California is the only U.S. state that accepts courses from correspondence law schools as legitimate. It's also the only state that allows law graduates from a correspondence or online program to sit for the bar exam, as long as their program is accredited by the California Bar committee. In addition, graduates must have completed a minimum of 864 hours of study before seeking to take the bar exam.
Although you won't be able to practice law in a state other than California if you earn a law degree online, you can still put your education to work in other fields such as business, health or education. In this case, since you wouldn't be seeking to practice law, it's not the state that needs to accept your degree, but a prospective employer.
California is home to a number of correspondence law schools. All tuition figures cited are as of March 2011.
The Thomas Jefferson School of Law, based in San Diego, offers a masters of law (LL.M) degree. Tuition is $19,350 and $13,500 per semester for full- and part-time students, respectively.
The Concord Law School, based in Los Angeles, offers juris doctorate and executive juris doctor degrees. Annual tuition for each program is $9,984 or $416/unit for those who are enrolled for more than 24 units.
The International Pacific School of Law, also based in Los Angeles, offers an online juris doctorate degree. Average tuition is $35,000 per year.
Other correspondence schools recognized by the California Bar Association are the Abraham Lincoln University School of Law, American Heritage University, California Midland School of Law and California School of Law.
The American Bar Association (ABA) doesn't recognize graduates from online correspondence law schools. With just one exception--California--students must receive law degrees from schools that meet the standards of the ABA to be able to take the bar examination. If you'd like to be able to practice law in your home state, and you're not from California, you either need to attend a traditional law school or practice in California for five to seven years, after which time most states will allow you to take the bar exam.