The extended LL.M. degree is a program of 4 semesters of full-time study at Georgetown Law, offered for foreign law graduates, leading to a Master of Laws degree (LL.M.) and a Certificate in American Legal English. This degree program recognizes the increasing importance of English in the international legal community. English is now the language of communication for most international law practice. While some of the students have TOEFL scores below our average, all the students have sufficient English language competence to be accepted into LL.M. programs in the U.S. It is not an ESL program but one that emphasizes “Global Legal Skills.” It is a more labor intensive program than any law school typically offers, and it is the program most people would want if they had the time and resources.

The tradition in all U.S. legal education is to provide little or no feedback to students throughout the semester on their progress and understanding or communication skills. Mid-terms are almost non-existent and a student’s entire grade is typically based on one written final exam. Faculty use the Socratic method and rarely give straight answers to questions. We have taken this traditional model and turned it upside down. We have a different pedagogy and we will be giving students a lot of feedback and attention. It is the slower pace of the program, i.e., the two years, that allows this.

Curriculum. In the first year of the program, students take a set of required law courses taught by law faculty that focus on legal analysis, legal writing, and other legal sills. These required courses are: U.S. Legal Discourse; U.S. Legal Methods; Law, Society and Culture; Law in a Global Context; and Scholarly Writing. Additionally, all students will take English for International Lawyers. This course, taught by a PhD Linguist, combines ESL instruction with law-related readings, writing, and discussion. Finally, in the spring semester of the first year, students will select a course in the regular LL.M. program to audit. The course credits earned for U.S. Legal Discourse and U.S. Legal Methods will count towards the requirements for an LL.M. degree; the other credits earned in the first year will count towards the Certificate in American Legal English.

Course descriptions for the first-year required courses can be found here.

In the second year, there are no required courses. Students must take a minimum of 8 Credits per semester and must complete the requirements for an LL.M. degree of their choice (International Legal Studies, International Business and Economic Law, Securities and Financial regulation, Taxation, or a “General LL.M.).

Admissions Process.  The application for the Extended LL.M. Program is available online (at www.law.georgetown.edu/admissions/) and in our Graduate Admissions brochure.  Specific admission requirements include the following:

• a strong record of academic achievement in their law studies in their home country;
• a TOEFL score in the range of 540-580;
• Professional legal experience.

For more information about the program, please contact our Graduate Admissions Office at llmadmis@law.georgetown.edu, or by phone at (202) 662-9020.

Revised June 29, 2009 (mbj)