Jobs for Foreign Trained Lawyers in USA

Last Updated on January 3, 2023

Do you want to know about Jobs for Foreign Trained Lawyers in USA? Go through this article to get the answers of your questions regarding law schools in US, US legal education and US Bar exam. This article also includes some of the names and contact information of the law firms located in New York City, Chicago, Washington DC, etc. which are looking for foreign trained lawyers.

Most lawyers in the U.S. follow a typical path to practice: law school, then the bar exam, plus a few additional requirements. But some law professionals are trained abroad. It can sometimes be difficult to practice law in the U.S. as a foreign-trained lawyer, but it’s not impossible. Each state has different requirements, so how you go about it can depend on where you live and want to work. Potential lawyers must sit for the bar exam in the state where they hope to practice. New York and California are popular destinations that offer the most flexible requirements.

It can sometimes be difficult to practice law in the U.S. as a foreign-trained lawyer, but it’s not impossible.  Potential lawyers must sit for the bar exam in the state where they hope to practice. New York and California are popular destinations that offer the most flexible requirements. Do you want to learn about the latest findings practicing law in another country? Get ready! Find out all the information you need right here on Collegelearners so you don’t have to go looking again. Find all the specifics you need, such as jobs for Indian lawyers in USA, how to become a lawyer in USA from India to US Bar exam for foreign lawyers. Be sure to visit our catalog for more information on related topics.

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jobs for foreign trained lawyers in USA

State-Specific Regulations—New York

The New York Board of Law Examiners administers the New York bar exam and has dedicated requirements just for foreign-trained lawyers who want to practice there.

A foreign-trained lawyer will fall into one of two categories in this state: Their foreign educations will transfer to the U.S. system, or they won’t.

Education will usually transfer if a foreign-trained lawyer has completed a program that was at least three years in duration and was focused on English common law. These attorneys can sit for the bar after receiving an Advance Evaluation of Eligibility from the Board.

Be sure to plan ahead because Board approval can take six months to a year or even longer. Submit all your materials at least a year in advance of the date when you want to take the exam.

All other foreign-trained attorneys must complete a Master of Laws (LLM) degree program that meets certain qualifications before they can sit for the bar exam.

California Requirements For Lawyers

Like New York, the California State Bar has relatively liberal admission standards for foreign lawyers. In fact, it might be even easier to sit for the bar exam here than it is in New York.

Foreign-trained lawyers who have been admitted to practice law in a jurisdiction outside the U.S. are often eligible to take the bar exam in California without completing any additional requirements.

A foreign-trained attorney who has not been admitted to practice outside the U.S. can still be eligible to take the bar exam after completing an LLM degree program. The program must cover four separate subjects that are tested on the California Bar Exam.

One of these courses must be a Professional Responsibility course that covers the California Business and Professions Code, the American Bar Association (ABA) Model Rules of Professional Conduct, and leading relevant federal and state case law.

California also offers a provision for an additional one year’s schooling at a law school approved by the ABA or accredited in California. The year should be dedicated to bar examination subject material.

Apply to LL.M. program at Georgia State University College of Law

Other States

Foreign-trained lawyers can gain admission to the bar in 34 other jurisdictions as well, all with varying rules. In almost all cases, the ABA must first review and approve your foreign law degree. This can take a year or more.

You can sit for that state’s bar if the ABA gives you a nod of approval and you meet the state’s other requirements.

Only Vermont recognizes foreign law degrees with any regularity. The state has an apprenticeship program in place to help foreign-trained attorneys prepare for the bar exam there.

Georgia imposes two requirements: You must have received your education from a school that was sanctioned or recognized by your foreign government, and you must also be admitted to practice law there.

Washington requires that the law school you choose for your LLM degree must be approved by the Board of Governors. It must include at least 18,200 minutes of instruction and 12,000 minutes on the principals of U.S. domestic law.

Wisconsin has permitted foreign-trained students with LLM degrees to sit for the bar since 2012. The degree must include 700 minutes of instruction per semester credit hour and must be completed in no less than two 13-week semesters.

Additional requirements in other states include but aren’t limited to legal education in English common law, additional ABA-approved education, and the practice of law in a foreign jurisdiction.

The requirements for each state are listed on the bar exam website and are summarized by the National Conference of Bar Examiners’ Bar Admission Guide.

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Go Back to School If Necessary

Completing the specified graduate education in your area of study should be high on your priority list in the states where only an LLM is required. The states that allow foreign-trained attorneys to sit for the bar exam after earning an LLM require specific courses and subjects covered, so look up the requirements in each state before settling on an LLM program.

Some states offer accelerated J.D. degrees for foreign-trained lawyers to get them to the point of bar exam eligibility in that jurisdiction. Earning a J.D. at an ABA-approved law school is the only way you’ll be able to practice law in all other states where foreign legal education isn’t recognized.

