Centers / Programs

Providing Needed Legal Services in Tribal Communities

Oklahoma City University School of Law consistently ranks in the top three law schools in the country for American Indian and Alaska Native enrollment. Oklahoma City has the 4th highest Native American population of any city in the United States. Home to 38 federally recognized tribes, Oklahoma is in the heart of Indian Country.

We offer a curriculum and programming to prepare future lawyers for the practice of law in tribal communities. From doctrinal courses to clinics and externships, our Indian law program is designed to make you a well-rounded practitioner, ready to tackle the complex legal challenges in Indian Country.

Through our American Indian Law & Sovereignty Center, law students, faculty, and staff at Oklahoma City University School of Law provide needed services in tribal communities, including legal services, through our American Indian Wills Clinic and externship placements in Indian Country.

“Our commitment to working in tribal communities ensures that our law students gain experience applying what is taught in the classroom to benefit the Indian legal landscape.”

The Center for the Study of State Constitutional Law and Government was founded to develop and implement programs dedicated to the improvement of state constitutions and state governance. By sponsoring workshops, scholarly writing, and public lectures, the Center promotes scholarship and discussion on important issues relating to state government.

Lecture Series

The Center sponsors one of the School of Law’s most important annual academic events, the Brennan Lecture in State Constitutional Law. Named in honor of the late Justice William J. Brennan, Jr., the Brennan Lecture has brought several of the most prominent and thoughtful scholars in the nation to the School of Law and the Oklahoma City community. Previously, Randy E. Barnett, the Austin B. Fletcher Professor at the Boston University School of Law, has spoken. Professor Barnett is one of the nation’s leading public law scholars and the author of important books on constitutional law, contract law, and jurisprudence.

The Center also connects students to state legislators and government officials for internships, externships and informal collaboration.

Certificate Program

The Center designed and administers the Certificate in Public Law, which recognizes students who excel in public law courses, write a publishable paper in public law, and either write an additional paper or complete an externship in government.

COMING SOON: In 2025, the new OCU Tribal Sovereignty Institute will launch with a full-time tenured or tenure-track professor at the helm as Executive Director.  This new program promises to elevate OCU Law’s existing commitment to American Indian Law.