Pepperdine University School of Law - Straus Institute for Dispute Resolution

Master of Laws (LL.M.) in Dispute Resolution

The Masters of Laws or LL.M. is an advanced law degree available exclusively for attorneys or judges. Applicants for our LL.M. program must have completed the first degree of law required to practice or teach law. For candidates in the United States this requires a JD degree from an ABA-accredited law school.

The LLM in Dispute Resolution is considered the premier program in dispute resolution and offers students the most amount of flexibility in their dispute resolution education. This 26-unit program is structured with a balance of theory and practice; students will focus on a variety of ADR mechanisms including negotiation, mediation and arbitration, as well as gain practice through the requisite Mediation Clinic and Externship program.

Students can follow a more general course of study without a concentration, or declare a concentration in mediation, arbitration or litigation.

Master of Laws (LL.M.) in International Commercial Arbitration

The LLM in International Commercial Arbitration is designed to combine a robust academic foundation, a capstone practice experience in which every student will compete in an international arbitration competition, methodical examination and practice of the negotiation and mediation processes, and enough electives for students to be able to take electives to sit for the New York or California bar exam.

The program is headed by Faculty Director Prof. Jack Coe, and will enable students to be exposed to the most current developments in the field through some of its most reputable professionals, such as our Academic Director Prof. Thomas Stipanowich, and Profs. Jasper Kim, Catherine Rogers, Linda Silberman, John Crook, and Lucy Reed, amongst others.

Master of Laws (LL.M.) in International Commercial Law and Arbitration

The LLM in International Commercial Law and Arbitration (ICLA) is designed for students who want to develop expertise in both business law and international commercial arbitration*.

Master of Laws (LL.M.) in International Commercial Law and Dispute Resolution

The LLM in International Commercial Law and Dispute Resolution (ICLDR) is designed for students who want to develop expertise in both business law and dispute resolution.

Master of Laws (LL.M.) in U.S. Law and Dispute Resolution

The LLM in US Law and Dispute Resolution is designed for students looking to focus on general law courses to qualify for a US bar exam, with the addition of learning in Dispute Resolution skills.

Master of Laws (LL.M.) in U.S. Law

The LLM in US Law is designed for students looking to focus on general law courses to qualify for a US bar exam

We are also pleased to announce a new LL.M. program being offered by the Pepperdine University School of Law, which began in the Fall of 2017:

the Master of Laws (LL.M.) in Entertainment, Media & Sports Law
 

Master of Dispute Resolution

The Master of Dispute Resolution (MDR) program provides practical dispute resolution training for candidates who do not have a law background or degree. Students in the MDR program consist of people from a variety of professions including business and other graduate students, executives, human resource professionals, doctors, psychologists, peacemakers and social workers. Through the MDR students will gain experience through the required Externship program and Mediation Clinic class. Students can also delve deeper into specialty areas including Labor, Dispute Resolution Systems Design, Ombuds and more. Please refer to course descriptions for a full list of courses.

The MDR Program is a 32 unit program that can be completed in 1 year as a full-time student.

Certificate in Dispute Resolution

The Certificate program is a 14 unit program consisting of foundational courses in Mediation, Negotiation and Arbitration. Students can complete the program full-time in one semester or over three years as a part-time student. Attorneys and Judges who participate in the Certificate program are looking for more depth than can be provided by professional training programs and the additional credibility of the Academic Certificate Program. Those that complete the Certificate program and want additional training can reapply for our LL.M., and if accepted can transfer their Certificate units into the LL.M. program.

For more information please visit our Academic Programs website.

Pepperdine University is an independent, medium-sized university enrolling approximately 7,700 students in five colleges and schools. Seaver College, the School of Law, the Graduate School of Education and Psychology, the Graziadio School of Business and Management, and the School of Public Policy are located on the University's 830-acre campus overlooking the Pacific Ocean in Malibu. Courses are taught in Malibu, at four graduate campuses in Southern California, permanent program facilities in Washington, D.C., and at international campuses in Germany, England, Italy, Switzerland, Argentina, and China.

The University was founded in 1937 by George Pepperdine, a Christian businessman who founded the Western Auto Supply Company. For the first 30 years of its life, the institution was a small, mostly undergraduate college. University status was achieved in 1970 as the institution added graduate and professional schools. In 1972, the University opened its new campus in Malibu.

The Straus Institute for Dispute Resolution

The Straus Institute for Dispute Resolution at Pepperdine University School of Law is one of the world's leading educational programs in the field of dispute resolution. For 13 of the last 14 years, U.S. News and World Report has ranked the Straus Institute the Number One Dispute Resolution Graduate Program in the nation. Straus offers a Certificate in Dispute Resolution, a Master's in Dispute Resolution, and an LL.M. degree.

