The Law Center offers an advanced program of study leading to the degree of Master of Laws (LL.M.). This degree requires full-time attendance for two semesters in residence and the successful completion of a minimum of 26 credit hours of study.
The LL.M. degree in Comparative Law is open to students with either Civilian or Anglo-American training who seek a firm foundation in the American common law, and civil law in English taught from the unique perspective that only a truly comparativist institution can offer.
Scholarships
Admission to the LL.M Program is highly competitive. Candidates may apply for a “full scholarship” (tuition and nonresident fee waiver) or a “partial scholarship” (nonresident fee waiver only).
Every LL.M Program candidate is responsible for paying the mandatory student fees regardless of their scholarship award. A limited number of scholarships are available each year, and all scholarship decisions are made by the LL.M. Program Committee of the law faculty.
Required Courses
All LL.M. Program candidates must attend a special Orientation program held at the Law Center shortly before the start of the fall semester. The special orientation program will acclimate the students to the language and study of law at a United States law school, as well as provide opportunities for course selection, completion of enrollment and administrative requirements, andother activities to orient students to life as a U.S. law student.
In the fall semester, LL.M. students take Introduction to United States Law, a comparative study of the institutions and concepts of Anglo-American and Louisiana laws (with an overview of the evolution of the common law compared to the civil law), and Legal Research and Writing I, a practical skills component to help them prepare for professional legal writing.
The LSU Law Center then offers candidates a full range of law courses, seminars, and skills development classes, especially in the business, transactional, corporate, intellectual property, energy, and commercial law areas that are often important to international lawyers.
Classes are also available in: civil and international law; labor and employment law; environmental law; science and public health; constitutional and administrative law; family law; torts; admiralty and insurance; professional responsibility and the practice of law and procedure (including international criminal law and whitecollar crime); and other areas. Courses are to be picked among upperclass and first-year classes offered in the JD curriculum.
Academic Legal Research and Writing (Optional)
Candidates may complete an academic legal writing project, either as an independent supervised research project or as a seminar paper. They will then attend the Legal Research Workshop in the spring semester and regularly meet with Law Center faculty members and instructors for assistance and feedback on their writing.
Every student receives instruction in print and computer-based legal research to learn how to conduct both practical and academic research. Free unlimited access is provided to Westlaw, LexisNexis, HeinOnline, and many other legal databases. The Law Center complex is equipped with the latest in computer technology, and provides free WiFi access to all students. Our Law Library is considered one of the best in the country; it contains the full complement of state, federal, and international legal materials, as well as resources that are not available elsewhere, including original source materials.
Admission Requirements
The LL.M. Program is highly selective in nature. Only candidates who have exhibited exceptional ability in the past and whose record, as a whole, promises high potential for the future will be considered for admission to the program. Applicants must have completed a Juris Doctor from an ABA-approved law school, or its equivalent from an approved foreign law school. Admissions decisions are made by the LL.M. Program Committee of the law faculty.
Applicants whose native language is not English are required to demonstrate to the LL.M. Program Committee their ability to conduct both classroom and research work in English. A minimum score of 600 (paper-based), 250 (computer-based) or 100 (internet-based) on the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) is generally required. The International English Language Testing System (IELTS) may be accepted in place of the TOEFL, with a generally required score of 7.5. In addition to the test score, a writing sample or an interview (via Skype or telephone) may be required by the LL.M. Program Committee for use in admissions decisions. Conditional acceptance with an approved ESL course is possible, with the understanding that the student will meet the above-detailed test requirement prior to starting classes at the Law Center.
Students will be admitted for the fall semester, beginning in August. There is no spring semester admission, and no possibility to attend part-time. The deadline to submit completed applications is March 31. Late applications are accepted, but may not receive full consideration with regard to financial aid.
Please submit applications to:
LSU Paul M. Hebert Law Center
Office of International Programs
Suite W326
1 East Campus Drive
Baton Rouge, LA 70803
LL.M Program staff may be contacted by telephone at 225-578- 7831 or 225-578-1126, or by email at llmadmissions@lsu.edu.
Applications should be accompanied by the following supporting materials:
- Official transcripts — of all law and related study, as well as other university education. Graduates of law schools outside the U.S. should be careful that their transcripts indicate courses taken, number of hours awarded for each course, the grade received in each course, an explanation of the grading system, and a ranking of the individual student. Transcripts in a language other than English, French, or Spanish must be accompanied by an official English translation.
- Three letters of recommendation — by persons who are sufficiently acquainted with the applicant’s work to form an opinion about his or her ability to successfully pursue graduate legal studies. The letters may be mailed with the application in a sealed envelope, signed by the recommender over the seal, or mailed by the recommender directly to the Law Center. Letters in a language other than English, French, or Spanish must be accompanied by an official English translation
- Personal statement — including research interests and reasons for pursuing graduate legal education.
- A check or money order — for $50 (in United States funds) payable to the LSU Law Center as an application fee. The application fee is nonrefundable.
- Official TOEFL or IELTS score — must be submitted by all non-native English-speakers. The generally accepted minimum score on the TOEFL is 600 (paper based), 250 (computer based), or 100 (internet based), and 7.5 on the IELTS.
Requirements for Awarding of the Degree
- To receive the LL.M. degree, a minimum of two semesters of full-time study is required, together with the attendance of the Orientation program. A longer period may be occasionally necessary due to the nature of the candidate’s particular program of study, prior legal training, the quality of performance at the Law Center, or other factors. The residency requirement may be extended to include an additional summer session.
- Each candidate’s program of study is arranged on an individual basis between the candidate and the Assistant Dean for International Programs and is subject to the approval of the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs.
- During residency, candidates must earn a minimum of 26 semester hours of credit.
- The 26 semester hours are allotted as follows:
- Two credit hours allotted for Introduction to United States Law (required for all LL.M. candidates), and two credit hours for Legal Research and Writing I.
- The balance of the hours is allotted for regular courses, seminars, independent supervised research or any combination thereof.
- Degrees are awarded by the faculty upon the favorable recommendation of the Assistant Dean for International Programs, the Associate Dean of Academic Affairs, and the LL.M. Program Committee. To receive a favorable recommendation, the candidate’s work as a whole must exhibit sufficiently high quality and scholarly maturity. A minimum cumulative grade point average of 2.4 for regular courses and seminars.
LL.M. students who do not earn a grade average of 2.4 at the end of the fall semester will be notified of the extreme difficulty to raise their average to a 2.4 cumulative average in one semester. Any candidate who does not complete all program requirements by the end of the spring semester may not be eligible to fully participate in all graduation ceremonies.
Return to: