Where Law Means Business.
Gain expertise in the areas where law intersects with business-- finance, entrepreneurship, estate planning, green business initiatives, intellectual property, sports, and the tax code. The program offers rich experiential learning opportunities inside and outside of the classroom. Courses, clinics, externships, and moot court competitions introduce you to a wide array of topics such as contracts, business associations, intellectual property, start-ups, bankruptcy, in-house counsel work, and tax.
Business Law Concentrations
Either through individual courses or completing an optional business law concentration, students can gain expertise in a variety of different areas of law.
Current students may review the concentration requirements and forms on MyLaw.
Alumni Highlight — Douglass Barron, JD ‘12
Associate, Corporate Restructuring Department, Paul Hastings, New York, NY
“Oregon Business Law professors provided me with key mentorship in following my career path and networked on my behalf to help me obtain critical professional opportunities.”
Douglass Barron now works at one of the top law firms in the country. He has been tackling the Title III restructuring of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.
Careers
As a business lawyer, you may work at a small firm, a large firm, as in-house counsel for a start-up company or corporation, or as an entrepreneur. You may represent clients in transactional matters, such as forming a company or licensing intellectual property, or in business litigation or bankruptcy. You may work with clients on business planning or matters pertaining to intellectual property, energy law, employment law, sustainable business, mergers and acquisitions, international business, bankruptcy, or tax.
Potential careers in business law include:
- Bankruptcy Attorney
- Commercial Litigator
- Corporate Counsel
- Health Care Attorney
- Intellectual Property Attorney
- Mergers and Acquisitions Attorney
- Public Interest
- Real Estate Attorney
- Securities Law Attorney
- Tax Attorney
Academics
Sample of Business Law Coursework
FIRST YEAR (1L) (Assigned courses)
SAMPLE UPPER DIVISION COURSEWORK
Required and elective courses will vary depending on which concentration you are pursuing. Below is a non-concentration-specific list of possible business law courses.
ADDITIONAL COURSES
Summer Sports Institute
Spend five weeks over the summer immersing yourself in the world of Sports Law. Top law faculty from across the country and guest speakers from the professional sports industry, the media, the NCAA, and more, come together for a deep dive into business law using the sports industry as a case study.
Concurrent Degree Options
Practical Experience
A sample of some of the available practical experiences
FIRST YEAR (1L)
SECOND YEAR (2L) OPTIONS
THIRD YEAR (3L) OPTIONS
Clinics & Field Placements
- Business Law Clinic – intensive training and practical experience representing actual business clients in a simulated firm environment.
- Nonprofit Clinic –interdisciplinary clinic where students work together to assist boards of directors in executing their stewardship responsibilities.
- Bankruptcy field placements
- In-house field placements
- Intellectual property field placements
- US District Court field placements
- US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit field placements
- Oregon Supreme Court, Oregon Court of Appeals, and Oregon Tax Court field placements
- Circuit Court field placements (Oregon)
- US Immigration Court field placements
Professional Development
At Oregon Law, we take your future seriously. As a law student, you will take a required professional development seminar your first year.
You will also receive individualized, tailored professional development coaching from a professional who will guide you to make strong career choices throughout your time at Oregon Law.
Extracurriculars
New Venture Championship
The New Venture Championship (NVC) is the Pacific Northwest’s original six-round business competition. Teams from elite universities come to Portland every year to pitch their venture plans and vie for cash awards.
Faculty Highlight — Eric Priest
Professor Eric Priest researches in the area of intellectual property law, with a focus on copyright law in the information age and the creative industries in the US and China. He teaches Copyrights and Trademark Law and supervises students who undertake intellectual property field placements. Priest currently serves on the US-China IP Cooperation Dialogue, a semi-annual exchange between US and Chinese experts on the most challenging intellectual property issues facing China. Before entering the law field, Priest spent a decade as a music producer and songwriter. He worked in the Chinese music industry as a consultant, Web entrepreneur, songwriter, and producer.
"I enjoy helping our students launch great careers in intellectual property law,” Priest says. “Our students have gained invaluable experience and expanded their professional networks through IP field placements at law firms, companies, and in government, including a top LA entertainment law firm, the US Patent and Trademark Office, and the US Chamber of Commerce Global IP Center in Washington DC, to name just a few."