MC Law Becomes First Law School in the Southeast to Require AI Certification for All Students

Mississippi College School of Law has announced a groundbreaking step in legal education: beginning Spring 2026, all first-year students will be required to complete a certification in AI and the law. With this initiative, MC Law becomes the first law school in Mississippi—and the entire Southeast—to mandate AI education for its entering class.

The Introduction to AI and the Law certification, developed in partnership with Wickard.ai, will provide students with practical training in this ever-growing legal space. The program combines foundational instruction, hands-on experience with AI-powered legal tools, and an assessment to ensure full understanding. Students will also engage with the ethical, regulatory, and policy issues that are reshaping the legal profession in an AI-driven world.

Dean John P. Anderson announced: “MC Law is looking to take the lead in preparing the twenty-first-century lawyer for the effective and ethical use of AI to better serve their clients and communities.” 

The certification will be designed and taught by Oliver Roberts, adjunct professor of law at Washington University in St. Louis, Co-Director of the WashU Law AI Collaborative, Co-Head of the AI Practice Group at Holtzman Vogel, and Founder and CEO of Wickard.ai. Roberts praised MC Law’s leadership, noting that this move sets MC Law apart in preparing students in an exceptional way to navigate a rapidly evolving profession.

This new requirement complements MC Law’s recently launched Center for AI Policy and Technology Leadership (CAPTL), which leverages the school’s expertise and capital-city location to inform both state and national policy. These initiatives reinforce MC Law’s commitment to innovation and leadership in the study and practice of law.

On the role MC Law has within Mississippi’s AI landscape in particular, Dean Anderson states, “MC Law is perfectly situated—just blocks from the state capitol, the supreme court, the governor’s mansion, and our state's largest law firms. This provides our Center for AI Policy and Technology Leadership an ideal platform for CLE and other educational programs that will both inform our state and regional leaders—but also draw upon their expertise in a reciprocal relationship.”

As Dean Anderson concluded, “Our graduates will leave MC Law ready to practice and lead in an AI-powered world.”