It was established in 1996[5] and was the last operating of three for-profit law schools of the InfiLaw System owned by Sterling Partners.

[15] By August 2020, Florida Coastal School of Law was able to demonstrate compliance, asserting that 75% of its 2018 graduates had passed a bar exam, and the 2019 cohort was on track for similarly qualifying results.

[18][19] The school resubmitted its application for Title IV eligibility, but the U.S. Department of Education turned down its request.

[18][8] Richard Cordray, the department's federal student aid chief operating officer, said in a press release, "Florida Coastal School of Law operated recklessly and irresponsibly, putting its students at financial risk rather than providing the opportunities they were seeking.

[8] A teach-out plan was finally approved in June 2021, with the school to offer no further classes after the end of the Summer 2021 term.

[9] Some students would transfer to other law schools, while others would attend classes elsewhere but graduate with Florida Coastal degrees.

[9] Notwithstanding that the school acknowledged that it was bound by the teach-out plan, Florida Coastal in July 2021 filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Education alleging the agency acted arbitrarily and capriciously by terminating the school's participation in the loan program.

Additionally, Coastal Law offered accelerated dual degree programs, with Jacksonville University, that allowed students to complete a juris doctor and a M.B.A. or a M.P.P.

Students could join by being in the top 5% of their class or by submitting a high quality writing piece to law review.