Stanford Dethrones Yale as Top Law School
Photographer: David Paul Morris/Bloomberg
Stanford Law School knocked Yale out of the top spot in U.S. News & World Report’s 2026 rankings — the first time Yale hasn’t held the #1 position since the rankings began in 1990, David Lat writes in the latest Exclusive Jurisdiction column.
Stanford tied with Yale for three consecutive years before claiming sole possession of first place. Yale now sits at #2, tied with the University of Chicago.
The shift came down to employment outcomes and bar passage rates, which comprise 58% of the ranking methodology. Stanford placed 98.4% of its 2024 ...