Legal practice of obtaining a foreign law degree in the United States

Most lawyers in the United States follow the typical practice path: law school, then the lawyer exam, and some other requirements. But some legal professionals have received training abroad. Sometimes it may be difficult to practice law in the United States as a trained lawyer, but this is not impossible.

Each state has different requirements, so what you do depends on where you live and work. Associate lawyers must take the bar exam in the state where they wish to practice. New York and California are popular destinations that provide the most flexible requirements.

State-specific regulations: New York

The New York Law Examiner administers the New York Bar Exam and has specific requirements only for foreign-trained lawyers who want to practice here.

In this state, lawyers trained overseas will fall into one of two categories: your education abroad will be transferred to the US system, or not.

If a foreign-trained lawyer completes a course that lasts at least three years and focuses on British common law, education will usually be transferred. These lawyers can act as lawyers after receiving the prequalification assessment from the board of directors.

California requirements

Like New York, the California Bar Association has relatively loose admission standards for foreign lawyers. In fact, it may be easier to take the bar exam here than in New York.

Foreign-trained lawyers who are permitted to practice law in jurisdictions outside the United States are generally eligible to take the bar exam in California without meeting any other requirements.

Lawyers with overseas training who are not permitted to practice outside the United States are still eligible to take the bar exam after completing the LLM degree program. The plan must cover four independent topics evaluated in the California Bar Exam.

California also provides an additional year of tuition fees for ABA approved or California recognized law schools. This year should be dedicated to the subject of the lawyer exam.

Other states

Lawyers who have received foreign training can also obtain lawyer qualifications in 34 other jurisdictions, but all have different rules. In almost all cases, ABA must first review and approve your foreign law degree. This may take a year or more.

If ABA gives you approval and meets the requirements of other states, you can sit in a bar in that state.

Only Vermont will regularly recognize foreign law degrees and Cisco Exams. The state has an apprenticeship program to help foreign trained lawyers prepare for the lawyer exam there.

Washington State requires that the law school you select for the Master of Laws must be approved by the board of directors. Must include at least 18,200 minutes of guidance and 12,000 minutes of guidance from US national legal principles.

Bar exam

The lawyer exam usually takes two days. The first day is a multiple-choice test, 010-151 Exam and the laws covered are not necessarily unique to any state.

The second day of the exam focuses on the laws of the state where you want to practice. Most states require that you also pass the multi-state professional responsibility exam.

Studying at a law school in the United States is strict, and students can acquire a specific set of skills and knowledge that can help them learn and pass the qualification of a lawyer. Foreign-trained lawyers may not have all these same tools, so their approval rate may be low.