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In 1987, California Western received a generous grant from the Al Simon Foundation to establish the California Western Center for Telecommunications Law. The Center was founded to study the large and growing number of unresolved issues of law and policy that have risen as a result of the technological revolution in the telecommunications industry. "The Center's objective is to prepare students for positions of leadership in the development of the law with regard to these information age issues," according to Professor Andrea Johnson, Executive Director.

The purpose of the California Western Center for Telecommunications Law is to promote public education, and the education of young attorneys specifically, in the fast-growing field of telecommunications law. The Center publishes a trimester newsletter, Telecom News, sponsors conferences on current issues of telecommunications law and policy, hosts student competitions on "cutting edge" telecommunications issues and promotes scholarship in a diverse range of topics. Distinguished participants in past events sponsored by the Center include District Judge Harold Greene, who presided over the break-up of AT&T, California Public Utilities Commissioner G. Mitchell Wilk, former Congressman and Chair of the House Telecommunications Subcommittee Lionel Van Deerlin, and key staff advisors to the Federal Communications Commission and congressional committees with jurisdiction over telecommunications legislation. The Board of Student Governors provides important support and direction in all activities of the Center. For example, student members conducted research for Mayor Susan Golding's City of the Future Committee, organized to assist the City of San Diego in developing an interconnected fiberoptic network.

In 1996 Professor Johnson and 16 students held the first multipoint videoconferencing in a law school forum, by linking representatives from the FCC, CPUC, NASA, and city government to discuss how states and cities can use the Telecom Act of 1996 to facilitate interconnected fiber networks.

In addition, student members do internships at the FCC, Fox Broadcasting, and NASA, among other companies. The Center also provides placement assistance for jobs and has developed an extensive library and electronic database on telecommunication issues.