Repeatedly recognized as the foremost academic center of its kind, the Institute brings together an unparalleled full-time teaching and research faculty with scholars and practitioners from throughout the U.S., Canada, Latin America, Asia, and Europe. Its broad and deep curricular offerings serve emerging lawyers as well as experienced mid-career professionals, business persons, and religious and community leaders. In the over twenty one years since its founding, the Straus Institute has established itself as a standard of excellence in preparing effective negotiators, peacemakers, problem solvers, and a driving force for improving the culture of conflict in America.

The Straus Institute stands as the pillar in conflict resolution research with the acquisition of the world's leading library from the American Arbitration Association. Consisting of over 24,000 titles, the AAA library includes titles on subjects ranging from international arbitration to consumer disputes and health law to the history and growth of public and private dispute resolution practices in the U.S. and abroad.

The Pepperdine University School of Law

Pepperdine University School of Law began as the Orange University College of Law in Santa Ana, California, in 1964. The school was acquired by Pepperdine in 1969. By 1975, the Pepperdine's School of Law had received its full ABA approval and full State Bar Accreditation. In 1978, the school moved to Pepperdine's 830-acre campus, which overlooks the Pacific Ocean in Malibu, California. The Pepperdine University School of Law became a member of the Association of American Law Schools (AALS) in 1980, and a member of the Order of the Coif scholastic society in 2007.

The School of Law seeks to provide a few highly qualified students with the opportunity to pursue an academically challenging program in a unique and exciting environment. The student body possesses exceptional intelligence, as well as diversity, and rich and varied talents. Students will be surrounded by others who were also at the top of their undergraduate academic class, leaders in extracurricular activities, and active participants in their community. Alumni will leave prepared to enter positions as counselors, advocates, and judges; they will enter careers in business fields, as well as becoming writers and teachers of the law. We urge you to explore our Web site for a glimpse into this exciting place!

The Straus Institute is a unique meeting place for outstanding faculty from around the world, including Canada, Australia, Hong Kong, Europe, and every region of the United States.

For more information, visit our Pepperdine University School of Law faculty website.

Applicants for admission to the Master's of Dispute Resolution (M.D.R.) or Dispute Resolution Certificate Program must have received a bachelor's degree from an approved college or university prior to registration. If you do not meet this requirement, please visit our Dispute Resolution Training Programs site for information on our training programs.

Applicants for admission to the LL.M. in Dispute Resolution must have completed the first degree in law required for law practice or law teaching in the country in which law studies were pursued. U.S. applicants must have an ABA-accredited J.D. degree. In exceptional cases, U.S. applicants with non ABA-accredited law degrees may be considered.

Applications for the LL.M. program can now be submitted online through the Law School Admission Council's LL.M. Credential Assembly Service at llm.lsac.org. Applications for the M.D.R. and Certificate program can still be submitted using the paper application. All LL.M. applicants are highly encouraged to use LSAC's online application process.

International students applying to the LL.M. program must submit their materials through LSAC's LL.M. Credential Evaluation Service.

International Students must complete the following requirements for admission to our dispute resolution programs:

- Applicants to the LL.M. program must submit their materials through LSAC's LL.M. Credential Evaluation Service (http://lsac.org/llm).
- Applicants to the M.D.R. and Certificate program must submit their transcripts for evaluation through World Education Services (http://www.wes.org).
- Complete International Student Data Form with supporting information from their banking institution verifying the necessary funds required to complete our academic program.
- Submit examination results demonstrating an acceptable level of English proficiency. The Straus Institute only accepts the TOEFL and IELTS examination with the following minimum scores: TOEFL - 250 CBT, 603 PBT and 100 iBT; IELTS - 7.0
- A three to four page personal statement.
- Current resume or vita.
- Two completed Personal Evaluation forms or narrative letters of recommendation.

Applications are reviewed twice a year for admission to the Certificate, M.D.R. and LL.M. programs. Students can elect to start in the Fall, Winter Intensive, Spring or Summer terms. Applications must be received by the following application deadlines to be considered for admission:

Deadline Start Terms
February 15 Summer or Fall Semester
August 15 Winter Intensive or Spring Semester

For more information, please review our application form.

All tuition is charged on a per unit basis for the Certificate, Master's, and LL.M. Degree Programs. Tuition for the 2018-2019 academic year is $1995 per unit.

Our academic programs consist of the following units; Certificate 14 units, Master's 32 units and LL.M. 26 units.

Students in the Institute's degree programs have several financial assistance options for funding their professional education. Extensive student loan programs, as well as payment plans to spread tuition payments over the time students are in school, are available. Additional information regarding financial aid can be found at the Financial Aid site. Students participating in a joint degree program with Straus need to refer to the financial aid department of their home university for additional funding, including GSBM, GSEP, and SPP.

