Law Goes Global

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Law Goes Global [by Christine Willard] Whether you are already an experienced traveler or have just dreamed about working in far-off places, an international LL.M. degree can open up a world of possibilities.

If you envision a legal career that includes

Although economic and political problems,

argue a hypothetical case on timely issues of

exotic locales, foreign languages and contro-

particularly in Venezuela and Argentina, cre-

international law as if they were appearing in

versial issues, an international LL.M. program

ate barriers in those countries, opportunities

front of the International Court of Justice in

may offer the tools you need to make it a

are opening in Brazil, Mexico and Chile. Infor-

The Hague, The Netherlands.

reality.

mal alumni relationships provide connections for employment.

In some countries, issues such as cultural heritage are finding their way into intellectual

For American students looking for a job in another country, an international LL.M. is a

In-house counsel positions are a natural fit

valuable - and sometimes critical - resource.

for graduates of the program. The Regional

property (IP) practices.

Council offers internships and entry-level po-

“People who need IP lawyers are not neces-

Dozens of U.S. law schools have programs

sitions, and frequently sends their lawyers to

sarily the ones who were employed in the

that can help you reach that goal.

further their education by studying part-time

past,” Jones said.

at Miami.

The University of Miami faces south, toward the Caribbean and Latin America. “We are a

Chicago-Kent Law School has organized the Pick a practice area

multi-lingual university in a multilingual city,”

nation’s first International Intellectual Property LL.M.

said Janet Stearns, director of international

JD programs prepare students to pass the

and foreign programs at Miami’s School of

bar, but don’t always include material relating

“It’s the natural evolution of where IP law is

Law.

to international law. That’s where Golden Gate

going,” said Graham Dinwoodie, director of

University’s International LL.M. program can

the program.

In addition to the comparative law program for

help students.

attorneys trained outside the United States,

Most of that program’s participants are Chi-

Miami offers three programs for U.S.-educat-

“The only advantage to having international

nese, and the law school has an active faculty

ed J.D.s: International Law, Ocean and Coastal

courses before entering our program is that

exchange program with China as well.

Law and Inter-American law.

you can start off running with a destination in mind,” said Christopher Jones, assistant

Intellectual property politics

The international curriculum gives a broad

director for the LL.M. in International Legal

base for international practice. The others

Studies. “We have an array of core courses

The most politicized IP issue in the interna-

provide specialty education. Students should

that teach the fundamental international laws

tional arena is access to essential medicine,

be bilingual in Spanish or Portuguese.

and how they apply.”

such as drugs for AIDS and tuberculosis. The

“We are looking for people who already

Golden Gate’s program focuses on five areas:

hold the patents and the poor countries that

evidence some work or personal experience

public law, private law, international economic

want cheaper generic versions for their suf-

in the region and want to focus their practice

law, comparative systems and international

fering populations.

there,” Stearns said.

dispute resolution.

Several courses are taught in Spanish. “They

The curriculum emphasizes practical applica-

allow students to demonstrate a professional

tion of law and offers several moot court com-

competence in Spanish legal terms and con-

petitions, including the Jessup Moot Court.

“Fake ball bearings and fake drugs affect the

cepts,” she said.

The competition requires students to brief and

reliability of the brand,” Dinwoodie said.

conflict comes between the companies that

Cybersquatting and copyright piracy are also

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attracting a lot of attention across borders.

continued on back

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Poor countries with low rates of literacy want

An LL.M. in Inter-American Law three years

for me,” Briggs said. “The degree got me the

more freedom to copy books that they can’t

ago from the University of Miami School Law

look, and behind that are all the ingredients.”

afford to buy. Dinwoodie taught in Poland last

opened a career door that was stuck for Edson

year, where textbooks were not available.

Briggs.

A new focus on cyberlaw

“These are real issues in a lot of countries,”

He’s not a native Spanish speaker, learning

Melinda Lord has lived overseas much of her

he said.

the language in high school and college. Flu-

life. But she still decided that she needed an

ency came with a summer he spent in Spain

LL.M. in International Law even after practic-

in 1985.

ing law abroad for six years.

taking the International IP LL.M. to be foreign

He joined the Army after getting his JD from

She’s currently residing in Grenoble, France,

nationals who return to practice in their own

the University of Florida and was stationed

where she’s working on her French language

countries. Students from Jordan, Saudi Arabia

in Panama with the Army Intelligence Corps.

skills and looking for work. Two invitations

and India are already studying at the law

Living off the base in Panama City, he used his

from international groups to go to Iraq to help

school.

