When it was founded by Serranus Clinton Hastings, first Chief Justice of California, the University of California Hastings College of Law inherited some stipulations. First, the school had to remain near the courts in San Francisco; and second, it couldn't be governed by the University of California Regents. Therefore, Hastings obtains funds directly from the state legislature, a condition that gives it more educational independence than other UC schools. One of Hastings' trademark features is its legal education opportunity program, an addendum to the admissions process designed to facilitate entry for students with disadvantaged backgrounds. Students admitted through the program have a structured academic support system to aid their studies throughout their three years of law school.

Hastings' curriculum is standard. Upper-level students opt to concentrate in areas such as civil litigation, taxation or family law. The school helps students get judicial externships, readily available with the courts nearby (thanks, of course, to Justice Hastings). Overly large class sizes were an issue for students in our Buzz Book surveys, as was the safety of the area--though campus is in the historic downtown of San Francisco, it abuts the notoriously seedy Tenderloin District.