Many new lawyers learn business practices and culture the hard way — on the job. Others enroll in combined J.D.-MBA programs, requiring an additional year of study. UVA Law School offers a third way: The John W. Glynn Jr. Law & Business Program, which builds a bridge between law school and the real problems encountered in business law practice. By integrating business and legal analysis into the law school classroom, the program better prepares students to serve their future clients from day one.
The program is designed for students aspiring to structure and negotiate business transactions, advise company directors and management, represent businesses in litigation and disputes, begin their careers in a corporate position, or serve in government regulatory agencies. The program educates students about the needs and goals of commercial and financial services clients, the concepts and skills needed to guide those clients, and the importance of problem-solving. Students who participate in the program gain experience with the sophisticated and challenging projects they will encounter in their careers.
The study of business law is intellectually engaging and challenging. It prompts us to evaluate the appropriate role of government regulation and mandatory legal rules versus private ordering, default rules and self-regulation. It raises questions about how legislatures and courts address the relationship of the profit motive and other community interests, and it requires consideration of the allocation of risk and responsibilities among private parties, and the conflicting needs and demands of those parties. It gives students an understanding of why businesses behave as they do and prepares students to advise clients about business plans that comply with the law and are socially responsible.
The Law & Business Program provides opportunities to all law students. It is not a separate “track” and does not lead to a separate degree or certificate or a combined J.D./MBA. Instead, the program provides a chance for all students to build skills that many employers are seeking.
Professor Quinn Curtis discusses lawyers’ roles in the business world and the John W. Glynn Jr. Law & Business Program. This session was part of UVA Law’s 2023 Admitted Students Open House.
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Academic and market interest in environmental, social, and governance (ESG) investing has grown markedly in recent years. Although less prominent, a...
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The following is a list of courses offered during the current and two previous academic years. Numbers in parentheses indicate which academic year(s) the courses were offered, i.e., 2022-23 is coded (23), 2023-2024 is coded (24) and 2024-25 is coded (25).
Accounting: Understanding and Analyzing Financial Statements (23,24,25) Advising Boards of Directors (Public and Private Equity) Under Siege (SC) (23,24,25) Agency, Partnership and the LLC (24,25) Antitrust (23,24,25) Antitrust in the Digital Economy (SC) (24) Antitrust Review of Mergers in a Global Environment (23,24,25) Banking and Financial Institutions (23,24,25) Bankruptcy (23,24,25) Bankruptcy (Law & Business) (23) BigLaw and the Profession (and Business) of Law (23,24,25) Business and Governmental Tort Liability (23) Business Planning (23,24) Complex Commercial Contract Negotiations (23) Contract Theory (23,25) Corporate Democracy: The Proxy Fight (SC) (25) Corporate Finance (23,24,25) Corporate Governance - Shareholder Activism (SC) (24) Corporate Law as Innovation (SC) (24) Corporate Litigation in the Delaware Court of Chancery (SC) (23,25) Corporate Social Responsibility Seminar (25) Corporate Strategy (SC) (24) Corporate Tax (23,24,25) Corporate Transactions - Startup to Exit (SC) (23,24) Corporations (23,24,25) Corporations (Law & Business) (23,24,25) Corporations, Investors and ESG (23,24) Cryptocurrency Law and Policy (SC) (23,24) Deals (23) Drug Product Liability Litigation Seminar (23,24,25) Emerging AI Legal Issues (SC) (25) Emerging Growth Companies and Venture Capital Financing: Principles and Practice (23,24,25) Emerging Markets: Principles and Practice (23,24,25) Employee Benefits Law (25) Energy and Environmental Products Trading and Commodities Regulation (SC) (23) EU Business Law (SC) (25) European Union Law (SC) (24) Federal Regulation of Investment Companies (SC) (25) Feminism and the Free Market (SC) (24,25) Franchise Law (23) Global Business and International Corruption (SC) (23,24,25) Global Contracting: A Case Study (SC) (23,24,25) Government Contract Law (23,24) Inside the Boardroom (SC) (23,24,25) Insurance (23,25) Internal Investigations (SC) (25) International Business Negotiation (23,24,25) International Business Transactions (24,25) International Debt Transactions (23) International Sales Law (25) International Taxation (23,24,25) International Trade Law and Policy (23,24,25) Introduction to Law and Business (23,24,25) Introduction to Negotiation (SC) (25) Israeli Business Law and Innovation (SC) (23) Law and Business Colloquium (24,25) Law of Public-Private Partnerships (23,24,25) Leadership and Team Management (SC) (23,25) Legal Issues in Corporate Finance (Law & Business) (24) Legal Practice and the Startup Company: An Inside Look (SC) (23,24,25) Management of BigLaw Firms: Balancing Culture and Profits (SC) (23,24,25) Mergers and Acquisitions (23,24,25) Monetary Constitution Seminar (23,24,25) Negotiating a Joint Venture in China (SC) (23) Nonprofit Organizations (23,24,25) Nonprofit Organizations: Principles and Practice (23,24,25) On Purpose: An Introduction to Leadership, Decision-making and Culture (24,25) Partnership Tax (23,24,25) Personal Data Protection in Europe (SC) (23) Public M&A Negotiation (SC) (23) Real Estate Transactions and Litigation (23,24,25) Repugnant Transactions (23,24,25) Rise of ESG in Corporate Law and Governance (SC) (23) Secured Transactions (23,24,25) Securities Litigation and Enforcement (23,24,25) Securities Regulation (23,24,25) Securities Regulation (Law & Business) (23,24,25) Sports Law (23,24,25) Stakeholderism and Business Law (SC) (24) Taboo Trades (23,24,25) The Business of Banking and Prudential Regulation (SC) (23,24,25) The In-House Lawyer: Duties and Tensions (SC) (24) Topics in Banking and Financial Regulation (24) Topics in Private Company Acquisitions (SC) (23,24,25) Topics in Public Equity Investing (SC) (23,25) Transactional Approach to Mergers and Acquisitions (23,24,25) Transactional Law: Drafting, Communication and Negotiation (23,24,25) Truth, Lies and Statistics for Lawyers (SC) (25) When Financial Contracts Blow Up (SC) (24) Wine and the Law (23)
A paper by University of Virginia School of Law professors Kristen Eichensehr and Cathy Hwang, in which they analyze national security’s reach into corporate transactions, has been recognized as a top 10 corporate law article for 2023.
Washington and Lee University professor Carliss Chatman; Chuck Cory ’82, former chairman of technology banking at Morgan Stanley; UVA Law professor Cathy Hwang; and Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer Senior Counsel Peter Lyons discuss Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk’s rapid takeover of Twitter and what’s next. The event was sponsored by the John W. Glynn, Jr. Law & Business Program.
Students can take advantage of an extensive set of curricular opportunities that allow them the flexibility to sample according to their interests or dive deep.
For students without a background in basic finance, accounting or other business methods, courses taught by UVA’s business and law faculty lay a foundation for understanding the corporate world. They include Accounting and Corporate Finance, Corporate Strategy and other classes focused on business skills.
Core Business Law Courses
Core business law courses include Corporations, Securities Regulation, Bankruptcy, Employment, Environmental Law, Income Tax, Antitrust and Intellectual Property.
Enhanced Core Law & Business Courses
Students who have taken the introductory Accounting and Corporate Finance course or who have equivalent experience are eligible to take enhanced versions of core Law & Business courses that incorporate finance and quantitative concepts. These typically include Corporations, Securities Regulation, Secured Transactions, Corporate Finance, and Mergers and Acquisitions, which are often taught by resident faculty members with graduate degrees in economics or finance.
SPRING Constitutional Law* (4) Legal Writing* (1) Property* (4) Corporate Finance (2) Accounting (2) Other Elective
* REQUIRED first-year curriculum
Second Year
FALL Corporations Securities Regulation (or spring semester) Federal Income Tax Administrative Law Corporate Strategy Negotiation Institute
SPRING Bankruptcy Secured Transactions Intellectual Property, such as Survey of Patent, Copyright and Trademark Antitrust
Other possibilities: Employment or Labor Law, Banking, Environmental Law, Teamwork
Third Year
If you have a good idea of your interests or the areas of law in which you would like to practice, you should start to concentrate on more advanced courses in those areas, such as transactions, tax, securities, intellectual property, international or litigation. A list of courses recently offered is at the Curriculum and Advanced Courses website pages. Otherwise, select a mix of advanced courses from the transaction, litigation and regulatory areas.
