Master of Laws

The Master of Laws is an advanced law degree that allows someone to specialize in a particular area of law. It is commonly abbreviated LL.M. (also LLM or LL.M) from its Latin name, Legum Magister. (For female students, the less common variant Legum Magistra may also be used.)

Types of LL.M. degrees

There are a wide range of programs available worldwide, allowing LL.M. students to focus on almost any area of law they choose. Most universities offer only a small number of LL.M. programs. One of the most popular LL.M. degrees in the United States is tax law. Other common programs include environmental law, human rights law, commercial law, and intellectual property law. Some LL.M. programs, particularly in the United States, focus on teaching foreign lawyers the basic legal principles of the host country (a "comparative law" degree).

Related Topics:
Tax law - Environmental law - Human rights law - Commercial law - Intellectual property law

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With regard to admitting foreign lawyers to the bar The United States is a mixed case. The two major states for legal practice, New York and California, take different paths. New York allows foreign lawyers to sit for the NY bar once they have completed their LL.M. if that LL.M. was awarded from an ABA approved law school, consisted of at least 20 credits and involves at least 2 basic subjects tested on the NY bar exam. In addition foreign lawyers from civil law countries have to present that they had at least 3 years of law studies in their home countries. For lawyers from common law countries face more lenient restrictions. California, on the other hand, totally prohibits students who have not completed a three-year legal degree program in American law (or, in very rare circumstances, an apprenticeship) from sitting for its bar exam. The majority of other states are similar to California in requiring a J.D. in order to take the bar exam. The ban on LL.M. practice usually, but not always, applies even to lawyers who have practiced for years in New York or California and would therefore be knowledgeable about U.S. law.

Related Topics:
New York - California

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Although some would doubtless explain the differential treatment between J.D. holders and LL.M. holders as xenophobia, since lawyers holding an LL.M. but not a J.D. generally are foreigners who received their first degree outside the United States, the more likely answer is less sinister. The state bars function not only as regulatory bodies, but also trade associations, and licensing is one form of market protectionism. By increasing the cost to become an attorney in the legal market by requiring three years' of legal study, many states effectively shield local attorneys from competition from foreign lawyers.

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