<p>Hi everyone, so I am an American student going to school for my undergrad in England. I would like to get an LLM in the future and be certified in England and/or France as well as New York. If I get my undergrad in European Legal Studies at the school I am attending here, would I be able to go to law school in the US? Is that possible? I just want to know that I could have the option to study law both in the US and Europe if I wanted to. My family lives in the US so I want to have both options. Thank you in advance for any information. </p>
<p>It’s not uncommon for people from other countries to come to the US and get LLMs after they get the other country’s law degree. It’s definitely doable. In fact, I’d recommend doing it, since you won’t have to take out the obscene US law school loans to pay the equally obscene US law school tuition. If you’re just fine practicing in the UK, I think that’s a solid plan.</p>
<p>Is this an LL B in the UK? Law school there is not a program taken after an undergrad degree like it is in North America. I would not recommend this path if you ever hope to practice in the U.S. Keep in mind that being able to stay and practice law in the UK is very, very difficult unless you have dual citizenship or some option for an ancestry visa. Getting the required training contract is virtually impossible otherwise. England is a common law country, and most of the rest of Europe follows the civil code. The only transsystemic programs I know of are in Canada.</p>
<p>That’s a fair point; I forgot about whether he had UK citizenship or not. That is definitely something to look into.</p>
<p>Yes, I am getting an LLB in England. But I will then get a JD and an LLM. I want to be certified to practice law in both the UK, maybe France, and New York. I want to work in the field of international law. But doesn’t an LLM certify me to practice law in both countries? Also, I was wondering about getting my JD in the U.S. not just an LLM.</p>
<p>Rachel, it makes little sense to do an LLB in the UK then a JD in the U.S. Much of what you study will be duplicated. As I mentioned, to be licensed in the UK, you will be required to do a training contract and they are virtually impossible to get if you do not have the right to work there, e.g., dual citizenship or an ancestral visa possibility. As I also mentioned, France and much of Europe do not follow the Common Law but rather the Civil Code. You will not be qualified to practice there with a UK LLB or a North American JD, unless that N.A. JD is from one of the Canadian law schools that offer such a degree.</p>
<p>International law sounds interesting/exciting/glamorous but, in reality, it is a very small niche area and very few lawyers ever end up practicing anything resembling ‘international law’. A good exercise for potential law students, and for any students actually, is to determine what your dream job would be and then ask yourself who is likely to hire you for that job and what do you need to do to make yourself a competitive candidate for that job. Someone has to employ you. Who do you see employing you to practice in U.S., UK, and/or France?</p>
<p>I understand what you’re saying. Basically all I am trying to do is figure out my options for being able to practice law in both the UK and a U.S. state. I am already accepted into the program in the UK and have confirmed that I will be going there for my undergrad so I am looking for my best options. I assumed I would have to get my J.D. here and then my LLM there in order to certify me in both countries</p>
<p>Ultimately I would like to work in the UK but I would like the U.S. to fall back on</p>
<p>A lot gets missed when you speak of assumptions and wants. You have to research what alwaysamom is telling you. </p>
<p>Alwaysamom is giving very good advice. It makes little sense to plan now to work in both the US and the UK. In getting a LLB in the UK you’d then go on to a training contract or else essentially forfeit your chance to work there. In the US you’d go into OCI and a job on graduation, or else essentially forfeit your chance to work here. In neither case can you simply just get both degrees and then work where you want. You should spend some time thinking about where you prefer to work.</p>
<p>Take a step back…</p>
<p>There is no such thing as “international law”, at least in the private sector. You work practicing the law of whatever jurisdiction admitted you to practice. If you get a law degree in the UK and then qualify, then you’d practice the law of England and Wales. If you are admitted in NY, you can practice New York law. If you get admitted in France, you may have some more options around Europe; I haven’t worked in law firms in Europe for 15 years and forget.</p>
<p>So you’ll practice likely the law of one jurisdiction. If you want “international”, then the question is, “how do I get a job in a foreign jurisdiction if I am qualified only in my home country?” The answer is to just qualify in a foreign jurisdiction, which usually means getting another law degree there (although the EU may have some cross-country qualification schemes), or to get a job with a large firm that will send you to a foreign office. Working in the foreign office of a large firm is certainly doable, but those opportunities aren’t very widespread.</p>
<p>Note: if you get a UK law degree, then you can practice in the UK. You’ll save money on the law degree, but to be admitted in the UK, you have to be a “trainee”, which means that you do law firm associate work for a few years but while being paid a pittance. If you get qualified in the US (which usually would mean either a US JD or, if you already have a foreign law degree, getting an LLM and then taking the NY bar), you’ll pay more for the degree, per year of study, but you’ll probably make more cash from the start.</p>
<p>Sorry, there’s no easy way, but I hope this is helpful. The only very bad move would be to get a UK law degree and then a US JD and LLM; that is excessive and would be a total waste of time and money. Getting a French law degree and being a French lawyer wouldn’t pay very well from the start, either. The best paid lawyers from the start are associates in large US law firms, or US associates in “Magic Circle” firms in the UK (who make more than their UK co-workers).</p>
<p>Is the notion of attending a T14 school, often alluded to in the context of US JDs, also applicable in the context of US LLMs?</p>
<p>I could conceive one that goes through a LLB in the UK and, grades+experience permitting, a LLM at a T14 in the US and, from an American LLM, take the NY bar.</p>