Its law school is considered one of the best in China. In 2009 and 2012, the two most recent report year, The Ministry of Education rated CUPL as having the second best graduate education among the law schools in China.CUPL has two campuses, one in Haidian, which is the original campus of the university, and the other located in Changping, Beijing. The university's Haidian campus now hosts postgraduate students only, while undergraduates study at a much larger campus in Changping District, in the outer suburbs of Beijing. It is the largest institute in the world for legal education.

At present, CUPL comprises 12 schools, with 21,325 students and more than 1,400 faculty members, of whom 342 are professors and associate professors. CUPL maintains a broad international exchange program, with approximately 600 foreign students from 14 countries.