California-approved law school offering JD and online programs without ABA accreditation.
Trinity Law School offers a Juris Doctor (JD) degree available both on campus and online, as well as an online Master of Legal Studies (MLS) program. The school is regionally accredited by the Higher Learning Commission as part of Trinity International University and approved by the State Bar of California, making it one of 20 law schools approved by the Committee of Bar Examiners of the State Bar of California. However, it is not accredited by the American Bar Association (ABA).
Trinity Law School was founded in 1980 as the Simon Greenleaf School of Law, named after the nineteenth-century Harvard law professor and evidence law authority. Originally located at Calvary Chapel Costa Mesa in Santa Ana, it relocated to Anaheim in 1982 and to its current location at 2200 N. Grand Ave. in Santa Ana in 1997. That same year, it became part of Trinity International University, an evangelical Christian university headquartered in Deerfield, Illinois.
In July 2023, Trinity Law School graduates achieved an 18% pass rate on the California bar exam for first-time takers (3 of 17 examinees), significantly below the statewide average of 64%. This performance reflects the challenges faced by graduates of non-ABA-accredited law schools in California.