The Bar Exam

The bar exam typically takes place over two days. The first day is a multiple-choice test covering laws that aren’t necessarily unique to any one state.

The second day’s test focuses on the law in the state in which you want to practice. Most states require that you pass the Multistate Professional Responsibility Exam as well.

Law school studies in the U.S. are rigorous, and students come out with a specific set of skills and a knowledge set that helps them study for and pass the bar. Foreign-trained lawyers might not have all these same tools, and their passage rate could be lower for that reason.

Foreign students should plan to take a full commercial bar review course, and they might want to explore private bar tutoring options as well.

If You Don’t Become an Attorney

You can also use your foreign law degree in a number of ways without becoming a fully-admitted state bar member. One common option is to become a foreign legal consultant (FLC).

An FLC is a foreign-trained lawyer who has set up a limited practice in the U.S. Thirty-one states, the District of Columbia, and the U.S. Virgin Islands have foreign legal consultant rules in place.

There are also opportunities in some states for temporary transactional work, for pro hac vice admission to the state bar, and for foreign lawyers to serve as in-house counsel.

Earning bar admission allows for the most opportunities for a foreign-trained attorney, but these other opportunities exist as well.

Becoming a lawyer in the US is a complicated process, particularly for foreign nationals. One of the most important steps in the process is the bar exam. A bar examination is a test intended to determine whether or not a candidate is qualified to practice law in a specific jurisdiction. As an international student, taking the bar is even more complex than for US-born law students.

Why Should I Take the Bar in the US?

If you have chosen to study law in the US, you probably already have plenty of reasons for taking the bar exam. In fact, many international students choose to pursue an LL.M. in the US because they want to take a US bar exam. For international students studying in the US for other reasons, there are still several reasons to take the bar.

Taking the bar looks great on your resume or CV, both to US and foreign employers. By passing the bar, you can demonstrate your understanding of US law—an impressive and difficult accomplishment. Finally, passing a state’s bar exam will allow you to practice law in that state as a fully admitted lawyer, offering better prospects than working as a law clerk or foreign legal consultant.

Where Should I Take the Bar Exam?

The decision on which state in which to take the bar is highly personal and depends on a variety of factors. When making your decision, remember that (with very limited exceptions), you will only be permitted to practice law in the state in which you take your exam. So, if you are planning on practicing law in the US after taking the exam, it is a good idea to take the exam in a state in which you would like to live or work.

On the other hand, if you are not planning on practicing law in the US, you might instead base your decision on the simplicity of the state’s requirements. For example, New York is popular among international students, while California is considered to be one of the more difficult states in which international students can obtain a qualification.

What to Expect in the Exam

The bar exam is taken in several parts over at least two days. Most states will dedicate one day to the Multistate Bar Examination, a multiple choice exam covering topics not specific to the law of any one state, such as Contracts, Torts, Property, Constitutional Law, and Evidence.

Another day would cover the law of the specific state in which you are taking the exam. This might be a multiple choice exam, an essay exam, or both. Additionally, the exam may include the Multistate Performance Test, which is designed to evaluate lawyering skills rather than substantive law.

Finally, you will need to pass the Multistate Professional Responsibility Exam, which tests your knowledge of professional ethics. This exam is administered on a separate occasion from the regular bar exam.

Taking the Bar as a Foreign-Trained Lawyer

Unfortunately, it can be extremely difficult for foreign-trained lawyers to sit the bar exam in the US. Completion of the LL.M. degree in itself does not guarantee eligibility to take the bar exam. Most states do require a J.D. degree for a US law school in order to sit for the bar exam. There are some states which do allow foreign law graduates to sit for the bar exam, including New York, California, New Hampshire, Alabama, and Virginia. In this case, however, foreign-educated lawyers must begin the process by getting their law degree reviewed and analyzed by the American Bar Association, and it can take up to a year to before the foreign law credentials are even assessed. Once reviewed, the application is either accepted or deferred. If accepted, foreign lawyers are allowed to sit for that state’s bar exam in much the same way a domestic applicant would. In New York, one of the jurisdictions most open to foreign lawyers, this would allow foreign lawyers to sit for the bar without being forced to complete any further law school study in the US.

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Fortunately for anyone taking the bar as a foreign lawyer, preparing for the bar exam is a typical—if daunting— challenge. Many American law students spend months preparing to sit for the bar exam by taking bar review courses and classes and foreign-educated lawyers should consider doing the same. Regardless of their backgrounds, so many applicants take these review courses that the model answer the examiners are looking for is invariably in the style taught by these courses. Such classes can be time consuming and expensive but well-recommended ones are generally worth it. After all, the goal of taking the bar as a foreign lawyer is well within sight

Career Alternative for foreign-trained lawyers in canada

Law is quite restrictive and specific because the laws differ from country to country which means for any country you consider to move to you have to take the bar exam to practise law.  Having a career with transferable skills to work in different industries and different countries is important when considering immigrating to another country.

