Academic Honors and Prizes

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Academic Honors

The Faculty of Law has established a system of academic honors to recognize outstanding academic achievement. These honors, which are noted on a student’s official transcript, are awarded at the end of each academic year based on a student’s performance during that year.  

Honors system in place beginning with LL.M. Class of 2023/E.LL.M. Class of 2024/J.D. Class of 2025

Highest Honors for students in the top 2% of their respective class based on GPA.
High Honors for students in the top 10% of their class based on GPA
Honors for students in the top 40% of their respective class based on GPA
All: To be considered for any of the honors listed above, a student must earn at least 15 letter graded law credits toward their degree during an academic year.

Note that honors are calculated based on GPA as it compares to students in the same class year (i.e., a 1L student’s GPA is compared against the GPA distribution of the 1L class). 

Only grades earned in Law School classes (i.e., not in other divisions of the University nor while enrolled in an exchange program at another school) are used in calculating honors. No student will receive honors for a year that includes a grade of "Incomplete."

To be considered for Highest Honors, High Honors, or Honors, a student must earn at least 15 letter graded law credits toward their degree during an academic year.

Special Honors for Outstanding Performance in a Class

Faculty may choose to recognize the single best student in a class with an enrollment of 30 or more. This designation—Special Honors for Outstanding Performance in a Class—is awarded at the instructor’s discretion, and the instructor is free to choose whether to award the prize in a given course or a given semester.

Cumulative Honors

J.D. students who receive High or Highest Honors in each of the academic years in which they are enrolled at Columbia Law School are awarded the Ruth Bader Ginsburg Prize at graduation. J.D. transfer students who enroll at Columbia Law School at the beginning of their 2L year are eligible to receive the Ginsburg Prize if they receive High or Highest Honors in both their 2L and 3L years. 

The John Ordronaux Prize is awarded annually to the J.D. student who has achieved the highest GPA in the graduating class. The Walter Gellhorn Prize is awarded annually to the LL.M. student who has achieved the highest GPA in the graduating class.

Related Links

Honors system in place through J.D. Class of 2024/LL.M. Class of 2022

Honors Calculations and Procedures

Students must be in full-time residence at the Law School for the entire academic year in order to be eligible for honors. Students participating in approved study abroad programs remain in full-time residence at the Law School and can be considered for honors if all other criteria for honors are met. Grades earned in courses taken outside Columbia Law School (e.g., other divisions of the University, NYU Law School as part of the CLS-NYU Exchange Program, other law schools while a visiting student, study abroad programs) will not be factored into honors GPA calculations. Students participating in joint degree programs can only be considered for honors during the academic years in which they are resident in the Law School for both the fall and spring semesters.

For students graduating in May, academic year honors determinations are made a week or two after Commencement. For continuing students, honors calculations are made on a weekly basis during June and late July, once all grades have been submitted. To capture late grade submissions, a final honors calculation for the academic year just ended is made during the last week in July. Students cannot receive academic honors for a year that includes a grade of incomplete. Therefore, students who wish to be considered for honors are advised to consult with the relevant instructor about a submission date for work that will allow enough time to determine and record the outstanding grade by not later than the last week of July.

Honors notations appear on students' unofficial LawNet transcript when bestowed and on the official transcript no later than August.