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Which is better LLM or JD?
I know LLM is internationally recognized so you can find work outside of the U.S. But if you have a JD from a well-known university in the U.S., would countries like the U.K. not recognize your degree?

Overall, what are some opinions on the LLM vs. JD?

Are you an international student that already posses legal credentials from another country? If so, it's an interesting decision and I'm not sure how to help. If not, you need to get a JD first and an LLM is a secondary consideration.

For the most part the only people that get LLMs are JDs that want to teach in a law school and they do it to set themselves apart, or international students that already have a law degree from their home country in which case the JD doesn't make as much sense as a LLM because of time.

If you are a US student you don't start on a LLM you start with a JD and if you decide to go further in your legal studies you look at a LLM.

For the most part the only people that get LLMs are JDs that want to teach in a law school and they do it to set themselves apart

It's mostly tax lawyers and people who mistakenly think an LLM in "International Business" is going to get them a job when their JD didn't. The only profs I had with LLMs taught tax.

nealric wrote:

For the most part the only people that get LLMs are JDs that want to teach in a law school and they do it to set themselves apart

It's mostly tax lawyers and people who mistakenly think an LLM in "International Business" is going to get them a job when their JD didn't. The only profs I had with LLMs taught tax.

The majority of LLM students I knew were international students, only 1 as I recall was a US student with a JD... the JD was from a lower level school and they were hoping the LLM from a top school would help them get a job teaching.

Did you mean "LLB vs. JD"? That would make more sense to me, as an LLM is essentially a 4th year of study beyond the 3-year JD that focuses on a specific area of law. An LLM is also sometimes taken by foreign lawyers who want to practice in the US or do work that involves the U.S. legal system in their home countries. As I understand it, the LLB is something like an undergraduate law degree/masters in law that lets one practice in places like the UK and Hong Kong.