It is accredited by the American Bar Association and offers a three-year Juris Doctor degree to approximately 128 full-time students.

ASL was started and brought to Buchanan County, Virginia as a tool of economic development for the region.

ASL traces its roots back to 1993 when Norton, Virginia lawyer Joe Wolfe came up with the idea to create a law school in Central Appalachia.

His idea was well received by local business leaders and a steering committee was founded in 1994 and grew to eighty members.

The committee gained permission from the Virginia General Assembly to start a law school in 1995 and continued to secure endorsements from local civic associations and industrial development authorities.

[5] The motto of the school, Ex petra veritatis justitia exsurgit, in English translates as, From the rock of truth, justice arises.

[6] The State Council of Higher Education in Virginia granted the school the ability to enroll students studying for the Juris Doctor Degree in 1997.

At his trial, Odighizuwa was found mentally competent, pleaded guilty to the murders, and was sentenced to multiple life terms in prison.

[9] According to ASL's official 2021 ABA-required disclosures, 31% of the Class of 2020 obtained full-time, long-term, JD-required employment nine months after graduation.

[2] Of the Appalachian graduates taking the Virginia bar for the first time in July 2021, 20% passed, vs. a 79% average rate.

The main academic building was created from the town's former high school (and junior high school) and gymnasium complex; these buildings were joined and extensively remodeled and expanded as part of a $1 million[15] award-winning architectural project.

Once the former Grundy Elementary School, this building has also been extensively remodeled and features individual and group study areas, a computer lab, and both wireless and wired internet access.

The building also houses facilities for Southwest Virginia Community College, which shares classroom space with ASL.

This requirement is usually met by students working as judicial clerks, interns in prosecutor and defense offices, state and federal governmental agencies, and private practices.

[25] ASL is distinguished by its requirement that all second-year students complete a mandatory Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) class.

[28] ASL offers two courses to fulfill this requirement: certified civil mediation, and advanced negotiation.

The school has two faculty members who solely teach alternative dispute resolution related courses.

Students can audition for the team through an annual intra-school tournament that is composed of the Appellate Advocacy class in fall of the second year.