JD-LLM Dual Degree Requirements
Revised October 3, 2011
Students earning the JD-LLM in International, Comparative & Foreign Law are required to earn 84 credits for the JD degree and an additional 20 credits in international, foreign or comparative law for the LLM degree, for a total of 104 credits.
JD-LLM First-Year Curriculum
JD-LLM candidates begin their course of study in the summer before the 1L fall semester in order to complete all academic requirements within three (3) academic years plus the summer start. The required courses for the JD/LLM student in the first year of the program are as follows:
Courses Required for 1L JD Students:
- Civil Procedure (LAW 110)
- Constitutional Law (LAW 120)
- Contract Law (LAW 130)
- Criminal Law (LAW 140)
- Legal Analysis, Research & Writing (LAW 160)
- Property Law (LAW 170)
- Tort Law (LAW 180)
Additional Courses Required for 1L JD/LLM Students:
- Comparative Law (LAW 218)
- International Law (LAW 275)
- Research Methods in International, Foreign & Comparative Law (LAW 380)
JD-LLM Upper-Level Curriculum
After completing the first-year 1L curriculum, JD-LLM students must fulfill the following requirements:
Upper-level requirements for JD curriculum
- Legal Ethics (at least 2 credits)
- JD Upper-Level Writing (2 credits)*
- Professional Skills Requirement
Upper-level requirements for JD/LLM curriculum
- Duke Summer Institute in Transnational Law (Geneva or Hong Kong)
- JD-LLM Upper-Level Writing (4 credits) *
- Foreign Language Competency (see Rule 2-2(7))
* The “JD” and “JD-LLM” upper-level writing requirements are separate graduation requirements (see Rule 3-31 and Rule 2-2(3)(b) and (8). However, a student may satisfy some or all of the JD-LLM writing requirement while satisfying the JD writing requirement if the student writes a paper on an international, foreign or comparative law topic that also meets the requirements of Rule 3-31 (the “upper-level writing requirement”). Note that the student will not earn “double credit” for the paper.
Additional Opportunities for JD-LLM Candidates
As dual degree students, JD-LLM candidates have additional opportunities within the curriculum:
Courses outside the Law School: JD-LLM students may take up to nine (9) credits in other Duke University schools or departments. Six (6) of the nine (9) credits must involve international, foreign or comparative fields of study. See Rule 2-2(4) and Rule 3-13.
International Externships: JD-LLM students may earn up to fourteen (14) credits for one semester of unpaid work at an international organization. This program is principally designed to complement the curriculum of the JD-LLM Program in International & Comparative Law, with the purpose of enhancing a student’s educational experience and career opportunities through intellectually stimulating placements with international legal organizations. A list of pre-approved organizations is provided on the International Studies web page. See Rule 3-25(B). Domestic Externships are also available for students interested in working for a US-based organization or agency. See Rule 3-25(A).
Ad Hoc Seminars: As early as spring semester of 1L year, JD-LLM students may team with a group of five (5) to ten (10) classmates to design a one (1) or two (2) credit course based on the students’ specific interests (an “ad hoc seminar”). See Rule 3-12(2).
Independent Study: JD-LLM candidates may earn up to four (4) credits through independent study. See Rule 3-12(1).
The Capstone Project Program: After the second year of law school, students may receive academic credit for designing and completing an advanced project to pursue a subject area in which the student has developed a special interest. The intent of the Capstone Project Program is to enable a student to develop foundational skills, including complex problem-solving skills, to aid the transition between law school and the beginning of the student's professional career. See Rule 3-32.
Sample Schedule for First-Year JD-LLM
As a first-year student, your classes are selected for you and your schedule is based on the small section to which you are assigned. Following is a sample schedule for a 1L JD/LLM:
Summer Start |
Fall Semester |
Spring Semester |
|
|---|---|---|---|
Contract
Law (4.5 credits) |
Property (4.5 credits) |
Constitutional
Law (4.5 credits)
|
*Legal Analysis, Research & Writing and the Dean’s Lecture are year-long courses. Credit for these courses appears on the transcript in the spring semester.
Sample JD-LLM Upper-Level Schedules
The requirements of the JD-LLM curriculum can be fulfilled in a variety of ways. Following is a sample schedule for an upper-class JD-LLM student with an emphasis on international law coursework:
Student A: Second-Year JD-LLM Schedule
Summer Institute |
Fall Semester |
Spring Semester |
|
|---|---|---|---|
†Geneva (6 credits) |
Business
Associations (4 credits) |
†*Intermediate
Chinese (3 credits)
|
* An intermediate level foreign language class at Duke represents one way to satisfy the foreign language requirement.
Student A: Third-Year JD-LLM Schedule
Fall Semester |
Spring Semester |
|
|---|---|---|
†Study
Abroad: University of Cape Town (14 credits) |
†International
Trade Law (3 credits)
|
In the following sample upper-class schedule, Student B fulfills the JD-LLM program requirements with a schedule that includes far fewer international law credits than Student A:
Student B: Second-Year JD-LLM Schedule
Summer Institute |
Fall Semester |
Spring Semester |
|
|---|---|---|---|
†Hong
Kong (6 credits) |
Evidence (4 credits) |
Intellectual Property (4)
|
* Duke offers a number of “language for legal studies” courses for students with intermediate-level foreign language skills; these classes do not fulfill the foreign language requirement.
Student B: Third-Year JD-LLM Schedule
Fall Semester |
Wintersession |
Spring Semester |
|
|---|---|---|---|
Appellate
Practice (3 credits) |
†Doing
Business in China (.5 credits) |
†National
Security Law (3 credits)
|
JD-LLM Program Contacts and Resources
Professor Jonathan Wiener, faculty director of the JD-LLM program
Office of International Studies
International, Foreign and Comparative Law Faculty
Anne Sherman, Assistant Dean for Academic Advising, Office of Student Affairs
Duke Journal of Comparative & International Law
