Studying law at Georgetown University Law Center (Pauline Pierre)
Hello everyone and Welcome to the entering Grande Ecole du Droit class of 2018 !
I have now been living in Washington DC for a little over a month and I am really happy to share the beginning of my LL.M. experience with all of you in this post.
After graduating from the LL.M., I plan on taking the New York Bar Exam. In order to be eligible for the NY Bar Exam, people who received their first law degree from a civil law jurisdiction need to "cure a deficiency" in their legal education. The way such a "deficiency" is cured for the purpose of taking the NY Bar Exam is by doing an LL.M. at a U.S. ABA-approved law school. In addition to that, the LL.M. program itself must meet certain requirements. The minimum requirement is of 24 credits, of which 12 must be in subjects tested on the NY Bar Exam. For instance, this semester, I am taking U.S. Legal Research, Analysis and Writing (2 credits) and a 4-credit J.D. Corporations class. These two classes both count toward the requirements for the bar. Aside from that, I am taking a course in Transfer Pricing, another course on the U.S. Taxation of Foreign Persons, and one in Arbitration. This amounts to a total of 13 credits for the Fall semester, which is the maximum allowed for LL.M. students, here at Georgetown. I have 13 hours of classes per week. [All the information in relation to the NY Bar Exam is subject to change, please visit http://www.nybarexam.org]
The way law school works in the U.S. is that professors assign readings to students prior to each class. Students have to get familiar with the material as they may get called on by the professor during class to discuss the assigned readings. This interactive method is known as the Socratic method.
When we are not in class or at the library, we often attend various events organized by the Law Center and by various organizations around DC. DC is a vibrant city with a million different things to do everyday. It is also very different from most other American cities in the sense that it has a somewhat European feel to it. People walk a lot or use the "Vélib"-like system to bike around the city. I actually recently got my yearly membership !
Georgetown's law campus is beautiful and very functional. It has two libraries and a gym, among other great amenities. It is located within walking distance of the U.S. Capitol, the U.S. Supreme Court, the U.S. Court of Appeals, as well as the U.S. Tax Court !
That's all for today but I am looking forward to sharing more from my LL.M. experience with all of you in my next post. Thanks for taking the time to read this post !
Best to all for the starting school year !
Hoya Saxa !
Pauline
Pauline Pierre
LL.M. 2015, Georgetown University Law Center
Grande Ecole du Droit - Université Paris Sud
psp26@georgetown.edu
pauline.pierre@u-psud.fr
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| Arriving on campus |
I am currently enrolled in the General Studies LL.M. program at Georgetown University Law Center, with a focus in international taxation. The LL.M. class at Georgetown Law is one of the largest ones in the U.S. with 460 LL.M. students this year, among which over 200 foreign-trained law students. We come from 63 different countries and speak 62 langages. In just a few weeks, I have met law students and practitioners from all continents. Doing an LL.M. truly is an amazing experience and a very unique one in that regard.
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| American Bar Association - up the street from the White House |
After graduating from the LL.M., I plan on taking the New York Bar Exam. In order to be eligible for the NY Bar Exam, people who received their first law degree from a civil law jurisdiction need to "cure a deficiency" in their legal education. The way such a "deficiency" is cured for the purpose of taking the NY Bar Exam is by doing an LL.M. at a U.S. ABA-approved law school. In addition to that, the LL.M. program itself must meet certain requirements. The minimum requirement is of 24 credits, of which 12 must be in subjects tested on the NY Bar Exam. For instance, this semester, I am taking U.S. Legal Research, Analysis and Writing (2 credits) and a 4-credit J.D. Corporations class. These two classes both count toward the requirements for the bar. Aside from that, I am taking a course in Transfer Pricing, another course on the U.S. Taxation of Foreign Persons, and one in Arbitration. This amounts to a total of 13 credits for the Fall semester, which is the maximum allowed for LL.M. students, here at Georgetown. I have 13 hours of classes per week. [All the information in relation to the NY Bar Exam is subject to change, please visit http://www.nybarexam.org]
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| President's and Dean's Reception - main campus |
The way law school works in the U.S. is that professors assign readings to students prior to each class. Students have to get familiar with the material as they may get called on by the professor during class to discuss the assigned readings. This interactive method is known as the Socratic method.
The good thing about taking 13 credits in the Fall for me is that it enables me to free up some credits to possibly do a 2-credit externship in the Spring.
As you can well imagine, meeting the requirements for the bar while getting the most out of the opportunities offered through the LL.M. program demands very thorough planning. This is one of the reasons why the General LL.M. program seemed like the best way for me to meet the requirements for the NY Bar while retaining some flexibility in choosing my courses.
As you can well imagine, meeting the requirements for the bar while getting the most out of the opportunities offered through the LL.M. program demands very thorough planning. This is one of the reasons why the General LL.M. program seemed like the best way for me to meet the requirements for the NY Bar while retaining some flexibility in choosing my courses.
When we are not in class or at the library, we often attend various events organized by the Law Center and by various organizations around DC. DC is a vibrant city with a million different things to do everyday. It is also very different from most other American cities in the sense that it has a somewhat European feel to it. People walk a lot or use the "Vélib"-like system to bike around the city. I actually recently got my yearly membership !
Georgetown's law campus is beautiful and very functional. It has two libraries and a gym, among other great amenities. It is located within walking distance of the U.S. Capitol, the U.S. Supreme Court, the U.S. Court of Appeals, as well as the U.S. Tax Court !
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| William's Library |
Best to all for the starting school year !
Hoya Saxa !
Pauline
Pauline Pierre
LL.M. 2015, Georgetown University Law Center
Grande Ecole du Droit - Université Paris Sud
psp26@georgetown.edu
pauline.pierre@u-psud.fr
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