The beginning

By tmalmine in Law According to Yale on Sep 23, 2006

Law according to Yale

This blog is devoted to legal, especially LL.M., studies at Yale Law School. The title of the blog has been borrowed from a short paper by Yale constitutional law scholar Owen Fiss, and it nicely conveys the essence of this blog. It is mainly about Yale and will concentrate on studying in New Haven, unlike some LL.M. blogs, which contain vivid descriptions of New York social life, arts, music, and what have you.

The author is a 29-year old Finnish lawyer, who began his LL.M. studies at YLS approximately three weeks ago. My fields of interest are legal history, comparative law, and legal theory. Additionally, I take keen interest in politics, comparative cultures, social theory, economics, and literature. I am, in short, a jack-of-all-trades-and-master-of-none. My current research project (dissertation) is a comparative study of the legal realist revolution in Germany, Sweden, and the United States. The study can be summarized into a one major question: What happened to private property after great democratization of the Western societies at the end of the 19^th century, and what on earth had legal realism to do with it? I want to take a look at the discourses surrounding the institution of ownership at the time when Western societies were undergoing a major social and political transformation. I believe that such a project has never been undertaken in comparative legal history.

What has the YLS got to do with this? To the readers of the LL.M. discussion board, this question hardly needs ato be answered. YLS is one of the premier law schools in the world, and in my estimate, one with the strongest emphasis on legal scholarship (as opposed to legal practice). Yale educates a great number of future law professors and attracts many people, who are committed to legal scholarship.

This emphasis on teaching and scholarship is evident in the LL.M. program, too. YLS should probably not be the first choice for an aspiring investment banker or wanna-be associate lawyer at major law firms (even though YLS pedigree hardly closes those doors). In any event, most of my classmates dream of being future teachers of law. This distinguishes the Yale LL.M. program from most other programs in the US.

Personally, I had additional reasons to choose YLS over HLS, Columbia, Michigan, Virginia, Cornell and Georgetown (other schools I was accepted into). Yale is arguably the world leader in the fields of legal history and comparative law. Having said that, I have to admit that I was a bit disappointed to find out that James Whitman is on a leave of absence this year, and that Bob Gordon is not teaching legal history. If you are planning to apply to Yale, do bear in mind that it is a small community and very generous with leaves. If you plan to come here to study with certain professor, ask him whether he will be here.

After this initial disappointment, I have become convinced that I made the right choice. I’m taking a course on history of the common law, given by John Langbein, and it’s simply superb. In October I’m taking a course titled "Race and Constitution in American Legal History," by Mike Klarman, one of most distinguished legal historians of his generation. I’m also studying social theory with Jeffrey Alexander (at the department of sociology) and torts with Guido Calabresi (just to see how law is taught to first-year American law students). All courses are extremely good. If you have interdisciplinary aspirations, I urge you to take a look at other departments’ course offerings. Yale, for instance, has very strong history, political science, and sociology departments. The same goes for other major research universities as well. Most LL.M. programs allow students to take some courses outside the law school, and this should be one consideration when you're choosing the program.

Is YLS the best law school in the world? I don’t know. Sensible persons understand that a question like this is impossible to answer. I do believe, however, that YLS is a very special place. Law school itself is beautiful: smallish, neo-Gothic, faux-Oxford type of place. It has amazing faculty, great student body, and it’s attached to one of the premier centers of social science and humanities in the world. Both JD and LL.M. programs are relatively small, which creates a personal and cozy feeling that I enjoy very much. New Haven itself has exceeded my expectations. It’s certainly not New York, but it’s hardly the awful, violent ghetto it’s sometimes portrayed either. At best, in a sunny day, it’s a traditional East Coast college town with beautiful campus and lots of restaurants and cafeterias. If your main objective is to have a year off, enjoy life, and party as much as possible, I suggest you go to New York. The median age in the LL.M. program is 30, many students have families with them, and everyone is strongly committed to their studies. Yale experience is first of all an educational experience and the social life is correspondingly different from some other law schools, concentrating mainly on intellectual exchange. The spirit of the program is very collegial: Most of us are specializing in different fields and returning to our home countries after the program. There is no sense of competition at all between the students, unlike in some other LL.M. programs.

My future postings will include, for instance, following ones: "How is law taught at Yale", "Some YLS faculty personalities", "Want to write your dissertation in the US: what you should know", and "Applying to YLS: tips and suggestions". If you’re interested in YLS, stay tuned.

Best,

Toni

Comments

tmalmine, Apr 19, 2007 03:04

Dear Livia,

I would love to gie you some advice, but perhaps you could ask me some specific questions. What would you like to know?

Best,

Toni

livia, Apr 12, 2007 22:37

Hi Toni!!
i found your article very interesting and it gave me more convinction about my study choice,so thank you!! Anyway, i wanna ask you something for me very important,i'm not an american but i want to study there,in yls,i mean,cuz i'm looking for some solution,in what school i have to go and so on..but 'til now i haven't found much so if you could possibly help me or give me some advices, would be great!! thank you again,and bye bye!!!

tmalmine, Nov 13, 2006 04:19

Hi Rakhmad! I apologize for not responding earlier, somehow I missed your post. But let me now answer your questions.

1) this year we don't have a single student from Russia of former SU countries.
2) I think it's a good idea to emphasize your ambition vis-Ã -vis teaching.
3) Your CV should tell your language skills, but I wouldn't emphasize them. The Admissions officers will try to evaluate you as a student, and here all the teaching will be in English. Other languages will not be a huge asset.

tmalmine, Nov 06, 2006 04:42

This year Yale LL.M. Program has no American students (except Canadians, but you were probably referring to the U.S.). Last year there was at least one American student, Eric Jensen. I've never met him, but perhaps you can find his CV via Google.

