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LSSO Handbook

Funding Sources

The Law Students Association (LSA)

LSA receives an annual budget which is used to fund LSSO programming and other community events at the Law School. LSA also maintains a small contingency fund to provide supplemental funding for LSSO events and programs throughout the year. The entirety of LSA’s budget is funded by the University's Student Life Fee. Funding for LSSOs are determined exclusively by the LSA. LSSOs are strongly encouraged to co-sponsor events with each other in order to combine their funding. LSSOs may not sponsor (or co-sponsor) more than one event at the same time (e.g., an LSSO cannot sponsor two events for the same lunch period).

LSSO budget allocations are determined during the summer for the following academic year. LSA will consider membership and contribution to life at the Law School, among other things, in determining an organization’s funding allocation.

International Programs Department

The International Programs Department has funding available to support events related to international law. Submit proposals to Aican Nguyen, International Programs Director, at aican@uchicago.edu.

Graduate Council

Graduate Council provides funding to individuals and groups to travel to conferences and events, or host events and other activities on campus. Additional information regarding funding can be found at on the Graduate Council page.

LSSOs that have their Graduate Council funding proposal accepted must reach out Dean Welch (brandiwelch@uchicago.edu) immediately upon confirmation of funding. She will facilitate the transfer of funds from the Graduate Council to the organization’s LSSO account. Invoices of any kind should never be provided to the Graduate Council as all invoices are paid for internally by the Law School. 

Center for Leadership & Involvement (CLI) – Annual Allocation for RSOs

Annual Allocations occurs once each year from late Winter to Mid-Spring Quarters to allocate funds to RSOs for their events and programs planned for the following year. LSSOs that are also RSOs should be familiar with the Annual Allocations timeline and process so that they don’t miss any required components of the application process.

University Community Service Center – Community Service Fund for RSOs

The Community Service Fund (CSF) is a Student Government (SG)-led, UCSC-supported funding body that allocates part of the Student Activities Fee toward events that are focused on community service. All RSOs are eligible to apply for this funding. CSF supports activities designed to improve the quality of life of the Chicago community, as well as national and international communities. More information can be found on the Community Service Fund page. LSSOs can also contact Nick Currie, Director of Student Civic Engagement, at ncurrie@uchicago.edu.

Fundraising Activities

The Law School’s Office of External Affairs and the Dean of Students Office manages fundraising activities at the Law School, including soliciting money from law firms, alumni, and corporations. The Chicago Law Partners Sponsorship program fundraises on behalf of LSSOs. LSSOs submit information during the summer for participation in CLP. Contact Dean Welch (brandiwelch@uchicago.edu) with questions pertaining to external funding.

LSSOs receiving law firm funding must follow the University and Law School’s budget rules and reimbursement policies when inviting guest speakers and planning events. LSSOs may never sign receipts or other paperwork indicating that a donation is tax deductible. Such paperwork is provided by the Office of External Affairs, when appropriate.

Bar Companies & External Groups

To seek funding from bar prep companies or any other external group, LSSOs must receive approval from the Office of the Dean of Students. Please contact the Office of the Dean of Students at deanofstudents@law.uchicago.edu with requests.

Conferences and Student Travel

Any LSSO desiring to organize a trip (whether domestic or international) under the auspices of the organization (and therefore the Law School and the University) must speak with the Dean of Students Office about the applicable University and Law School policies and the source of funding for the proposed trip prior to making any travel arrangements. 

Please note that limits may be imposed on the number of trips for which a LSSO may receive travel funding and that funding requests must be made in advance of travel.

Funding for Conferences & Student Organization Travel

The Law School recognizes the educational value of student travel and therefore strives to make travel financially possible for all of its students.  Any student interested in obtaining funds for travel may submit a request to the Dean of Students. The Law School will only consider funding student travel if the primary purpose of the proposed trip is educational and bears a relation to the student’s future legal practice or the study of law in general.

In addition, any student(s) or student organization(s) seeking travel funds must meet each of the following criteria:  

  1. Each student must contribute financially to the cost of the proposed trip.  A student is expected to contribute at least 10% of the costs of the trip (including transportation, lodging, and any applicable registration fees) or $75, whichever amount is greater.
  2. The proposed trip must not require the student to miss class or reschedule exams. This requirement will not be waived under any circumstances.
  3. Before any Law School funds for travel will be approved, the student or student organization must demonstrate efforts to secure funding from the following alternate funding sources:
    • Center for Leadership and Involvement (CLI);
    • Student Government Funding Committee (SGFC);
    • Graduate Council; and
    • Law Students Association (LSA).
  4. If the purpose of the trip is to attend a conference, the conference must be academic in purpose and the student must attend as a presenter rather than as a participant. Upon return from the conference, the student is required to submit their presentation materials to the Office of the Dean of Students for review.

If a student or student organization meets these enumerated criteria, the student or student organization must meet with the Dean of Students to discuss the potential funding.  If approved, the Law School may contribute up to $500 per student towards the travel costs.  If appropriate, prior to approving travel funds for any student or student organization, the Dean of Students may: (1) refer student(s) or student organization(s) to External Affairs for fundraising outside of the Law School; and/or (2) require student(s) or student organization(s) to take efforts to raise travel funds within the Law School.   

Students seeking funding for travel must be sure to adhere to the University and Law School restrictions on reimbursements and costs.  

Students must submit the Student Travel & Research Funding Request Form.