Residential (On Campus) LL.M. Program

LL.M. Degree in American Legal Studies 

Our two-semester, full-time program commences in the fall or spring semester, and ends with graduation in May or January.  

Before the fall semester, students participate in a mandatory Law Week alongside JD students. Law Week is a multiday introduction to law school and unique aspects of the legal profession in the U.S. which begins one week before the official start of fall classes. Law week is an excellent opportunity to meet classmates and professors and includes a series of sessions about the American legal system,legal writing and research,and other critical law school information. Before the spring semester, students participate in a one-day orientation unique to the LL.M. program with additional sessions scheduled in the initial weeks. 

Credit Hours Required

LL.M. students seeking the LL.M. Degree must complete a minimum total of 24 credit hours.

To maintain their full-time status, students must register for a minimum of 9 credit hours and a maximum of 17 credit hours per semester. We strongly recommend that students to enroll in, at least, 12 credit hours per semester in order to have a balanced workload across semesters and to make steady progress towards completing the credit hours required for graduation.

Length of Program

Students seeking the LL.M. Degree must complete the program in two consecutive semesters. A limited number of extenuating circumstances may be taken into account to alter the length of the program. Any student experiencing difficulties must contact promptly the Director of the LL.M. Program.

Courses Required

Although students may choose their own coursework, many LL.M. students enroll in first-year J.D. courses including Civil Procedure, Constitutional Law, Contracts, Criminal Law, Property, and Torts.  While the LL.M. program is not intended as a bar exam preparation course, students who wish to sit for a state bar examination are strongly encouraged to review carefully the relevant state bar’s application requirements and select courses that will meet those requirements. Students are also recommended to review the Comprehensive Guide to Bar Admission Requirements, which lists the bar eligibility requirements for the 50 states and the District of Columbia. This guide is published by the National Conference of Bar Examiners.

Legal Research and Writing (2 credit hours) is a graded, required course and must be taken in the first semester of the LL.M. program.

Students will receive one-on-one academic advising to choose a program of study that meets their academic and professional goals. Students may choose a broad survey or courses or focus within an area of interest such as corporate & business law, constitutional law, criminal law, intellectual property law, international law and justice, or methods of dispute resolution.

Transfer Credit

The residential LL.M. program does not accept transfer credits from other institutions. 

Grading Policies

Grade Point Average

LL.M. Degree candidates must achieve a cumulative grade point average of 2.0 to earn the LL.M. Degree. They must also pass any pass-fail classes if those credit hours are needed to meet the minimum required credit hours to graduate with the LL.M. Degree.

Grading Policies

Please refer to the Law School’s grading policy page to review all pertinent policies and grading options.