Legaldiva, Nov 03, 2006 20:47

Are there Americans in the LL.M. program at yale this year? If so, how many? Can you give me an idea about their credentials?

Thanks!

rakhmadjon, Oct 22, 2006 09:09

Hello Everyone,

I am thankful for Toni and other contributors of this wonderful blog. I have recently found out about this website and actively reviewing the updates of the website.

I am Rakhmad from Uzbekistan, a former soviet republic of Central Asia. I am strongly motivated to become an international law professor and teach in my home country, where, I should admit, this field of law is taught very briefly. Although, I have graduated from International Law faculty from then the most pretigous university in Uzbekistan, I have learnt much about international law by participating in Jessup and Pictet competitions, working for the OSCE in Vienna and International Criminal Court in the Hague.

My desire to become one of few students of YLS is not strengthened by its the prestige of the law school, but more importantly by its environment and tradition to bring up the "minds" of international law. I hope to get into YLS as soon as possible (if not this year then a year after)

I have a couple of questions for you Toni and all other friends of this blog. I appreciate your time and efforts in answering them.

1. are there many students from former soviet countries? like uzbekistan
2. I would like to learn how to teach law from professors at YLS. My aim is to combine common law and civil law tradition in teaching law, because I believe that "case-law" approach to certain fields of law, such as international law, is needed in many countries of civil law. do you think it will look not persuasive if i elaborate my statement on this objective?
3. is language abilities are good assets to emphasize on in the application?

Thank you very much.

Sassi, Oct 09, 2006 23:23

Toni, you're the type of guy that will go far. Thanks for this blog and all your previous support. Will continue eagerly following your developments.

Sassi

R.M., Oct 01, 2006 19:52

I enjoyed your article very much and I would appreciate your tips to apply to YLS.
thanks.

tmalmine, Sep 25, 2006 02:53

Senator: my next post will address application issues. It should be available next Sunday or so.

tmalmine, Sep 25, 2006 02:52

Daniele: I think it's totally appropriate to emphasize that you're mainly interested in an LL.M. in order to complete your dissertation. I did that exactly, when I applied.

george k., Sep 24, 2006 19:33

Toni, I have found tour article very interesting- your description of Yale's orientation matches with what I have heard from friends-it is devoted to legal scholarship and academic careers.Race and constitution is a fine topic for the U.S.A. and the E.U. also now that globalization radically alters the composition of Western World societies. I do not know a great deal from a legal point of view except the decision Brown v Topeka Board of Education which ended racial segragation in the U.S.A. secondary education system and which the late supreme judge William Renquist opposed, as a commentator-according to his Guardian obituary. Legal history is a fascinating topic although coming from a civil law background I think our path diverges from common law jurisdictions. As far as legal practice is concerned the legal market is absolutely dominated by American and British companies therefore common law has its' sway. Any news from Yale would be appreciated.

Daniele, Sep 24, 2006 13:16

Hi, Toni!

Thanks for the information.
I will surely read professor Whitman's new book as soon as it is released.
I will specify that I would like to attend professor Whitman's classes both on my NYU and Columbia personal statements: Whatever university hires him gains positions on my personal ranking!
I am glad that Europe is well represented and that an Italian fellow has made it into YLS - I hope the trend continues next year :)
Your dissertation topic is really fascinating (and - at least at first glance - pretty complex to handle, requiring an extensive research in subjects as different as legal history, comparative law, jurisprudence, property, economic history and so on)
I'm sure the result will be great.
Actually, my SJD dissertation concerns the development of media-specific constitutional law in the realm of free speech (particularly, how freedom of the press became a paradigm for the general freedom of speech) in Italy and America, and what lessons can be drawn from this story (and from an analisys of antitrust law and aconomics in this sector) in order to foresee what might be the future nature of a constitutional law of the internet.
I plan to submit this research proposal to various law schools (most of all those specializing in comparative and constitutional law).
Do you think it is appropriate to write on my personal statement that I request admission mainly to pursue my researches towards the completion of my dissertation?
Have a nice Sunday,

Daniele

Senator, Sep 24, 2006 01:58

Tmalmine,
Congrats on getting into Yale man. I am just about to submit my application for the academic year 2007-2008. Do you have any tips at all please?

Senator

tmalmine, Sep 23, 2006 19:22

Hi Daniele! And thank you very much for your comment, it was the first one:)

I totally agree with you. James Whitman is absolutely one of the most interesting comparatists today. He is visiting Columbia and NYU this year, and the rumor has it that he's planning to go to either one, possibly because he has been living in NY for some time and wants to teach closer to his home. By the way, Yale University Press will be publishing his new book this fall, on the origin of reasonable doubt standard in Anglo-American law. Take a look at it if you're interested in evidence.

Yes, many of my classmates already have their doctorates, and some are professors in their home countries. Some have, however, graduated just last spring, so there are people in different phases of their career. It's quite nice, actually.

There are 20 nationalities in our program, and one Italian guy. European nationalities have strongest presence, but there is strong South-American faction, too. We have 4-5 Asians and one African. So there is regional diversity.

dam, Sep 23, 2006 14:00

Thank you Toni,
thanks to your kindness we have the chance to take a look at everyday's life in YLS.
It's a pity that professor Whitman is leaving the school: I had the chance to meet him in Italy and I think he's one of the best comparative law scholars in the world.
Having said that, I must confess I was a little bit surprised reading that the average age of YLS LL.Ms is around 30: I imagine that many of you have already finished your SJDs and are already holding tenure-track positions.
Finally, may I ask you whether you have noticed any geographic patterns in this year's admissions?

Thanks,

Daniele