I am soon to complete my LLB at a Scottish university and I wondered if anybody could provide me with any information regarding the possibility of working in the US. I am aware that all states have different requirements but I wondered if anyone had any practical advice on the matter i.e. whether it is a complete non starter or an idea of the costs or other potentially mammoth pitfalls. From my own searches it would appear that New York is the most popular destination but I would welcomne any advise or hints about any states at all as I seem to have hit a brick wall! Thanks

Thanks for the help.

Hi Snudger,

Let's see if I can ease some of your grumpiness. The rules really are very different depending on which state you wish to work in. I recently graduated from a Scottish university and am now in the US doing an LLM. As I understand it the LLM is not actually essential if I want to practice here. I believe that I could sit for the New York with only my LLB. The application process involves a few different steps, but an LLB is sufficient. For California however, I think an LLM is a necessary prerequisite. There are some other states in which foreign lawyers can work, but I think they too need LLM's. My advice is to work out first which state you intend to practice in and then to make an effort to work out the pre-requisites. I'm not sure if all that was clear, but hopefully you'll get something from it. Feel free to PM me if you have further questions.

Best of luck,
P

Hi snudger,

This reply might come a bit late, and I apologize. Everyone's right - it definitely will depend on the state where you wish to practice. Each state requires that you join the bar, and all but one state outright requires a bar exam. I believe that New York is actually the most HARSH state - they do not accept foreign law degrees and typically require an attorney to start from scratch in order to sit for the NY bar exam (similarly, they also do not allow attorneys from other US states to join without actually sitting for a bar exam). Some states do seem to accept foreign law degrees, depending on their particular regulations. You can find each state's rules by going to the website for that state's supreme court (e.g., google "Supreme Court of California").

I'm not really sure on the value of having an LLM, because American attorneys do not need to have one. Then again, the training system is different - you cannot go to college and specialize in law. You must first get a Bachelor's degree and then go to law school entirely separately, so you end up with two degrees. The LLM would be yet a third degree for an American lawyer. It's certainly helpful, but not necessary.

What do you mean when you say the Ny bar requires candidates to start from scratch and that NY doesn't recognize foreign law degrees?

I know that one can sit the NY bar with a Law Degree form any Canadaian University (outside quebec).