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Hi, my current law school has a partnership program and i am eligible to go to NYU for either a full JD from there or a LLM, and i will also be getting a JD from my current law school (top 5 in the world, its not in the US or the UK)
but i want to qualify to practice big law in the us, preferrably texas as i have family there.
What would give me the best chance for a shot at a big law firm in texas? the JD program will take 4 years for the two JD's from both my school and NYU, and tuition at nyu will total to about 60 grand over the course of the two years, + living expenses, but my countries government will give me a sort of stipend to help me with the cost of living and what not. Or, i could go for the 1 year LLM, but i have no clue if it would even be of any help?
any input is appreciated guys, thanks

inspectorfletch wrote:Hi, my current law school has a partnership program and i am eligible to go to NYU for either a full JD from there or a LLM, and i will also be getting a JD from my current law school (top 5 in the world, its not in the US or the UK)
but i want to qualify to practice big law in the us, preferrably texas as i have family there.
What would give me the best chance for a shot at a big law firm in texas? the JD program will take 4 years for the two JD's from both my school and NYU, and tuition at nyu will total to about 60 grand over the course of the two years, + living expenses, but my countries government will give me a sort of stipend to help me with the cost of living and what not. Or, i could go for the 1 year LLM, but i have no clue if it would even be of any help?
any input is appreciated guys, thanks

As far my understanding goes, an LLM won't qualify you to sit for the bar and then practice law in the US, whereas an American JD will.

Foreigner LLMs regularly take the bar

Not all states will accept an LLM to sit for the bar. LSAC has a link to the different bar admissions offices and suggests contacting the appropriate one for the state you wish to practice in.

http://www.lsac.org/llm/degree/llm-key-facts.asp

kwais wrote:Foreigner LLMs regularly take the bar

not in texas

JD if you can participate in OCI.

I assume you're at Melbourne? I'd like to know a bit more about why you started out there, how much tuition you've already paid, why you're making the switch, whether Texas is a dealbreaker, and whether any visa issues will be in play. If you haven't already started at Melbourne though, I would forego that degree altogether, as it seems like a waste of money given your goals.

banjo wrote:I assume you're at Melbourne? I'd like to know a bit more about why you started out there, how much tuition you've already paid, why you're making the switch, whether Texas is a dealbreaker, and whether any visa issues will be in play. If you haven't already started at Melbourne though, I would forego that degree altogether, as it seems like a waste of money given your goals.

+1

I started out at Melbourne because I did my last two years of high school here, and my entrance scores were high enough that i got a guaranteed place at the universities JD program after I completed my bachelors. I haven't paid anything for my degree yet because the government pays for most of the degree and the rest is put on a 0 interest loan which we pay back after we reach a certain earnings threshold. Therefor I haven't paid any tuition yet. It isn't a switch so to speak, at the end of second year at the Melbourne JD, I move to NY and do 2 years there, then i get awarded JDs from both universities. I'm not a US citizen anymore, nor was I born there. I want to work in Texas because I have been there many times to visit family, on exchange, and I just generally love the place. Also cost of living is lower there I have no clue yet as to what visas I will need to get if I decide to go, at the moment I'm still tossing up whether to go or not. But NYU is a top 5 law school and if I eventually want to work in the states it would be very handy to have on my resume.

Thanks in advance.

I just graduated from NYU and it seemed to me that most of the foreign LLMs were having a lot of difficulty finding jobs in the U.S. I would not do the LLM unless you have an employer abroad paying for it. It may be useful for working elsewhere, and it's a way to get yourself eligible to practice in the U.S. if you are already an attractive candidate to employers here, but it seems to me that only applies to people with specialized language skills (especially Chinese) or technical skills that are useful to IP work (chemistry PhDs, etc.).

So if you have the choice and want to work in the U.S. I would strongly advise you to get the JD.

inspectorfletch wrote:I started out at Melbourne because I did my last two years of high school here, and my entrance scores were high enough that i got a guaranteed place at the universities JD program after I completed my bachelors. I haven't paid anything for my degree yet because the government pays for most of the degree and the rest is put on a 0 interest loan which we pay back after we reach a certain earnings threshold. Therefor I haven't paid any tuition yet. It isn't a switch so to speak, at the end of second year at the Melbourne JD, I move to NY and do 2 years there, then i get awarded JDs from both universities. I'm not a US citizen anymore, nor was I born there. I want to work in Texas because I have been there many times to visit family, on exchange, and I just generally love the place. Also cost of living is lower there I have no clue yet as to what visas I will need to get if I decide to go, at the moment I'm still tossing up whether to go or not. But NYU is a top 5 law school and if I eventually want to work in the states it would be very handy to have on my resume.

Thanks in advance.

I think the dual-JD makes sense given your goals and circumstances. Issues I would watch out for / research:

1) OCI mechanics/timing, especially given that Melbourne starts its program in the spring term
2) Financing tuition/COL in the US
3) Visa issues. What happens if you strike out at OCI? Could you still look for work in Australia?

inspectorfletch wrote:I haven't paid anything for my degree yet because the government pays for most of the degree and the rest is put on a 0 interest loan which we pay back after we reach a certain earnings threshold.

so..much...jealousy..

thanks guys i think ill look into doing the double JD, thanks

If you have an LLM and you're from a foreign country, you're eligible to take the bar in California and can then practice federal law, like immigration etcetera. Unfortunately, the pass rate is only 15%, so it's not a good bet.

inspectorfletch wrote:thanks guys i think ill look into doing the double JD, thanks

Do you know if melbourne considers nz citizenship an international applicant? and if this would then allow that person to do the same nyu jd program? (also have u.s. citizenship)

Hi, I just got the offer from UMel JD this year. Actually I'm still struggling whether to go. Could you tell me how you feel about JD study there?

AprilLau wrote: Hi, I just got the offer from UMel JD this year. Actually I'm still struggling whether to go. Could you tell me how you feel about JD study there?

The OP was last active on this site in 2014 so you are unlikely to get a response.

blueapple wrote:

AprilLau wrote: Hi, I just got the offer from UMel JD this year. Actually I'm still struggling whether to go. Could you tell me how you feel about JD study there?

The OP was last active on this site in 2014 so you are unlikely to get a response.

Yeah....seems u r right

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