We are halfway through our Pre-LL.M. Program! This week, I’ll cover judicial opinions with our civil law trained students. We’ll read our first case (a separate post on the case I use) and begin to prepare for the extensive reading of cases that occurs for U.S. law school courses.

I’ve worked on Pre-LL.M. initiatives since 2016, but this one has been my most comprehensive (and largest) one to date. As always, I learn as much as the students when I run these, and my three big takeaways at the halfway mark are below.

1. Program Integration: Although our General LL.M. and Tax LL.M. programs are distinct, the groups have done an amazing job coming together. Most foreign-educated lawyers have taken tax in their first law degrees and many of our LL.M. in U.S. Law students (our General LL.M.) have some tax experience in their professional lives. Bringing together our foreign-educated LL.M. students across programs has provided some great ideas for projects and activities that combine tax and other subjects. Given the constant of tax in our lives, I’ve asked our Pre-LL.M. group to work together on ideas that engage both degree programs and enhance their experiences.
2. The Timeline Keeps Moving Up: As LL.M. programs for foreign-educated lawyers continue to evolve (a much longer post), residential LL.M. programs must continue to offer specialized support and visible benefits to those who opt for the in-person experience over the online experience (which allows lawyers to keep their jobs and not incur moving and travel expenses). To many of the applicants I speak with, the in-person preference revolves around (1) jobs; (2) bar exams; and (3) community. Our Pre-LL.M. Program covers each of these extensively. I see more front-loaded support for residential LL.M. students as schools listen to the needs of their residential foreign-educated LL.M. population.
3. International Community: As U.S. law school programs evolve (degrees for lawyers and degrees/programs for non-lawyers is the current major evolution point), I’m grateful to be able to focus on what it means to be a foreign-educated LL.M. student at a U.S. law school (thanks, as always, to UF Law!). I’ve been able to spend the last two months focused on what makes our international community unique and how I can best support our foreign-educated lawyers. This year’s Pre-LL.M. has allowed me to connect with alumni, faculty, returning students, and others in efforts to best support our students. The weekly feedback from incoming foreign-educated lawyers has also assisted me as we plan for Orientation and Fall 2021.

I plan to share a full recap in August once the Pre-LL.M. Program is complete. I also hope to share observations after Orientation comparing the Pre-LL.M. cohort to prior groups of students.