Robert C. and Christina Baker Hall

A New Chapter for Yale Law School

On Sept. 20, 2018, Yale Law School dedicated the newly opened Robert C. and Christina Baker Hall, the School’s first permanent physical expansion since 1931 when the Sterling Law Building was completed.

In 2013, Yale Law School announced that an extraordinary gift of $25 million from Robert C. and Christina Baker. Following the initial announcement, a successful fundraising campaign secured a total of more than $60 million, and in 2017 the Law School began construction to transform the building formerly known as 100 Tower Parkway into a modern extension of the Law School campus.

The Law School’s growth over the past century has meant a gradual loss of residential living, which for scores of alumni was an essential and formative aspect of their legal education. By 1990, the number of beds in Sterling Law Building had decreased to 158 and — following extensive renovations to the building in the early 1990s — to 56 by 2001. In 2007, the final year that the Sterling Law Building included student residences, there were 23 beds.

With the completion of Baker Hall, the Law School once again offers the residential experience to a new generation of students, with one- and two-bedroom suites just steps from the Sterling Law Building.

Construction Facts

First physical expansion since the Sterling Law Building in 1931
Construction firm: A/Z Corporation
Design firm: Pirie Architects
Construction Start Date: Summer 2017
Construction Completion Date: September 2018

Baker Hall by the Numbers

23,000 square feet of academic space
51,000 square feet of residential space
28,000 square feet for the Courtyard and gardens
The building adds 137,000 square feet to the Law School campus in total
There are 61 apartments, 111 bedrooms: 47 double occupancy, 11 single occupancy, and four oversized doubles
There are six, 12-25 person classrooms
There is one, two-tier 58-person lecture theater
There is a three-tier student lounge with soft seating, high tables, and vending machines
There are nine residential lounges and 13 quiet study workspaces located throughout the building