Spanish skills daily.

build the judiciary and create local self-gov-

That mix of international students and faculty

Briggs returned to the U.S. in 1997 after four

adds substance to the entire law school, be-

years of active duty. His experience in Central

yond the LL.M. program itself.

America turned out not to be enough to get

Growing up in the Saudi Arabia where her

him in the door at a big firm working in Latin

father worked for TWA, Lord’s interest in hu-

America.

man rights was kindled during her high school

Dinwoodie, a Scottish native who has lived in the U.S. for 16 years, expects most students

ernance are on hold following the bombing of

“Being in class with trademark lawyers from China really brings home to students the cultural impact of these issues,” Dinwoodie said.

United Nations headquarters in Baghdad.

years in Beirut, Lebanon. The country was in “I was telling what I thought was a convincing

turmoil, preceding civil war.

story about being familiar with the area, but The slave trade, colonialism and cold wars

it’s hard to land a job with a big firm,” he said.

pose challenges to the legal profession and lively discussion among students.

“This experience helped forge my interest in human rights and a just world,” she said. Lord

Instead he took a position with an insurance

returned to the U.S. for a bachelor’s degree in

defense firm.

anthropology from the University of Colorado

“The level of competition in the various fields

at Boulder. She went back to the Middle East

of human endeavor, including economic,

“It was a very intensive experience, even if it

as a Peace Corps volunteer in North Yemen

political and technological, during this era of

didn’t have anything to do with Latin America,”

but later came back to earn her JD at Thomas

globalization, is enormous,” said Christian N.

he said. “I was in court twice a week.”

Jefferson School of Law in San Diego.

Okeke, professor of international and comparative law at Golden Gate.

The LL.M. got him in the door at Ferrell Schul-

Following graduation, she headed for the Mid-

tz Zumpano & Fertel, which then expanded

dle East again and opened a private practice in

For U.S. JDs, the U.S. government is a major

its international offices in 2001-2002. Since

Yemen and Egypt for the next two years.

employer. State governments and interna-

he joined the firm as an associate in 2000, he

tional agencies need lawyers with high-level

has been promoted to senior counsel, a rank

A 90-day contract with the United Nations Or-

training and experience. Immigration and

between associate and partner.

ganization for Security and Cooperation in the

those areas. Two recent GGU graduates are

He handles international and domestic com-

ment. She also worked for the United Nations

working on the island of Palau, rewriting its

mercial litigation and participates in the grow-

Department of Peacekeeping Operations there

constitution.

ing white-collar criminal defense practice.

for a year.

“Students are placed in international bodies

Briggs recently defended some professionals

“My four years in Bosnia, Croatia, Macedo-

such as UNESCO, UNICEF and WTO for their

in Panama who were being prosecuted under

nia and Kosovo working with human rights

professional internships,” Okeke said.

U.S. money-laundering laws.

and the rule of law in post-conflict Yugoslav

Defense south of the border

“Getting an LL.M. was a great career move

Balkans led to an offer from the State Depart-

political asylum need legal minds to work in

republics would have been enhanced by the

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courses I subsequently took while getting my

continued

CAREER COUNSELOR'S CORNER

LL.M.,” she said. “Understanding how organizations such as the UN function is essential to a career in public international law.”

Lord recently added an LL.M. in intellectual property from Golden Gate to her credentials, turning her career toward international cyberlaw issues.

“Now that I am in Grenoble, close to Geneva, perhaps I can put my skills to use with another UN agency,” she said. She described Grenoble as the Silicon Valley of Europe. “Working on the rule of law and human rights in the field is a dream come true for me,” Lord said. “The isolation from family, slow progress and steep learning curve make it emotionally difficult, but it is invigorating, at least to me.”

This story appeared in the November 2003 edition of The National Jurist, www.nationaljurist.com.

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