Possibilities include: Current Issues in Corporate Law M&A Real Estate Transactions Advanced Topics in Securities Law Private Equity and Hedge Funds Entrepreneurial Law Clinic Finance of Small Enterprises Legal Issues in Corporate Finance White Collar Criminal Defense International Civil Litigation Federal Regulation of Investment Companies International Finance International Tax International Patent Law Patent Clinic
The John W. Glynn Jr. Law & Business Program at the University of Virginia School of Law, which prepares graduates to enter the corporate world with advanced skills, is celebrating its 20th anniversary this year.
Berkeley Law School professor Abbye Atkinson and UVA Law professor Andrew Hayashi present research on how the law interacts with issues of race in business and finance, following an introduction by University of Chicago Law Dean Thomas J. Miles. Aneil Kovvali of the University of Chicago Law School moderated the event, which was sponsored by UVA Law’s John W. Glynn, Jr. Law & Business Program and the University of Chicago Law School’s Center on Law and Finance.
The following is a list of courses offered during the current and two previous academic years. Numbers in parentheses indicate which academic year(s) the courses were offered, i.e., 2022-23 is coded (23), 2023-2024 is coded (24) and 2024-25 is coded (25).
Accounting: Understanding and Analyzing Financial Statements (23,24,25) Advising Boards of Directors (Public and Private Equity) Under Siege (SC) (23,24,25) Agency, Partnership and the LLC (24,25) Antitrust (23,24,25) Antitrust in the Digital Economy (SC) (24) Antitrust Review of Mergers in a Global Environment (23,24,25) Banking and Financial Institutions (23,24,25) Bankruptcy (23,24,25) Bankruptcy (Law & Business) (23) BigLaw and the Profession (and Business) of Law (23,24,25) Business and Governmental Tort Liability (23) Business Planning (23,24) Complex Commercial Contract Negotiations (23) Contract Theory (23,25) Corporate Democracy: The Proxy Fight (SC) (25) Corporate Finance (23,24,25) Corporate Governance - Shareholder Activism (SC) (24) Corporate Law as Innovation (SC) (24) Corporate Litigation in the Delaware Court of Chancery (SC) (23,25) Corporate Social Responsibility Seminar (25) Corporate Strategy (SC) (24) Corporate Tax (23,24,25) Corporate Transactions - Startup to Exit (SC) (23,24) Corporations (23,24,25) Corporations (Law & Business) (23,24,25) Corporations, Investors and ESG (23,24) Cryptocurrency Law and Policy (SC) (23,24) Deals (23) Drug Product Liability Litigation Seminar (23,24,25) Emerging AI Legal Issues (SC) (25) Emerging Growth Companies and Venture Capital Financing: Principles and Practice (23,24,25) Emerging Markets: Principles and Practice (23,24,25) Employee Benefits Law (25) Energy and Environmental Products Trading and Commodities Regulation (SC) (23) EU Business Law (SC) (25) European Union Law (SC) (24) Federal Regulation of Investment Companies (SC) (25) Feminism and the Free Market (SC) (24,25) Franchise Law (23) Global Business and International Corruption (SC) (23,24,25) Global Contracting: A Case Study (SC) (23,24,25) Government Contract Law (23,24) Inside the Boardroom (SC) (23,24,25) Insurance (23,25) Internal Investigations (SC) (25) International Business Negotiation (23,24,25) International Business Transactions (24,25) International Debt Transactions (23) International Sales Law (25) International Taxation (23,24,25) International Trade Law and Policy (23,24,25) Introduction to Law and Business (23,24,25) Introduction to Negotiation (SC) (25) Israeli Business Law and Innovation (SC) (23) Law and Business Colloquium (24,25) Law of Public-Private Partnerships (23,24,25) Leadership and Team Management (SC) (23,25) Legal Issues in Corporate Finance (Law & Business) (24) Legal Practice and the Startup Company: An Inside Look (SC) (23,24,25) Management of BigLaw Firms: Balancing Culture and Profits (SC) (23,24,25) Mergers and Acquisitions (23,24,25) Monetary Constitution Seminar (23,24,25) Negotiating a Joint Venture in China (SC) (23) Nonprofit Organizations (23,24,25) Nonprofit Organizations: Principles and Practice (23,24,25) On Purpose: An Introduction to Leadership, Decision-making and Culture (24,25) Partnership Tax (23,24,25) Personal Data Protection in Europe (SC) (23) Public M&A Negotiation (SC) (23) Real Estate Transactions and Litigation (23,24,25) Repugnant Transactions (23,24,25) Rise of ESG in Corporate Law and Governance (SC) (23) Secured Transactions (23,24,25) Securities Litigation and Enforcement (23,24,25) Securities Regulation (23,24,25) Securities Regulation (Law & Business) (23,24,25) Sports Law (23,24,25) Stakeholderism and Business Law (SC) (24) Taboo Trades (23,24,25) The Business of Banking and Prudential Regulation (SC) (23,24,25) The In-House Lawyer: Duties and Tensions (SC) (24) Topics in Banking and Financial Regulation (24) Topics in Private Company Acquisitions (SC) (23,24,25) Topics in Public Equity Investing (SC) (23,25) Transactional Approach to Mergers and Acquisitions (23,24,25) Transactional Law: Drafting, Communication and Negotiation (23,24,25) Truth, Lies and Statistics for Lawyers (SC) (25) When Financial Contracts Blow Up (SC) (24) Wine and the Law (23)
A paper by University of Virginia School of Law professors Kristen Eichensehr and Cathy Hwang, in which they analyze national security’s reach into corporate transactions, has been recognized as a top 10 corporate law article for 2023.
Washington and Lee University professor Carliss Chatman; Chuck Cory ’82, former chairman of technology banking at Morgan Stanley; UVA Law professor Cathy Hwang; and Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer Senior Counsel Peter Lyons discuss Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk’s rapid takeover of Twitter and what’s next. The event was sponsored by the John W. Glynn, Jr. Law & Business Program.
Typically offered in small seminar settings, advanced courses prepare students for real-world situations and teach students how to use the law to find constructive solutions to business problems. Top practitioners from law firms, business and government, as well as UVA faculty, engage students in hands-on exercises, such as deal-structuring, negotiating and counseling.
The following is a list of courses offered during the current and two previous academic years. Numbers in parentheses indicate which academic year(s) the courses were offered, i.e., 2022-23 is coded (23), 2023-24 is coded (24) and 2024-25 is coded (25).
Courses in recent years include:
TRANSACTIONAL APPROACH TO MERGERS AND ACQUISITIONS (23,24,25), taught by Peter Lyons, a legal consultant for the HBO show “Succession.”
CORPORATE STRATEGY (24) and LEADERSHIP AND TEAM MANAGEMENT (23,25), taught by Jim Donovan, vice chairman of global client coverage at Goldman Sachs.
COURSES ON INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS TRANSACTIONS that examine legal and regulatory structures affecting foreign investors seeking to participate in the development of “emerging markets,” taught by UVA Law professor Paul Stephan and Richard Dean, an experienced practitioner.
INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS NEGOTIATION (23,24,25), taught by Kenneth Starling, a retired DLA Piper partner and former official in the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division.
LEGAL PRACTICE AND THE STARTUP COMPANY: AN INSIDE LOOK (23,24,25), taught by Professor Quinn Curtis and entrepreneur and lawyer Rob Masri '96.
FEDERAL REGULATION OF INVESTMENT COMPANIES (25), taught by Robert Zack ’75, former general counsel of Oppenheimer Funds.
TOPICS IN PUBLIC EQUITY INVESTING (23,25), taught by Barney Wilson, founder and portfolio manager of Robious Capital.
UVA Law professor Kim Krawiec discusses her work on taboo transactions, such as commercial surrogacy, egg and sperm markets, organ donation and sex work. Risa Goluboff and Cathy Hwang host the episode.
Students interested in business law have access to a variety of extracurricular activities.
The Virginia Law & Business Review is one of only a few student-edited business law journals among top law schools. The review holds a conference on a current business topic each year.
The Virginia Law & Business Society sponsors a variety of academic, professional and social activities for students interested in careers in law and business.
Rivanna Investments is a student organization dedicated to learning the art of intelligent investing. It manages an investment portfolio.
