Hi Friends

I am amused to see interactions on this Board which is really very useful. Wish I had seen this earlier.

Having Indian Law Degree and thinking to apply for NYS Bar - not very sure whether will qualify to appear in Bar Exam; noting that they may ask for additional 20-hours credit or LL.M. of USA.

I am sure many friends might have already experienced with NYS Bar exercise without LL.M. I would like to benefit from the experience of all my friends on this.

From employability point, I was exploring for admission to LL.M. Taxation with Georgetown and Bankrupcy with St. John University.  Already applied to George Washington University and NYU but transcripts have yet to reach them.  Also registered with LSAC.

Request all my friends here to help guide me in the process; if it improves employability with LL.M, I must spend all that big money.  But if NYS Bar will help higher employability competing with USA JD graduates who command a high priority in job placements.

Shall greatly appreciate early help and guidance since deadlines for LL.M. are expiring soon in many schools.

Thanks

Indianlawgrad,

I am a third year law student at St. John's and have taken several of the LL.M. classes. I know of two foreign educated students from Taiwan who are enrolled in the program. I am fairly certain that taking the LL.M. at St. John's will make you eligible to sit for the New York State Bar Exam (although I would strongly encourage you to contact St. John's Admissions' Office to confirm that).

However, St. John's LL.M. is focused exclusively on bankruptcy law, which is an area of law that is not covered on the New York Bar Exam at all. I am assuming that India is a common law jurisdiction because it was once a British commonwealth, so Im guessing that you have an understanding of the law that is relatively parallel to U.S. law. It may be possible for you to take St. Johns LL.M. solely to learn about bankruptcy law and become eligible for the NYS Bar exam and then take an additional intensive Bar review course for the substantive law that will be covered on the test. I am not sure that I would enroll at either the bankruptcy program or NYUs taxation program (because tax is not a topic on the New York Bar exam either) if your goal in obtaining an LL.M. is to become eligible for the Bar Exam. St. Johns bankruptcy program will probably not prepare you to sit for the Bar Exam (but you could always take a Bar review course). However, St. Johns does have an LL.M. program that is tailored specifically for foreign educated lawyers that would suit your needs in passing the bar exam - http://www.stjohns.edu/academics/graduate/law/academics/LLM/legalstudies

If you are interested in insolvency and bankruptcy, then I would whole heartedly recommend St. Johns Bankruptcy LL.M. The program is excellent. The professors include Federal Bankruptcy Judges and practicing attorneys at major law firms. If you are looking to practice bankruptcy in the U.S., then St. Johns program will help you to gain both a mastery of the law and build connections with people in the field. The job placement out of the program has been very good, with almost 100% of graduates going to either large law firms or Federal clerkships (working for a federal bankruptcy judge for a year which is a very prestigious position and often harder to obtain than a law firm job).

I have also heard excellent things about NYUs taxation LL.M. program (although I cant understand why anyone would want to practice tax law for a living). I think that both of those programs (along with passing the NYS Bar Exam) would make you competitive with U.S. law school grads. If you do decide to attend St. Johns bankruptcy LL.M. program or NYUs taxation LL.M., I would strongly encourage you to consider trying to take a New York Practice class (either in addition to or as part of the LL.M.) so that you get exposure to how the NY civil law system works. Finally, I would caution you to consider what area of law you really want to practice, by getting an LL.M. in either bankruptcy or taxation you are becoming highly specialized and you may find it difficult to later transition into another area of law if you decide that you dont like tax or bankruptcy (but these degrees may open doors for you that would not otherwise be available). By the way, I don't know anything about Georgetown's LL.M., but the school has an excellent reputation (probably comparable to NYU) and would look impressive on your resume. But, because Georgetown is located in Washington, DC, it probably does not offer a specialized course in New York Practice (that St. John's definitely has and NYU probably has) which would help you prepare for the NYS Bar Exam. Again, I would contact the schools and discuss these issues with admissions before making a decision on whether or not to enroll in a particular program.

Good Luck,

Think2wice

Hi Think2wice
Many many thanks indeed for your inputs. My important question is employability. Which University and what course would fit it better from employability with or without NYS Bar.
Thanks indeed again and look forward hearing your further views and other friends to help me in this crucial decision making process
Indianlawgrad