Suffolk Law's Impact

Suffolk Law students and graduates have a remarkable impact on the region and the country. While there are many examples of this success, here's an overview of the indelible mark on the legal landscape left by Suffolk Law alumni.

Suffolk Law Alumni in the Judiciary

  • Two justices on the 7-member Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court
  • Two justices on the Rhode Island Supreme Court
  • Chief Justices of Rhode Island and Vermont
  • Nearly 30 percent of state judges in Massachusetts
  • Forty percent of the judges in Rhode Island

Government and Public Service Leaders

  • Chief Public Defender of Massachusetts and New Jersey
  • U.S. Ambassador to Ireland
  • U.S. Housing and Urban Development Regional Administrator
  • Speaker of the House in Rhode Island
  • President of University of Massachusetts
  • Three of the 11 district attorneys in Massachusetts
  • Nationally recognized, experienced faculty who have served in prominent public service positions from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to the U.S. Securities & Exchange Commission
  • Class of 2022 graduate serving as a state senator; 2021 graduate is a state representative

In-House: From the Red Sox to Google

Suffolk Law has more than 1,000 alumni serving as in-house counsel at a wide range of companies, such as Biogen, Bose, the Boston Red Sox, Brookstone, Fidelity, Google, Gillette, Harvard, Hasbro, Iron Mountain, the NFL, Reebok, State Street, Suffolk Construction, and Vertex.

Most Patent Law Partners

A 2020 study showed that nearly 30 percent of the top IP firm patent partners in Greater Boston were Suffolk Law graduates.

“Most Innovative” Leader 

Suffolk was was named a “Bloomberg Law Top 12 Innovator (2024)" and ranked among the "Top 20 Most Innovative Law Schools" in PreLaw Magazine. The latter publication also named Suffolk the nation's "No. 1 Technology Leader."

  • The Institute on Legal Innovation and Technology (LIT) provides students with cutting-edge skills that prepare them to deliver legal services using 21st century approaches—from mobile apps to design thinking.

  • LIT Lab students create machine learning tools that enable courts, government agencies and other non-profits, and law firms, to do their work better, faster, and cheaper. The LIT Lab's work on behalf of self-represented litigants has been featured on NBC-Boston, and in The Chronicle of Higher Education and New York Times.  

  • The LIT Certificate Program, featured in Bloomberg, is helping to retrain the legal industry. The program has drawn students from five continents.

Access to Justice

Each year, Suffolk Law students spend tens of thousands of hours on pro bono service, from eviction defense to representing small businesses and inventors in intellectual property matters. The Housing Discrimination Testing Program, which uncovers systemic discrimination, regularly makes national headlines for its important work. Our Accelerator to Practice Program won the ABA’s top award for innovations that improve access to legal services for moderate-income people. The Human Rights & Indigenous Peoples Clinic made national news in 2021 and 2022 with its legal victory on behalf of Indigenous radio broadcasters in Guatemala.