Rutgers Law School Launches Online J.D. Program, Expanding Access to a Rutgers Legal Education Nationwide

For many aspiring lawyers, the decision to attend law school is not simply a matter of academic ability or professional ambition. It is often a logistical question.

Can they leave a full-time job? Step away from family responsibilities? Relocate to attend classes for several years?

Beginning in 2027, Rutgers Law School will offer a new answer to those questions. The school is launching an Online J.D. program that combines live online classes, flexible coursework, and periodic in-person learning experiences, creating a pathway for students who want to earn a law degree while balancing careers, caregiving responsibilities, military service, community commitments, or other personal obligations.

The program places Rutgers Law among a select group of American Bar Association-accredited law schools nationwide offering an online J.D. option and builds on Rutgers' longstanding commitment to expanding access to higher education.

"Rutgers has a longstanding commitment to expanding educational opportunity and serving the public good," said Dennis J. Shields, interim chancellor of Rutgers University–Camden. "The Online J.D. program extends that mission, allowing more students to earn a rigorous Rutgers legal education and prepare for the next step in their professional journey."

“Students can now pursue their law degree without putting their careers or personal commitments on hold,” Dean Johanna Bond of Rutgers Law School said. “This new Online J.D. program represents the next evolution of Rutgers Law School's commitment to access, affordability, and opportunity, core pillars of our Strategic Plan. Through a flexible but rigorous online format, complemented by periodic in-person intensives in the Philadelphia/South Jersey area, we are opening new doors for working professionals, caregivers, and other busy adults whose schedules may not accommodate a traditional law school experience. This is more than a new program. It is a new pathway to leadership.”

Students enrolled in the Online J.D. program will earn the same Juris Doctor degree as students in Rutgers Law's traditional full-time and part-time programs. Diplomas will not indicate whether the degree was completed online.

Students will also have access to the same academic support services, career resources, experiential learning opportunities, student organizations, and extensive alumni network available throughout Rutgers Law. More than 50 student-run organizations provide opportunities for engagement, many of them accessible virtually.

The program arrives amid continued growth and change in legal education nationwide. More than 42,000 students began J.D. studies in fall 2025, while total enrollment across the nation's 196 ABA-approved law schools exceeded 120,000 students.

For Rutgers Law, the Online J.D. represents more than a new way to deliver a law degree. It expands who can envision themselves becoming a Rutgers lawyer — including working professionals, caregivers, and others whose circumstances have traditionally placed law school out of reach. By removing the need to relocate or put a career and family responsibilities on hold, the program creates a new pathway into the legal profession while maintaining the academic rigor and opportunities that define a Rutgers legal education.

As the legal profession evolves, so does the way future lawyers prepare to serve it. With the Online J.D., Rutgers Law is extending its reach beyond the traditional law school classroom and opening its doors to students across the country who are ready to take the next step in their careers. The result is a more flexible path to a Rutgers J.D. — one designed not around where students live or what responsibilities they already carry, but around where they want their legal education to take them.