The Law School also hosts speakers and conferences on business topics throughout the year, as well as an annual entrepreneurship competition (part of a broader UVA competition) with a cash prize.
Rivanna Investments offers University of Virginia School of Law students a unique opportunity to confront common investor issues and learn more about the corporate world.
The practice of investing in funds and companies that pay attention to environmental, social and corporate governance issues could be at a turning point, say UVA Law professors Quinn Curtis and Paul G. Mahoney.
University of Virginia School of Law students, faculty and alumni serve the local community through clinics, pro bono efforts and organizations offering legal, financial and business aid.
Professor Deborah Hellman was recently named president of NOMOS: the American Society for Political and Legal Philosophy, among other recent accolades for the University of Virginia School of Law community.
Professor Emeritus Charles J. Goetz, an economist at the University of Virginia School of Law who reshaped the field of contracts, died Oct. 16. He was 85.
In a new paper, University of Virginia School of Law professor Elizabeth Rowe argues public law has left gaps in data regulation that private law has filled, ceding ground to corporations when government should play a role.
University of Virginia School of Law professor Edwin Hu’s co-authored paper analyzing how shareholders use customized proxy advice won the Northern Finance Association’s Best Paper Award in Corporate Finance.
Five alumni of the University of Virginia School of Law were named among Law360’s Rising Stars of 2024 for their accomplishments as attorneys in the past year.
As an ESPN vice president, University of Virginia School of Law alumna Rosetta Ellis-Pilie ’99 is responsible for hiring, negotiating with, developing and guiding the network’s commentator team.
Professor Joshua Fischman of the University of Virginia School of Law offers insights on the possible implications of the Department of Justice’s lawsuit against Ticketmaster.
In a new book, Professor George Rutherglen of the University of Virginia School of Law looks at three of the most high-profile recent Supreme Court decisions — on abortion, affirmative action and religious accommodations — and attempts to predict how they might play out in future employment litigation.
The University of Virginia hosted the Affordable Care Act Conference in March, designed in tandem with Professor Margaret Foster Riley’s course surveying health care reform since the act’s implementation 10 years ago.
A paper by University of Virginia School of Law professors Kristen Eichensehr and Cathy Hwang, in which they analyze national security’s reach into corporate transactions, has been recognized as a top 10 corporate law article for 2023.
University of Virginia School of Law professor Mitu Gulati has been elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, an honorary society and research center that dates back to the American Revolution.
Professor Thomas Nachbar of the University of Virginia School of Law offers insights on the possible implications of the Department of Justice’s lawsuit against Apple.
David Tejtel, a 2007 graduate of the University of Virginia School of Law, helped successfully challenge Elon Musk’s $56 billion pay package in February.
Columbia University professor Robert Scott, a former UVA Law dean, discusses the growth of scholarship in contract production at the 34th Sokol Colloquium.
Join an informative session on preparing term sheets for ECVC’s Transactional Law Competition on Feb. 14. The session will cover essential components, best practices and common pitfalls to avoid. This is designed to give participants practical guidance on structuring and drafting. Whether you're a first-time participant or returning competitor, this session will provide insights to help students succeed in the competition. This event will not be recorded.
The Virginia Law & Business Review’s 2025 symposium will feature panels and a keynote address exploring artificial intelligence’s influence on legal scholarship, regulation and corporate practice. The keynote speaker is Jane Horvath ’91, a partner at Gibson Dunn, formerly Apple’s chief privacy officer, Google’s global privacy counsel, and the DOJ’s first privacy counsel and civil liberties officer. Breakfast and lunch will be provided to registered guests.
Join an experienced panel of attorneys from Willkie Farr & Gallagher as they discuss the timeline of a deal and all the inner workings accompanying it. This event offers an introduction to transactional law and how all the different practice groups interact. A reception will follow for attendees.
Professor Guido Alfani of Bocconi University discusses economic inequality in preindustrial times, centralized in Europe and beyond. Alfani was recently published in the Journal of Economic Literature. Professor Ted Seto of Loyola Law School provides commentary, and UVA Law professor Ruth Mason and Oxford University professor Tsilly Dagan also discuss the work. This event was held as part of the “Tax Meets Non-Tax” Oxford-Virginia Legal Dialogs workshop series that builds bridges from tax to other kinds of scholarship.
