Careers in International Law
What would you say are the biggest differences between outsiders’ expectations of working in L and the (day-to- day or big picture) reality?
L is sometimes seen as an office that handles inter- national law issues exclusively. We do much more than that, though, in our role as the Department’s general counsel. L lawyers rotate through offices that not only handle international law matters but also contribute to the functioning of the Department itself in areas ranging from employment law and ethics to contracts.
York Law School offers three one-year LLM programs that are practice-oriented:
§ LLM in International Corporate & Commercial Law
ú Students gain legal skills through Problem Based Learning
ú Contact:
richard.nolan@
york.ac.uk
§ LLM in International Human Rights Law & Practice
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ú Students do human rights advocacy through placements in the UK or Malaysia
ú Contact:
lars.waldorf@york.ac.uk
§ LLM in the Theory & Practice of Clinical Legal Education
ú Students learn to establish and run clinics as practitioners and educators through the conduct and guided supervision of real cases
ú Contact:
richard.grimes@
york.ac.uk
Small class sizes (less than 20 per program) mean students really get to know the teaching staff. Diverse and international classes give students the opportunity to learn from one another.
The University of York is ranked 11th in the UK (The Times university league table 2014) and 100th in the world (Times Higher Education World University Rankings for 2013-14).
For details of the application process and possible funding, please contact
law-pg-admissions@york.ac.uk.
For specific questions about content or structure of the LLM programs, please contact the academic convenors listed above.
What is it about L that makes the rotation system workable, when it might not be a good fit for other organizations?
It helps that the culture of the Department is one where our foreign service policy clients regularly ro- tate to different postings in Washington and abroad throughout their careers, so there is an understand- ing that the lawyers covering an issue may change and have varying levels of experience. Also, the is- sues facing the Department are inherently fluid and dynamic, so there is an emphasis on developing a broad range of expertise in a variety of subject areas that hopefully enables us to approach new problems creatively and with a range of experiences to draw upon.
In closing, what advice do you have for students and young professionals seeking to practice international law?
International lawyers need to be versatile, so the specific subject matter of the coursework is less im- portant than developing strong analytic, writing, and representational skills. Clinical courses can be very helpful in not only developing these skills but develop- ing a real-world problem solving mindset. Law school activities such as moot court foster good representa- tional skills and journals can provide great writing ex- periences. Also useful are outside activities, such as externships and internships that provide exposure to practicing law in the public sector and demonstrate a commitment to doing that kind of work.
. ILSA Quarterly » volume 22 » issue 3 » February 2014
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