(Bonus) U.S LLM vs. U.K LLM (Ziad Shuhaiber, GW Law and Queen Mary School of Law)
Quelques explications avant cet article. C'est un article bonus, écrit par un étudiant en LLM qui n'est pas issu de la Grande Ecole du Droit, mais dont l'expérience dans le domaine est particulièrement intéressant du fait de sa double expérience d'un programme de LLM au Royaume Uni et aux Etats Unis.
Bonne lecture!
The US constitution is the
supreme law of the land. It is the very fabric upon which the laws of
the country originated and were built upon by the founding fathers.
It is a 200-year-old transcript that delineates the national frame of
government and preserves the nation’s civil and inalienable rights.
Conversely, the UK has long prided itself in being one of only three
countries to have adopted a non-codified constitution which has had
an uninterrupted history of continuous constitutional development
pre-dating 1066. Indeed, advocates in the UK have argued for decades
that as one of the longest ruling democracies, the UK has served as a
template for a successful legal system lacking a codified
constitution and one that is subservient to the principle of
parliamentary sovereignty.
Why is the above distinction
important you may ask? Simply because the constitutional dichotomy
between both nations epitomizes the divergence of approach between pursuing the US
vs UK LLM. Virtually every course on the US LLM will incorporate
and/or make reference to key aspects of the constitution Therefore,
you will naturally be expected to be familiar with the constitution
and to cite key Articles derived from it.
Should you decide to brave a
year of the US LLM, here are a few tips from a former UK LLM Student
and a current US LLM candidate. First, make sure you are familiar
with the constitution (I feel inclined to repeat myself having
already been systematically conditioned to do so), as it will be
applicable to all courses selected. Second, should you make the
miscalculation of turning up to class without having completed the
1,001 plus pages reading assignments required; it is perhaps better
to stay at home as the majority of Professors are highly engaging
with their students. We are expected to steer the class discussion
and to provide the analytical insight. Suffice it to say, class
participation is very much mandatory. And sitting in the very back
will neither exempt you nor shield you from being called upon. Again,
I feel inclined to caution you at this point that this is not
intended to deter you from applying for a US LLM; but simply urges
careful consideration that the task ahead is not one to be taken
lightly. Third, making outlines for each selected course will serve
as a game-changer when exams come around. Ideally, you can prepare a
mock outline during the readings and subsequently expand upon them
during lectures and even further thereafter. Further, and on a more
general note, law schools in the US tend to heavily invest in your
future careers. GW will be offering monthly job fairs, and weekly
opportunities to meet legal employers from top-notch firms ranging
from private to public practices. Therefore, the opportunities to
make contacts are far from scarce, and the potential for future
employment will be dependent upon your abilities to network.
Ironically, the UK LLM is a
different beast altogether. Perhaps not quite at the same beastly
level, but a smaller beast nonetheless. The Professors are typically
more relaxed and less engaging with their students. Therefore, lack
of preparation will hardly be noted. Furthermore, while the calibre
of the Professor’s delivery of material may be on equal footing,
quite often the experience, background and the expertise of the
Professors at a top US law school, will arguably, be far superior.
Finally, and contrary to the US LLM, should you choose to specialize
in a particular area of law, a distinguishing feature of the UK LLM
program will exempt you from mandatory courses which would require
you to have an adept understanding of the background and/or history
of UK laws.
Finally, to address the elephant
in the room, a large majority of international students are
admittedly pursing a US LLM in order to be eligible to sit for the
New York Bar Exam. Therefore, I cannot stress enough the importance
of applying early in order to ensure a spot on the LLM program
itself, and equally, a spot to ensure eligibility to sit for the New
York Bar Exam. Ultimately, completion of either the US or UK LLM’s
will present future rewards that will far and beyond surpass the
rigors presented by either programs. Think of it as a stepping-stone
to bridge the gap in your legal knowledge, a means to cultivate your
technical drafting skills, setting you apart from other candidates in
a highly competitive environment, and greatly enhancing your future
career prospects.
Ziad Shuhaiber
LLM Candidate at The George Washington University Law School
Graduated with Merit from The School of Law at Queen Mary University of London
Merit Scholarship Recipient
ziad.shuhaiber@gmail.com
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