Certificate in Health Law

For those students who meet the rigorous requirements of the Center's Health Law program, the Center offers the Certificate in Health Law. Fulfilling the requirements of the Certificate expresses that a Saint Louis University J.D. student has not only completed the basic J.D. and core Health Law courses, but has also used these skills in research and practical skills environments. This Certificate is evidence of the seriousness with which students approach the field of Health Law and their full exposure to the richness of the program, including work performed under the close supervision of the Center's nationally recognized faculty. Most importantly, by obtaining the Certificate, the School of Law and the Center for Health Law Studies certifies that students are not only fully prepared to meet the demands of this rapidly changing legal field, but that students also have excelled in the Health Law concentration.

Certificate Requirements

(1) Register for the health law certificate
A student who wishes to pursue the Certificate in Health Law Program must complete an application available online or from Ms. Mary Ann Jauer in room 158. Students should register as soon as they decide to pursue the Certificate. Students are encouraged to apply as early as their first year of legal studies.  In no event will a student be permitted to register for the Certificate in the last semester of law school.  


(2) Ten credit hours of designated health law courses
Certificate students must take and obtain a grade of C or better in a minimum of ten credit hours in designated health law courses.  Please note that although a grade of C- is possible beginning the fall of 07-08, it is by definition indicative of unacceptable progress in a given subject and will not be accepted as counting toward the Certificate.  Courses and seminars which may be used to satisfy this requirement are updated during each registration period for the following semester.


(3) Practical experience
Certificate students must gain supervised experience in a health law practice setting. Students may satisfy this requirement by enrolling in the School's Legal Clinics or Externship Program (generally during the 3rd year of full time study or 4th year of part time or dual degree study).

In special circumstances, students may satisfy this requirement by establishing, with the guidance of a faculty member, a non-credit externship in a practice setting (ordinarily with a government agency, a non-profit provider or advocacy organization) or by submitting evidence of completion of substantial part-time or summer employment in a health law setting which included significant research and drafting relating to health care law.  

Non-credit externships and part-time/summer employment require at least 115 hours of work on health law issues under the supervision of a licensed attorney.  A non-credit externship can only count toward the certificate with prior approval by the Center for Health Law Studies.  


(4) Publishable paper
Students must submit a publishable health law paper to be reviewed and approved by the director of the School's Center for Health Law Studies. Papers completed for a health law seminar or directed research will fulfill this requirement.  


(5) Colloquia attendance and five (5) critical summaries
Finally, the student must participate in the Center's Colloquia in Health Care Law. The Colloquium Series will provide students with an opportunity to explore contemporary issues in health law. The Colloquia series includes at least five Distinguished Speakers each academic year and an annual Health Law Symposium. Up to two critical summaries can be turned in from any one annual symposium.  

In order to meet this requirement, a student must attend at least five speakers over the course of his or her law school career. Evening students and students with documented class conflicts may view the recorded presentation to fulfill the attendance requirement.  Students can begin fulfilling this requirement during their first year of law school.  A student must have completed at least three critical summaries by the end of the second to last semester of their law school career.

Critical summaries should consist of a short evaluation of the information presented by the speaker and the student’s reaction to and evaluation of the presentation. The summary usually amounts to 2-4 double spaced pages. Outlines are not accepted. The summaries are due within thirty days (30) of the presentation.  In no event will summaries be accepted after the semester in which the presentation occurred.