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About USC Gould
USC Gould is a top-ranked law school with a 120-year history and reputation for academic excellence. We are located on the beautiful 228-acre USC University Park Campus, just south of downtown Los Angeles.
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Academics
Learn about our interdisciplinary curriculum, experiential learning opportunities and specialized areas.
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Admissions
USC Gould helps prepare you for a stellar legal career. You can pursue a JD degree, one of our numerous graduate and international offerings, or an online degree or certificate.
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Students
Participate in an unparalleled learning experience with diversity of people and thought. Get involved in the law school community and participate in activities that enhance your studies.
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Careers
We work closely with students, graduates and employers to support successful career goals and outcomes. Our overall placement rate is consistently strong, with 94 percent of our JD class employed within 10 months after graduation.
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Faculty
Our faculty is distinguished for its scholarship, as well as for its commitment to teaching. Our 12:1 student-to-faculty ratio creates an intimate and collegial learning environment.
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John Heilman
USC Gould School of Law
- FACULTY DIRECTORY
- LECTURERS IN LAW DIRECTORY
- EXPERTS DIRECTORY
- FACULTY IN THE NEWS
- SCHOLARSHIP AND PUBLICATIONS
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- + CENTERS AND INITIATIVES
- CENTER FOR DISPUTE RESOLUTION
- CENTER FOR LAW AND PHILOSOPHY (CLP)
- CENTER FOR LAW AND SOCIAL SCIENCE (CLASS)
- CENTER FOR LAW, HISTORY AND CULTURE (CLHC)
- CENTER FOR TRANSNATIONAL LAW AND BUSINESS (CTLB)
- INITIATIVE AND REFERENDUM INSTITUTE (IRI)
- PACIFIC CENTER FOR HEALTH POLICY AND ETHICS
- SAKS INSTITUTE FOR MENTAL HEALTH LAW, POLICY, AND ETHICS
- + WORKSHOPS AND CONFERENCES

Lecturer in Law
Email: jheilman@law.usc.eduTelephone: (323) 573-7409
699 Exposition Blvd. Los Angeles, CA 90089-0074 USA
Last Updated: July 16, 2019
John Heilman is a long-time lecturer at USC Gould School of Law. He has taught Community Property at the law school for many years. He also teaches two courses in our LLM program: Topics in American Law and Introduction to American Legal Systems. He was voted Adjunct Professor of the Year at the law school in 2008, 2010, and 2016.
Heilman is also an alumnus of USC. He was born in Cleveland, Ohio. He received a BS degree from Northwestern University. He moved to Southern California to attend USC Gould where he was a notes and articles editor of the Southern California Law Review. Heilman graduated from the law school in 1982. He came back to USC as a student to earn a MA in Public Administration in 2007 and subsequently a MA degree in Real Estate Development in 2009.
Heilman also teaches at Southwestern Law School. He has been named one of the Professors of the Year for the last five years at Southwestern.
In addition to teaching, Heilman is a long-time councilmember in the City of West Hollywood and served as mayor on eight previous occasions. He was actively involved in the incorporation of the city in 1984. Heilman was elected to the first City Council of West Hollywood in November 1984 and he has served on the City Council continuously since that time. He has served as Mayor of the city in 1985, 1990, 1995, 1999, 2001, 2006, 2010 and 2017.
Heilman has been an active member of the National League of Cities. He has served on the board of both the National League of Cities and the California League of Cities. He currently serves on the Legal Committee of the National League of Cities. He is a past board member of the American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California and the Local Government Commission. He is also the past president of the Gay, Lesbian and Bisexual Local Officials Group and past co-chair of the International Network of Lesbian and Gay Officials. Heilman is also a board member of OutRight International, an international organization focusing on the legal rights of sexual minorities.
Heilman is a board member and immediate past president of the Jacaranda School, a school for children orphaned by AIDS in Malawi.
FACULTY IN THE NEWS
LLM Guide
June 5, 2023
Re: USC Gould School of Law
Law schools have been adapting to the increase in technological advancements, especially with the increased need for attorneys with the creation of AI. “Attorneys work on the front end, conducting threat assessments to ensure that their clients’ systems and data are protected, and on the back end, to navigate any legal issues that may arise as a result of the attacks," Gruzas said.
RECENT SCHOLARSHIP
Robin Craig
May, 2023
"Did Sackett Bring Clarity to 'Waters of the United States'?," 54:6 Trends (forthcoming July/August 2023) (accepted May 31, 2023).
Robin Craig
May, 2023
"Tribal Water Rights and Tribal Health: the Klamath Tribes and the Navajo Nation During the Covid-19 Pandemic," 16 Saint Louis University Journal of Health Law & Policy 35 (published 2023), was summarized and promoted on the Race, Racism, and the Law website run by Professor Vernellia Randall, University of Dayton School of Law.
Robin Craig
May, 2023
"Governing Shifting Species and Changing Ecosystems: What role Might Ecological Grief Play?," keynote address at the Species on the Move 2023 International Conference, Bonito Springs, Florida, on May 19, 2023.