At Santa Clara University School of Law, you have several options when it comes to choosing an area of specialization for your LLM degree. Read below to learn more about your options for enhancing your law degree and opening the door to new career opportunities.
Candidates for the LLM in Intellectual Property are welcome to apply for the 2015 entering class (fall (August start) and spring (January start) semesters). The fall semester application deadline is May 1, 2015. The deadline for spring 2015 is December 1, .
Santa Clara University School of Law, located in Santa Clara, California, offers an LLM degree in International and Comparative Law. We offer to lawyers, judges and law professors an opportunity to experience the evolving legal culture of the world from the vantage point of our overseas programs’ dynamic centers of commerce and learning throughout the world. The application deadline for the fall semester is May 1, 2015.
The program offers not only courses at the Law School, but social and professional contact with other leading legal authorities, judges, and captains of industry.
Graduation Requirements
Participants seeking the LLM degree must complete 24 semester hours of credit. These units must include:
- Successful completion of the academic portion of at least one Santa Clara University School of Law summer study abroad program; OR enroll as a full-time law student for one semester at a law school with which the School of Law has a cooperative agreement. These classes will satisfy part of the 24 units required for the degree, and satisfy one or more of the area of study requirements outlined in II below.
- To achieve a well balanced background in international and comparative law, students should take at least one course from each of the following categories of classes: (i) public international law; (ii) private international law; and (iii) comparative law. The specific list of approved courses may be found on the International Law Certificate website under the heading “Current List of Approved International Law Certificate Courses.” The student’s overall course of study must be approved by the Director of Graduate Legal Programs. Courses outside this list, unless taken on one of our study abroad programs, must also be approved in advance by the Director of Graduate Legal Studies.
- Students must complete a written research paper either in conjunction with a class approved by the Director of Graduate Legal Programs or as Independent Research (course # 298) under the supervision of a faculty member.
- Elective Courses: Most upper-division courses are open to enrollment by LLM candidates. The program assumes as a minimum one academic year plus one summer in residence. The requirements for the degree must be completed within two academic years from matriculation.
Santa Clara University School of Law offers programs for lawyers who received their legal education outside of the United States to secure a Master of Laws (LLM) degree. Candidates may select from four programs:
- United States Law – General Studies
Students craft a program that matches professional needs
United States Law with specialization in Intellectual Property Law
Specialize by taking most courses in the area of Intellectual Property/High Tech Law, including Patent Law, Copyright Law, Trademarks and Trade Secrets
United States Law with specialization in Human Rights Law
Focus your studies in U.S. Human Rights Law, with an extensive range of human rights and social justice courses to choose from
United States Law with specialization in International and Comparative Law
Take advantage of Santa Clara s extensive study abroad programs and rich curriculum to study the law of the United States, International Law (public or private) and the law of another nation.
Learn more about obtaining your LLM from Santa Clara Law with a non-US law degree on the LLM Program for International Students page.