LMU Loyola Law School's Bar Track LLM is designed for students interested in completing an LLM degree as a way to meet eligibility requirements to sit for the Bar exam in California, New York, and other states. Loyola has one of the highest bar passage rates in California and its faculty has extensive experience in training students for the Bar exam. Our Bar Track LLM takes advantage of this experience and offers to our students a unique course of study, created by keeping in mind the specific challenges that foreign law graduates face when preparing for the Bar exam.
BENEFITS OF THE BAR TRACK PROGRAM
- Academic Advising
Students' success depends on continuous guidance. LLM students benefit from one-on-one counseling with our LLM Director, Professor Aaron Ghirardelli, and learn from a course of study that will maximize their chances of passing the Bar exam. Students in the program also receive continuous academic support throughout the entire year at Loyola from our Professors. Professor Ghirardelli is a member of the California, New York and Italian bar associations and has extensive expertise in tutoring students interested in becoming licensed attorneys in the U.S. - Fully Integrated Experience
LLM students at Loyola are a fundamental part of our community. As an LLM student, you will attend classes together with our JD students, you will learn from the same professors, study on the same material, and benefit from the same rigorous academic curriculum that makes Loyola one of the top institutions in the United States. This will help you maximize your learning experience and will help you master legal doctrines heavily tested under the bar exam.
- A Carefully Engineered Curriculum
Loyola's professors have extensive expertise on the bar exam and have designed the Bar Track LLM program to maximize students' chances of passing this challenging test and becoming licensed attorneys in the U.S.
Students in the program focus their studies on some of the most heavily tested subjects under the bar exam (see list of required courses below). The course of study has been engineered to maximize the learning experience of each and every unit in the program, and focus on legal doctrines and principles that are more likely to be tested at the bar exam.
- Up to 28 Units
While the LLM degree at Loyola can be completed with a minimum of 24 units, Bar Track students have the option to take up to 28 units with no extra charge. This will give students the opportunity to cover more topics tested under the bar exam and will also allow them to meet the LLM eligibility requirements of some more demanding jurisdictions, such as New York and the District of Columbia. - LLM Bar Prep 360: Start Practicing on the Bar Exam from Day 1
The secret of success on the bar exam is practice. The bar exam in the U.S. requires students to review complex legal issues, write legal opinions and analyze multiple choice questions in a time constrained environment. Learning how to properly write legal opinions, how to successfully analyze multiple choice questions and becoming fast in doing all of this is a key component to students' success. Loyola's Bar Track LLM includes a carefully designed course (LLM Bar Prep 360) that teaches students all these important skills from Day 1 of the program. Every week students will focus on substantive law issues from Monday to Thursday during their classes, and they will then practice every Friday on essays and multiple choice questions on the same topics they are covering during the week. LLM Bar Prep 360 has been designed together with Themis Bar Review, one of the leading bar review companies in the U.S. with extensive expertise in training students for the bar exam. Students in the Bar Track LLM also receive access, free of charge, to an exclusively designed Themis online portal containing additional video lectures and exercises.
Schedule a call with us or contact us via email to get more information on the Bar Track LLM and see whether this program is a good fit for you.
REQUIRED COURSES
Students in the Bar Track LLM must complete the following course of study:
- Introduction to American Law (2 units)
- American Legal Research & Writing (3 units)
- Professional Responsibility in the U.S. (2 units)
- LLM Bar Prep 360 (4 units)
- A minimum of 3 bar courses from the following list: Civil Procedure, Constitutional Law, Contracts, Criminal Law, Criminal Procedure, Evidence, Property, or Torts.
ARE YOU ELIGIBLE TO TAKE THE BAR EXAM?
Many of our international students are interested in enrolling in our LLM program to become eligible to take the California or New York Bar Exam. In the United States, each state has different rules regarding Bar exam eligibility for foreign-educated students and application deadlines. While Loyola's Bar Track LLM can help students meet the requirements for legal education in the U.S., many states have additional requirements, including a foreign law degree that is substantially equivalent to a Juris Doctor degree. We encourage students to carefully review the rules of the state where they intend to sit for the Bar exam. Below are helpful links regarding specific eligibility rules for Bar exam takers who received their first law degree outside the United States. Each and every bar organization is the ultimate authority that confirms whether students' first law degree qualifies for the bar exam, and while Loyola can help you design an LLM that will meet the requirements for legal education in the U.S., admission to the program should not be considered as a guarantee that students' first law degree will meet the eligibility requirements of each specific bar exam.
If you would like to find out more about Bar Eligibility, whether you should take the Bar Exam, which Bar Exam should you take, and much more, schedule a call with our Faculty Director, Professor Aaron Ghirardelli.