Dash some dreams: US JD working in NZ? Forum

[Anonymous User]

Theoretically, hypothetically, whatever: how difficult and/or inadvisable would it be to attempt to practice in another country with an American JD, particularly New Zealand? I gather the requirements for foreign trained attorneys are to basically do their equivalent of an LLM and possibly pass some kind of entrance exam. But beyond that, what are the major considerations?

My wife has NZ citizenship and would desperately like to return there someday; I always argue that it'd be impossible for me to get work, which I assume is true, but I don't really have any firm reasons backing that up. I would love to be there as well, and apparently I could get citizenship through her, but it still seems like a particularly fragile pipe dream. Hell, they don't even have torts.

I don't even know where to start with something like this. If you somehow did jump through all the procedural hoops, a foreign trained attorney would face the same hiring disadvantages foreign LLM's face here, right? And if somehow I did magically land something over there, whatever experience I accrue there probably has little to no bearing on US hiring if we ever did want to return? What kinds of practices would even make sense for someone looking to do something like this? I'm thinking general corporate/M&A, but I don't really know.

If anyone has advice on practicing abroad in general, please chime in. Specific advice for NZ would also be great, if anyone out there has done anything like this or knows someone who has. Realistically, a set of arguments why this is a terrible idea would also suffice, as I suspect that's the feedback I'll get.

[sundance95]

An analogous anecdote for you:

I met an Australian attorney who had recently moved to the United States with her husband for reasons relating to his work. She was a litigator at a top Australian firm, but couldn't even get interviews in the States. Her experience litigating in Australia was simply not seen as valuable in the U.S.

I would guess that if this is possible at all, it would be have to be a niche-type situation where an American transactional lawyer could leverage his or her knowledge of American law.

[cowgirl_bebop]

A girl I graduated with last year did that: finished a JD and then went directly to practice for a firm in New Zealand. I believe she had studied abroad there before, so she might have been able to make some connections that way. Other than that I have no idea how she pulled it off, but it is obviously possible.

I've always found that when thinking about practicing abroad the best people to ask are other US JDs working there. Look up some profiles at big firms (since they are the most likely to hire foreign trained attorneys) there and see if they have any working for them. Send any JDs you find an email; usually people are nice enough to respond with helpful info.

[Londonbear]

You could look into international law firms that have offices in New Zealand. Work in that firm for a few years and see if you can transfer to the New Zealand office.

As for earlier post about Australian attorney, it doesn't necessarily work that way if you have a US law degree. I talked to several attorneys at an international firm in an Asian country when I was there for my summer internship and they said it would be much easier for a US or UK (basically English based) attorney to get a job than it would be for those who qualified in other countries, so I don't think it would be as HARD as that post can imply.

Another thing is some countries only allow international law firms and foreign attorneys to do corporate work, therefore no litigation. Thus, you would likely be better off practicing corporate work in general. But I would check on New Zealand's regulations since you specifically know where.

[Anonymous User]

I'm not sure, but I don't think this would be impossible. I now work in the US but used to work in London, and there are many many Australian and NZ qualified lawyers working in the big international firms. They are very desirable as it is perceived that they will work hard for a few years and then go back home, so don't want to make partner. Most come because it is seen as necessary for their careers back home to have some solid biglaw experience in the UK. I am not sure if US biglaw experience is as valued, but particularly in corporate/finance areas, I can't see why it wouldn't be. With that experience, you might find yourself very well placed to get a job in one of the bigger NZ firms which do international work.

[Anonymous User]

I'm from NZ but live in the USA and have a US JD. I'd consider heading back to NZ to practice some day. From my understanding, which may be wrong, you'd need to complete a ~6month program to familiarize yourself with NZ law, and then sit the bar. I think from then on it's just a matter of whether NZ firms are hiring. But especially if you went to a preftigious US school I think you'd be in pretty good shape. IIRC there are only 5 law schools in NZ, one at each of the big public universities, so a fancy US degree might well be viewed as a plus, particularly since the NZ LLB is just an undergrad degree.

[Anonymous User]

OP here: hey, this is way more helpful and positive than I expected. Thanks for the suggestions, guys; this is all great!

[pb3n]

American here, wondering the same thing. Thanks for everyone's helpful replies! Any updates on the situation OP? Did you make it out to NZ?

[Clytemnestra3]

A simple way to find out what opportunities will be open to you is to search LinkedIn for people with American JDs who work in NZ, check out where they work, and if you see some practice areas/companies that look interesting to you, send that person a direct message. If you approach them politely, I bet most people would be happy to tell you about their experience.

[FND]

another option is to work in-house for a multi-national company. I don't know about New Zealand, but a lot of jurisdictions have special rules regarding in-house attorneys.