***NEW***

Full-Tuition Scholarships

For the fifth year in a row JAMS is partnering with Pepperdine to offer a full-tuition scholarship for Fall 2017, in addition to the scholarship from the Seegmiller Law Firm, being offered for the fourth consecutive year.

The JAMS Scholarship

JAMS is the largest for-profit provider of mediation and arbitration services in the United States, with offices in more than 25 cities and more than 300 retired judges and senior lawyers on its panel. JAMS has been focusing on international opportunities, including opening of an office in London, and sees this scholarship as an expression of it support for future international arbitration practitioners.

The Seegmiller Scholarship

The Seegmiller Law Firm headquartered in Newport Beach serves those who need legal services in both California and Nevada. The Seegmiller Scholarship is available to applicants from Korea looking to earn an LL.M. in Dispute Resolution.

Straus offers its degree programs on the Malibu Campus, where students have access to full-scale educational services, executive-style classrooms, faculty offices, technology support, and reference facilities.

The Malibu campus of the University is located at the intersection of Pacific Coast Highway and Malibu Canyon Road. Parking is provided on campus. The Malibu Campus is the home to Seaver College and the School of Law, located on main campus. The Graziadio School of Business Management, the Graduate School of Education and Psychology and the School of Public Policy are located on the Drescher Graduate Campus, located above the main campus.

Accommodation & Student Life

The Pepperdine Housing and Residence Life office strives to enhance the learning experience by fostering a safe, caring, respectful and dynamic on-campus community.

Living on-campus is the best way to fully experience college life. The on-campus experience offers students both convenience and a sense of community, and provides students the opportunity for more student and faculty interaction, enhancing learning and academic, social, and spiritual growth.

In addition to our dynamic on-campus community, our office offers many opportunities for student growth offering social events, mentorship programs, and other community enhancing experiences.

Training Programs

In addition to the academic program, the Straus Institute for Dispute Resolution offers professional skills training for off campus constituencies. The Institute has provided negotiation, mediation, and dispute resolution skills training programs for law firms, bar associations, governmental agencies, judiciary, and community groups. The entertaining presentation style, participatory format, and frequent use of simulated exercises to reinforce learning points, has caused the Institute's training programs to be in very high demand.

The Institute also regularly offers professional education programs for MCLE credit on a full range of dispute resolution topics and advanced applications for mid career attorneys, judges, and other professionals. One of the most popular of these programs is Mediating the Litigated Case, a six-day program offered two or three times a year. In addition, every summer the Institute offers a collection of simultaneous three-day programs on various aspects of negotiation, mediation and arbitration.

U.S. Law and Legal Writing Seminar

The Straus Institute at the Pepperdine University School of Law also offers the U.S. Law and Legal Writing Seminar for international students and law professionals.

The program will enable international applicants to LL.M. programs, international lawyers, judges and law professionals to improve their ability in the English language, as well as deepen their understanding of the U.S legal system. Such knowledge is crucial to being able to fully understand and participate in English speaking professional activities, or LL.M. programs.

The U.S. Law and Legal Writing Seminar program is a 4-week program that will be offered July 12th - August 3rd. Classes will meet daily from 9am to 5pm, Monday through Thursday.The morning sessions will be taught by faculty from the Pepperdine University School of Law and will consist of a 1 1/2-hour course on Legal Research and Writing and another 1 1/2-hour course on U.S. Legal Vocabulary and Concepts. From 2pm to 5pm, the focus is on mastering English speaking, listening, reading and writing abilities. This aspect of the program will be presented in cooperation with faculty from the American Language Center at UCLA.

In addition to the daily courses, the program will include weekly extra-curricular professional and cultural activities. Students will have the opportunity to engage in site visits to Disneyland, the Hollywood Bowl, the John Paul Getty Museum, and to a Dodgers game, as well as to the Los Angeles Superior Court, JAMS, an interview with a sitting judge, and a panel discussion with lawyers with specialty in International Law practice.

During the duration of the program, students will be housed at the beautiful Pepperdine University Malibu Campus, and will have full access to the library and other academic resources.

The U.S. Law and Legal Writing Seminar program is not for academic credit and is designed to benefit LL.M. applicants who were not able to reach the minimum TOEFL or IELTS score requirements for their target schools. The Straus Institute may invite some LL.M. and M.D.R. applicants to participate in the U.S. Law and Legal Writing Seminar program so that their English language abilities can be better assessed, which could ultimately result in admission to Straus' academic programs. Students who are not ready for graduate academic study at the conclusion of the Seminar program may be offered admission to a Straus' academic program upon completing the UCLA ongoing English learning program.

International students planning to study law in the U.S. or prepare to take California or New York bar examinations will also benefit from the program by learning many of the pertinent aspects of the American legal system and U.S. Law.