suburb of Notre Dame, Notre Dame is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.

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#15

Boston University

Boston, MA

Boston University came in at #15 in this year’s edition of the Best Legal Research Schools ranking. Located in the city of Boston, Boston U is a private not-for-profit college with a very large student population.

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Loyola University Chicago came in at #16 in this year’s edition of the Best Legal Research Schools ranking. Located in the large city of Chicago, Loyola Chicago is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.

Full Legal Research at Loyola University Chicago Report

#17

University of San Diego

San Diego, CA

University of San Diego ranked #17 on this year’s Best Legal Research Schools list. Located in the large city of San Diego, USD is a private not-for-profit school with a moderately-sized student population.

Full Legal Research at University of San Diego Report

Additional Noteworthy Schools

These are some additional schools worth mentioning that are also great but just didn't quite make the cut to earn our top Best Legal Research Schools award.

Rank College Location
18 George Washington University Washington, DC
19 Fordham University Bronx, NY
20 Loyola Marymount University Los Angeles, CA
21 Widener University Chester, PA
22 The University of Texas at Austin Austin, TX
23 University of California - Los Angeles Los Angeles, CA

View the Best Legal Research Schools for a specific region near you.

Region
Southeast
New England
Rocky Mountains
Plains States
Middle Atlantic
Far Western US
Southwest
Great Lakes

One of 4 majors within the area of study, legal research has other similar majors worth exploring.

Related Major Annual Graduates
Law 36,216
Legal Professions (Other) 1,424
Legal Support Services 446
Non-Professional General Legal Studies 444

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 25 schools only.

  • Read more about our ranking methodology.
  • The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) serves as the core of the rest of our data about colleges.
  • Some other college data, including much of the graduate earnings data, comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard).

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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