Jan 30, 2004 -- In the December 19, 2003, New York Law Journal, a story and chart of the bar pass rates for New York law schools indicated that Cardozo's 2003 bar pass rate for first time test takers was the third highest in New York City. New York University was first with a pass rate of 97%, Columbia was second with 96%, and Cardozo was third with 88%. Cornell Law School in Ithaca, New York, had a pass rate of 94%. For the first time, Cardozo surpassed Fordham, which had a 86% pass rate. St. John's had 85%, Brooklyn and Syracuse, tied for 7th, had pass rates of 84%. The New York State average was 76%. Other city and state law schools fell below the state average. Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law is well known for its prolific and high profile faculty as well as top-ranked programs in intellectual property, corporate and criminal law, entertainment and communications law, legal theory, and Jewish law. The Law School’s clinical program has been cited as one of the best in the country. Cardozo has graduated more than 7,500 students since its founding in 1976.