Thursday, January 22, 2009

Our LL.M. becomes a Spring Board to the Louisiana Bar

The Supreme Court of Louisiana amended its rules, making the Bar Exam accessible to foreign lawyers authorized to work lawfully in the United States. Previously, the Louisiana Bar was accessible to US Citizens and Permanent Residents only.

Candidates must provide proof, in addition to full legal training recognized as equivalent to a JD, that they "successfully completed a minimum of 14 semester hours of credits, or the equivalent, in professional law subjects from an American law school, in any of the following categories: Constitutional Law, Contracts, Louisiana Obligations Law, Criminal Law, Corporations or Business Organizations, Evidence, Intellectual Property, Federal Civil Procedure, Louisiana Civil Procedure, Taxation, Uniform Commercial Code, and Torts, provided that no more than 4 credit hours in any one subject shall be counted toward this requirement."LSU LLM students carefully choosing their courses will easily meet this requirement.

Current LLM candidates, with J1 visa status, may remain in the U.S. for up to one year to gain professional experience following the completion of the LLM; this also opening an opportunity to qualify to sit for the Bar Exam. If they pass the exam, they will earn admission to the Louisiana Bar.

LLM Graduates may also qualify if admitted for permanent residence or holding a visa authorizing them to work lawfully in the US.

For more detail, contact Professor Olivier Moréteau at moreteau@lsu.edu