Hi all,

I was recently accepted into this program and I need some advice on whether I should pursue it.

First, I must say that Sec & Fin Reg is definitely an area of interest to me and would like to have a career in this field.

I already have a JD from a bottom Tier 1 school, graduated top 25%. In addition, I'm currently working as an associate for a medium sized firm doing coverage and litigation.

I guess my question is, is worth leaving a good job in this economy with the hope that a G-Town LLM will enable me to get a job in the sec/fin area of law. How much can I leverage the LLM degree into a career in the sec/fin area of law. Thx

Congratulations marina. I was accepted into the IBEL LLM.

It's hard to predict the market for banking, securities, and financial regulation 1 or 2 years from now. There's an interesting thread http://www.llm-guide.com/board/65215 about which fields would be the "best bets".

Would specializing in the field that was most affected by the financial crisis be a smart move as financial institutions start hiring again and need specialized lawyers to comply with newly enacted policies?
Or would you be competing with experienced lawyers that were initially laid off and who are trying to find jobs in the financial market again?

That's a tough decision indeed. Have you applied/obtained any financial aid? Will you have to actually quit your current job or can you negotiate a 1 year break? Thus guaranteeing you'd at least get your job back once you graduate?

Assuming financial aid and a 1yr leave, worst case scenario you'll come back to your current position with like an extra 20-30k loan to repay. I'd say that's a reasonable risk to take if it's what you really want to work in.

I hate to be so blunt. If you have a job, make sure you keep it because once you get out, there will be 100 people lining up for your job.

If I am you, I am not even going to take the risk of "promising" to take you back once you are done with your studies. Let's be realistic. They might think they can either replace you with someone else, or just go without your old position. Therefore It is possible they might just ask you to take another year (or longer). It is not worth the risk.

I would do it only if you could do it part-time.

I don't necessarily disagree with hoko's comments. But I also think it depends on how risk-tolerant or risk-averse you are. I faced a similar dilemma and have decided to leave a stable position as a mid-level associate in the midwest to attend HLS this fall with the hope that it propels me into academia. It may be the worst decision I've ever made - let's hope not. But if I never tried, I'd always wonder.

And I'm confident enough in my skills and background in what I perceive to be a growing field (environmental/energy law) to think that I'll be able to get a job in the future even if an academic career doesn't pan out. Lots of variables, and I could be wrong. I decided to make the leap, though.

Don't be retarded. This is GT we're talking about, not HLS or YLS. Let me elaberate...

Law firms in corporate/securities practices receive LLM applications for Associate positions from foriegn lawyers who are qualified overseas and sat the LLM in US. The ranking of the school in which these foreign lawyers received their US LLM matters because US law firms use it as a guide to assess the quality of the candidate.

For US JD holders, LLM have no value unless you want an academic career (ie plan to sit the SJD after LLM). law firms will judge you by your JD, not LLM. You will not get any brownie points for going to a T14 school for LLM If you went to a shit school for JD. This is why most top law schools prohibit US JDs from applying for LLM (no steping up!) with the exception of NYU/GT (specialty programs) and Yale/HLS (for scholarly pursuits). If you do your LLM at HLS you might get some brownie points, but GT... probably not.

However, if your going to GT for the educational value not for the resume brand value, then it would be worth it. Otherwise, it is a waste of time and money. KEEP YOUR JOB.... especially in this economy.

As a current student at the Georgetown University Law Center seeking an LLM in Securities and Financial Regulation, I highly recommend this program to anyone interested in pursuing a career in either securities or financial regulation. Quite frankly, I believe those professionals without an LLM in this area of specialty will be at a disadvantage due to the complexity and comprehensiveness of these fields of law.

In the current market, lawyers need every advantage they can find and they need to avoid any gaps on their resume. Hence, this LLM may be very helpful. Further, law firms now do not want to pay for the training of their associates and would rather have an associate that can hit the ground running.

In addition to the highly competent and qualified teaching (the best in their fields) and connections with all of the various regulators in DC creating an ideal and cutting edge learning environment, the connections and ability to gain experience at the regulators through the program (e.g., SEC, Treasury, OCC, FDIC, FERC, CFTC, etc.) are excellent. For the reasons stated above, and many others not stated, Georgetown University Law Center's LLM Program in Securities and Financial Regulation is probably the best program of its kind within the United States.
Although there are schools like Harvard, Columbia, etc. these schools, in this area of the law, are not in DC. Why is this important? Washington D.C. is the center of all financial regulation within the US and the center of all legal reforms in the areas of securities and banking law. When your professors walk (or take the Metro) directly from their highest ranking positions in Big Law or at the SEC, OCC, FDIC, CFTC, FERC, Treasury, FINRA etc. (most of whom have also previously worked in Big Law) you become the possible recipient of the best connections possible and are learning the most current and relevant information possible. Although much of the world still says "Wow!" when you say you went to Harvard, at the end of the day it comes down to what you know, who you know, and how well you can utilize these two things in your career.

The current legal market in the United States is probably and hopefully the worst those reading this will ever experience. Also, we should be out of this mess within a few years. Hereafter, things will get better for us all. Now is a good time to be obtaining an LLM in an area of the law that interests you and that will serve to connect you to many future employers. My recommendation is if you have a job then keep it and do the LLM part-time. If you dont have a job and cant find one, then seriously consider getting your LLM (full-time or part-time) from the best school possible in that particular area of the law because in the future this may be a new unspoken requirement in many fields of law such as securities and banking law. Please do not forget some important facts: 1) the law and the legal profession are both becoming more specialized and more complex; and 2) most employers today would rather hire someone that already has a strong foundation in their chosen field than to have to pay for and take valuable time to train that lawyer. Also, the proliferation of LLM programs is changing the landscape of the legal profession and upping the ante as they say in poker.