The Social Justice & Public Interest (SJPI) Concentration and Area of Focus are ideal for students interested in societal inequality and power differentials, particularly as these relate to class and economics, identity and civil rights, and the political process. The SJPI Concentration and Area of Focus are also intended to fortify our social justice community at Miami Law, offering opportunities for students and faculty who are committed to social justice, racial justice, gender justice, environmental justice, economic justice/anti-poverty work, civil and human rights, and other public interest law areas to unify, reaffirm our common values, and push for an increased commitment to social justice from actors across society—including our own institution.
Even in diverse democracies committed to equality and justice, power imbalances can lead to persistent material and psycho-social inequalities. Social justice analysis and advocacy aim not only to identify those inequalities, but also to address the larger structural problems and long-term power differentials that create and perpetuate societal injustice.
Spanning myriad practice areas, from civil rights and public interest, to administrative law and commercial interests, to tax and trade policy, social justice work is done in social, economic, and legal contexts, guiding critical analysis and transformative action across many sectors of society. Social justice legal advocates combine the law with other tools of social progress not just to help, but to empower all targets of inequality in the struggle for enduring and substantive equality.
In addition to required foundational courses, the SJPI concentration requires students to select courses from a particular track, fulfill an experiential learning obligation, engage in research and writing through an independent study or seminar paper on a topic that falls within the concentration, and participate in “engagement and reflection” with affiliated students and faculty. The SJPI area of focus has fewer requirements: it requires students to select courses from a particular track, and engage in research and writing through an independent study or seminar paper on a topic that falls within the area of focus (see additional details below).
SJPI Concentration Requirements
The Social Justice & Public Interest Concentration is 26 credits in total. Kindly note that audited courses do not count towards the concentration requirement.
"Social justice is critically important because it is progressive. We are looking at the law, not just as it stands but how we can shape it in the future. Social justice attorneys are always looking for ways to ensure that the underrepresented and disenfranchised are spoken for and protected. The social justice concentration considers the intersection of many different factors--race, wealth, gender, and more. It is wonderful that Miami Law has committed itself to training the next generation of social justice advocates to empower the community."
"Race, wealth, pedigree, health, and education shape the decisions of the actors in our legal system and, consequently, its abilities to deliver. By taking a hard look, through the Social Justice Concentration, at these tremendously influencing factors, UM Law is elevating our conversations about what justice really means and how we can access it. These are important and hard conversations to be had. UM Law continues to innovate, and I cannot wait to work with this army of sophisticated, conscious lawyers looking at the context within which we work and endeavoring to improve it, for ultimate aim of serving justice."