Binding Early Decision is a commitment, not an admissions hack. If admitted through a binding program, you generally must enroll and withdraw other law-school applications. For the Fall 2027 entering class, programs and deadlines vary substantially: Northwestern's required materials are due October 31, Columbia and NYU use November 15, Berkeley and UCLA use November 16, Chicago and Georgia use December 1, Duke offers two rounds, and UVA and Georgetown remain available much later.
This page uses current 2026–27 admissions materials from the schools themselves. It intentionally does not publish an “ED boost” or combine ED status with general acceptance rates, because those numbers do not establish what binding ED would do to a particular applicant's outcome.
| Law school | 2026–27 binding ED timing | Important current term |
|---|---|---|
| Northwestern Pritzker | Application by Oct. 15, 2026; required ED materials by Oct. 31 | Online video interview and ED certification required |
| Duke | Round I complete Nov. 6, 2026; Round II complete Jan. 8, 2027 | Duke expressly says ED is best for applicants who do not need to compare financial-aid offers |
| Columbia | Nov. 15, 2026 | Binding ED contract; October is the last LSAT administration period that meets the deadline |
| NYU | Complete by Nov. 15, 2026 | Binding; admitted applicants must enroll and withdraw other applications |
| Michigan | Nov. 15, 2026 | Binding Early Decision program |
| Berkeley | Nov. 16, 2026 | Binding; current BED admits automatically receive a $120,000 merit scholarship over three years |
| UCLA | Priority ED deadline Nov. 16, 2026 | Binding; UCLA warns it is for applicants who do not need to compare financial-aid offers |
| UChicago | Dec. 1 | Application and required LSAC materials must be received by the deadline |
| Georgia | Application by Dec. 1, 2026; components by Dec. 15 | Binding; no simultaneous ED candidacy at another law school |
| Georgetown | Rolling; Mar. 1, 2027 strongly recommended | Binding ED applicants receive priority review; Georgetown says decisions typically arrive about 4–6 weeks after completion |
| UVA | Complete by 5 p.m. ET Mar. 1, 2027 | Binding Expedited Decision; decision within 21 business days after file completion |
Deadlines and terms were checked against the schools' current admissions pages on October 4, 2026. Policies can change during a cycle; follow the linked school page and LSAC application when you actually submit.
Do not assume a fixed admissions boost. The programs above do not provide a common, comparable ED-specific admit-rate dataset that lets you calculate a reliable percentage advantage. Berkeley is especially explicit: its BED certification says there is no advantage in the admission process, although the school will take the applicant's demonstrated interest into account.
Other schools structure ED differently, and a binding commitment may affect how the file is considered, but that is not the same as evidence that an applicant below a school's competitive range receives a predictable numerical boost. Treat ED as a commitment decision first.
Binding ED often forces the enrollment decision before you can compare competing law-school offers. Duke's current instructions make the point directly: the program is most appropriate if Duke is your first choice and you do not anticipate needing to compare financial-aid offers. UCLA uses similar language.
That does not mean ED always sacrifices scholarship value. Berkeley's 2026–27 BED program automatically carries a $120,000 merit scholarship, divided across three years. A guaranteed award changes the financial comparison because you know part of the aid package in advance.
The correct question is therefore not “Does ED cost scholarship money?” It is: what aid is guaranteed under this specific program, what remains unknown, and am I willing to attend under the realistic worst-case price?
Binding ED becomes defensible when the school is genuinely your first choice, you understand the binding contract, and your financing plan still works without seeing other schools' offers. If a materially better scholarship elsewhere could change your decision, binding ED may solve the wrong problem.
Also check timing. Duke's second round and UVA's March deadline show that “Early Decision” does not always mean an early-November commitment. Georgetown's rolling process can remain open much later as well. The correct application strategy depends on the actual program rather than the label.
Harvard's current admissions guidance provides a useful counterpoint even though Harvard does not present a binding ED track on its current JD application pages: it says there is no admissions advantage to simply applying earlier and warns against rushing a weaker application. Yale similarly says application timing does not improve the chance of admission.
That principle is useful beyond those schools. A binding deadline is a real deadline, but meeting it with an application that is materially weaker than the version you could submit shortly afterward can be a bad trade.
If any answer is no, regular decision may preserve more useful options.
Program terms and 2026–27 dates above were checked October 4, 2026 against current official admissions materials from Northwestern, Duke, Columbia, NYU, Michigan, Berkeley, UCLA, UChicago, Georgia, Georgetown and UVA. Harvard and Yale admissions guidance was used only for the separate point about timing and rushing applications.
This is a current-cycle policy guide, not an admissions-odds model. It does not use general acceptance rates to imply ED-specific chances and does not treat a binding commitment as a substitute for a competitive application. Recheck the school's live program page and binding agreement before submitting.
September 20, 2026
September 20, 2026