NYU corp law - among top five and UCLA - a good regional school. What are the factors one could examine under such circumstances?

Here are a few suggestions:

1) is there a single professor at either NYU or UCLA, whose take on corporate law matches yours? There are many approaches to corporate law; what is yours: economic, philosophical, historical, comparative, reformist, critical? Take a look at corporate law professors' faculty profiles, read some of their publications, and discuss them with your own professors or colleagues.

2) New York and LA are very different cities. Where would you like to be? LL.M. is also about getting to know the US, but would you like to get to know the East or the West coast?

3) I presume that NUY might give you a better national network, but if you would like to stay in California, UCLA might be better. But do keep in mind that finding employment in the US is no mean feat for LL.M graduates.

4) I presume you want to study corporate law. But would you like to study something else besides? Many people supplement their core legal studies with economics, philosophy, history, or whatever. If you have this kind of plans, see which school would provide better opportunities for fulfilling them.

5) I believe that when you are deciding between higher and lower-ranked schools, the burden of proof lies in choosing the latter. So if you turn down NUY for UCLA, you should have some arguments for it. Rankings should not be overestimated, but it would be a mistake to completely ignore them.

Here are some considerations you might want to keep in mind.

Best,

Toni

Cannot add anything to Toni´s comments - I think these are the factors you should take into account when deciding which school to attend.

NY is where it happens, dude ;)

Thank you for the valuable responses.
I am interested in looking at corporate law from the economic perspective. I agree that finding employment may not be esay, but one also has to consider the fact that risk and gains are positively correlated in life. Any thots?

Unfortunately I know almost nothing about law and economics of corporate law. But I do have one suggestion. You might want to contact a professor outside NYU and UCLA to get a more neutral opinion. At Yale, for instance, Roberta Romano and Henry Hansmann have a strong economic take on corporate law. This goes for many Chicago, Harvard, and Columbia professors, too. Drop one of them a short email and ask for their frank assessment of both schools in terms of law and economics of corporate law. Then weigh that opinion against other consideration such as weather, lifestyles, financial packages etc.

In regards to finding employment in the US: yes, one should take risks. If finding employment in the US is very important to you, it seems that NUY might be the better choice. New York law firms are the most international in the US. From what I have gathered, they mostly hire foreign LL.M.s for one or two years before sending them abroad. Some do find permanent employment, but it's quite difficult. If you choose NUY, you obviously have much better chances of going to interviews and doing networking in New York.

Some Stanford students at this board have said that California firms are reluctant to hire foreign lawyers. Probably no one has any hard data, but it sounds convincing to me. Employment-wise NYU seems like the better school for you. But bear in mind that NYU has a big LL.M. program: you have to be active in networking etc. to be a competitive job applicant.

Thank you for the instructive response.

What in your opinion is the locational flexibility which one can have after completion of the LL.M course. In other words, can a foreign attorney relocate in a firm in another state say, Chicago or Atlanta or Arizona in the US ?

I aspire for an academic career, so my knowledge about law practice is limited. But it seems to me that there are two things to consider.

Some schools are more "national" than others. Basically all top-14 schools are national. But from what I have heard, the top-6 give you the broadest possibilities. So basically a degree from these schools gives you the possibility of relocating in the US.

You also need to take the bar exam. Some jurisdictions require a JD degree, you should do some research on this.

What seems to me to be the most realistic route for you is this: attend NYU; try to find a job in NY; after working in NY for a couple of years; relocate after that. It will probably be more difficult than it sounds, but it should be possible.

If you attend NYU, for example, you should also contact their LL.M. alumni network to get some insider information.

Toni

In UCLA there is a great Professor. Her name is Lynn Stout.
I attend her class of law and economics and it is great. Do not hesitate to contact with her
best