Yes, it does - it's a matter of perception. Someone graduating from Harvard last in his class has better chances than someone graduating first in his class from NYU

Well, no, however, I think having a degree from, say, Yale would give you greater opportunities than the university of the back end of nowhere - because It is reputed to be a better school.

1) "Recently, in the United States, critics have emerged questioning the forthrightness of some law schools in providing prospective students with accurate facts regarding alumni job- placement and compensation rates, suggesting that certain law schools may be distorting their statistics in order to attract students to their institutions. In particular, many law school graduates--particularly at lower-ranked schools--suggest that their schools utilized correct, but misleading, statistics to attract students." "Also, it is very likely that even median salary statistics are incorrect, since students who are unemployed, working temporary jobs or have a low salary are less likely to submit a salary report to the school. A common response to this criticism, however, is that it simply reflects the reality of competitiveness in legal education and in the legal market. With a limited number of top positions available, prospective law students should be circumspect about the employment opportunities that will await them after graduation—especially if they plan on attending a lower-ranked school. At the same time, however, students at prestigious, highly regarded institutions often have a variety of options available. This discrepancy can be seen as a simple function of supply and demand, with the number of newer (and thus lower-ranked) law schools proliferating in recent years." Source and further information: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Law_school 2) "Schools that consistently rank in the top 14 The "Top Fourteen" schools according to US News and World Report Rankings are (in alphabetical order):[21] Columbia Law School, Columbia University, in New York, NY. Cornell Law School, Cornell University, in Ithaca, NY. Duke University School of Law, Duke University, in Durham, NC. Georgetown University Law Center, Georgetown University, in Washington, DC. Harvard Law School, Harvard University, in Cambridge, MA. New York University School of Law, New York University, in New York, NY. Northwestern University School of Law, Northwestern University, in Chicago, IL. Stanford Law School, Stanford University, in Stanford, CA. University of California, Berkeley, School of Law, University of California, Berkeley, in Berkeley, CA. University of Chicago Law School, University of Chicago, in Chicago, IL. University of Michigan Law School, University of Michigan, in Ann Arbor, MI. University of Pennsylvania Law School, University of Pennsylvania, in Philadelphia, PA. University of Virginia School of Law, University of Virginia, in Charlottesville, VA. Yale Law School, Yale University, in New Haven, CT. [edit]Characteristics of the top schools in the U.S. News Rankings There exist common characteristics across these top schools. Reputation is a key driver of their placement, according to Anna Ivey, noted law school admissions counselor, who declared that "A degree from a top-14 school will be portable nationally" in a Washington Post interview." Source and further information: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Law_school_rankings_in_the_United_States

If all you want to do is be a lawyer, it probably doesn't matter. Depending on where you want to go from there, perhaps it does.

Matters as much as it would if you went to wal mart to get your cloths. The cloths serve the same purpose, but buying ones that are better made, might make you look better but still do the same job of covering up your naked.