I often find that there are two categories of foreign-trained lawyers that are seeking career alternatives. The first being those who just want to start over in a new career with their law degree. The second being those who cannot afford the expense of requalifying as a lawyer in Canada. Regardless of the category, you find yourself in there are other professions you can delve into in Canada. You don’t believe me? Okay, here is a guest feature of a foreign-trained lawyer, Tiwa Ogundipe read her story on how she opted for a different career path in Canada with her law degree.  

case study

Introduce yourself

My name is Tiwa Ogundipe. I studied law at the University of Lagos, Nigeria and was called to the bar in Nigeria. After that, I moved to the United States for my LL.M and graduated in 2017. I decided to move to Canada in 2019 and change my career path.

As A Lawyer, who lived in the US, What Are The Career Options There?

I would say the career options depend on the field of law, your experience, your residency status and whether you have passed the Bar Exams in America. It also depends on where you obtained your legal training i.e. within or outside the United States. For foreign-trained lawyers who desire to practice law in America, successful completion of the qualification process is important. The first and usually most difficult step of this process is to pass the bar exam of the state in which you desire to practice. Obtaining legal qualification in the US significantly increases the chances of a foreign-trained lawyer to practice law in America. Some career options include working in a law firm (associate role), a clerkship with a judge, corporate secretary for financial institutions, regulation and compliance advisor in government agencies and private institutions, legal counsel with the city or state government.

Why did you want to move from the US to Canada?

My relocation was due to a variety of factors. After my Master’s in Law, I wanted to switch careers from law practice to policy work and I figured the Master of Public Administration (MPA)  program provided the skills I needed for a successful transition. Although I got admission into four schools in the US, the MPA programs in Canada were significantly cheaper than that of the United States. So financial consideration was a factor. 

What are the other factors you consider as a foreign-trained lawyer moving to Canada?

LL.M. Programs: Information for Foreign-Trained Lawyers | University of  Miami School of Law

First, the possibility and ease of securing a job after my graduate program was a factor. Considering that I had found it difficult to secure a permanent job in the US, I wanted a country where I would not have to face similar challenges. I did my research and found that it was easier to find a job in Canada, whether in the legal space or in other fields with a few exceptions. I found that a high number of Master Public Administration graduates found jobs within six months of graduation. Also, Canadian education is a serious consideration for employers when hiring. So, I figured having a Canadian education might give me an advantage when job hunting. 

The likelihood of obtaining residency status post-graduation was another consideration. Canada has various immigration programs and policies through which skilled immigrants can apply to become permanent residents in the country like the Federal Skilled Worker Program. There are also programs through which international students can apply to become permanent residents after the completion of their studies. This was important for me as I was not about to face another international student struggle with little hope of permanent residency.

What are the career options for a foreign-trained lawyer moving to Canada?

A foreign-trained lawyer moving to Canada can either choose to continue to practice law or explore alternate career options. Legal career options include legal counsel in a law firm, legal counsel with the municipal, provincial or federal government; legal consulting, legal analyst in legal research institutes, government agencies or NGOs; corporate secretary for financial institutions. Non-legal career options include policy analyst, human resource manager, regulatory compliance specialist, academic professor,  contract manager, public relations and human resource.

What are the ways one can legally move from the US to Canada as a temporary resident?

From my research, I believe there are 2 major ways through which a person can move to Canada as a student or worker. As a student, you can opt for the route of undergraduate or graduate studies in Canada. One thing to bear in mind when coming to Canada is the tuition fees because Canadian schools don’t play with their tuition from international students. They will collect all their money to the very last cent. Coming as a student also requires obtaining a student visa from the Canadian embassy in the country where the application is submitted.

Another way is to come to Canada on a work permit. This route requires the applicant to have secured a job in Canada and allows the applicant to live and work in Canada for the duration of their work permit.

What was the process study permit process like from the US as a temporary resident?

The process was relatively easy. Although my visa was initially denied, it was approved within two weeks after I submitted all the necessary documents. Immigration processing at the entry point was a breeze as well. Once I showed my passport, visa and admission letter, I was allowed entry into the country. I also believe the quick turnaround was because I applied from the United States because applications from the United States are processed faster than other African countries. 

What documentation was required?

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Asides the regular documentation required for study permit application, I had to provide documents that proved my legal status in the US, i.e. evidence that I had not overstayed, and I was not out of status. A person applying from their country of citizenship would not need to provide that documentation.

Any second thoughts about moving to Canada?

Except for the weather and the cost of living compared to the United States, I have no regrets moving to Canada. My stay here has been filled with great experiences. The quality of education is amazing, the people are kind, the opportunities are limitless, and my foreign experience is valued. I also like the fact that part-time jobs are available for international students, whether on or off-campus.  I usually tell people that Canada is a great place to live, as long you’re strategic about your decision to relocate.

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