You’ve been getting some great suggestions of additional schools to consider and feedback on the options you’re already thinking about. Normally I would jump on that train as quickly as possible, but this statement makes me very concerned:
There have been numerous threads where families have indicated a desire to do anything they can to help pay for a “top” school (whatever that family considers as a “top” option). And then, either before decision deadlines or even after decision deadlines, when the families fully realize what the payments are going to be and how much they are earning and/or have in the bank…they cannot afford it. There is a willingness to pay, but an inability to pay.
Your family needs to figure out how much it is ABLE to pay. I would also strongly urge them to consider their own retirement needs in the calculations to figure out how much they are able to pay, as one can get some loans for college and an extremely strong student like yourself will have colleges that are willing to give you significant merit aid. Nobody, however, is handing out loans for retirement.
Once your family figures out how much it is able to pay, then they need to run the Net Price Calculators (NPCs). Start with Yale’s, as it is one of the most financially generous colleges in the U.S. If the NPC spits out at a price that your family is able to pay, great! Keep it on your application. If not, eliminate it. Do the same for all other schools on your list, unless the school also offers merit aid (most of the schools on your list do not).
If you then want advice/suggestions of other schools, let us know the budget and whether the school’s NPCs are coming back as affordable (as it lets posters know what kind of schools would be doable suggestions).
Law school is very expensive and there is not much scholarship money available for it. Once your family figures out its budget (i.e. how much it is willing and able to pay/year), talk to them about whether or not they would be willing to use the difference in what they would have paid toward law school, if you do not use the full college budget.