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University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law

MAILING ADDRESS
500 W. Baltimore Street
Baltimore, MD 21201-1786
MAIN PHONE
410-706-7214
WEBSITE
http://www.law.umaryland.edu
ADMISSIONS EMAIL:
admissions@law.umaryland.edu
REGISTRAR'S PHONE/FAX/EMAIL:
410-706-2045/410-706-2103/
registration@law.umaryland.edu
CAREER SERVICE PHONE/FAX/EMAIL:
410-706-2080/410-706-0870/
careerdv@law.umaryland.edu

An Overview


Established in 1816, the University of Maryland School of Law began regular instruction in 1824. Being the third-oldest law school in the nation, its traditions and innovative programs make it one of the liveliest and most dynamic today. Maryland Law stands among five other professional schools on the University of Maryland, Baltimore campus and has taken advantage of this location to become an integral part of the Baltimore-Washington legal and business community.

At the beginning of the 19th century, in Maryland, a prolific legal writer and commentator named David Hoffman, formalized legal instruction by persuading the state legislature to help found the Law Institute at the University of Maryland.

Oregon Law was founded in 1884 in Portland, Oregon, operating out of rented offices on 2nd and Yamhill. Richard Hopwood Thornton organized the department that began as a two-year program with three classes per week. In 1906, the course of study was expanded to three years, and in April 1915, the university's Board of Regents ordered that the program be moved to Eugene as part of a consolidation program within the university. Though the school moved, some of the faculty remained in Portland and started the Northwest College of Law, fifty years later it merged with Lewis and Clark College. In 1923, Oregon Law was approved by the American Bar Association (ABA), among the first 39 schools to earn that distinction in the first year that such accreditation was available.

Hoffman's contribution to legal instruction included a comprehensive Course of Legal Study, whose influence extended well beyond Maryland. The Hoffman program was quickly adopted by other law school professors around the country. Hoffman was also an early advocate of promoting ethical behavior among lawyers, giving rise to his enduring reputation as the father of American legal ethics.

Through Hoffman's influence, instruction at Maryland's first law school began in 1824. After a hiatus, it resumed in earnest in 1868 and has continued to grow in breadth and recognition to the present day.

Maryland Law Today

The law school's experiential programs are among the most extensive in the country. Through the nationally recognized Clinical Law Program, students can enroll in an array of courses to represent a criminal defendant, an emerging business owner, someone with HIV/AIDS, an environmental group, a disabled person, or perhaps a scientist wanting to patent a new drug. Students meet regularly with their professors to review the professional, ethical, and practical issues raised by their work. They also explore the connections between what is taught in the classroom and the practice of law as they are experiencing it.

Maryland offers specialty certificates in Environmental Law and Law and Health Care among other programs including Advocacy, Alternative Dispute Resolution, Business Law, Clinical Law, Intellectual Property Law, and International and Comparative Law. Because these programs are interdisciplinary, students can work with lawyers and professionals in related fields to resolve problems that transcend traditional disciplinary boundaries. For example, a student in the Law and Health Care Program could supplement a diverse curriculum of classroom courses with clinical opportunities, internships with organizations such as the National Institute of Health, and an editorial position on the university's Journal of Health Care Law and Policy.

The law school community is both diverse and congenial. About half of our students come from other states or the District of Columbia, as well as from many foreign countries. They represent more than 100 undergraduate schools, and about one-third identify themselves as persons of color. Maryland Law's vibrant student organizations present many opportunities for participating in the social, cultural, and political life of the school and the historic city of Baltimore.

Students interested in writing can compete for positions on four student-run legal journals. The school also has an extensive moot court program and opportunities to participate in trial advocacy, counseling and negotiation competitions. The school boasts the largest library in the state, The Thurgood Marshall Library.

The curriculum combines traditional offerings with cutting-edge programs and an array of full-time elective courses. The school's adjunct faculty includes leading lawyers, judges, and academics in Maryland and Washington, D.C. Fifty-eight full-time faculty members teach the 678 full-time and 154 part-time students. The 12:1 student-faculty ratio promotes close contact between professors and students.

The law school is housed in the Nathan Patz Law Center, a state-of-the-art building that opened in 2002. In this new facility, simulation and clinical courses make extensive use of advanced audio-visual technology. Students use the school's many computers for research, writing, clinical work, and computer-assisted learning. Our professional staff in the offices of Admissions, Academic Achievement, Career Development, and elsewhere is committed to helping students make the most of their law school experience. The school's devoted alumni mirror that commitment through their mentoring, adjunct teaching, annual giving, and service to the community.

Maryland Law's Mission

The University Of Maryland School Of Law seeks to promote a more just society by educating outstanding lawyers, by advancing understanding of law and legal institutions, and by enhancing access to justice. Through excellence in teaching, the school seeks to prepare students for productive leadership and professional success in a wide range of careers and to promote in both students and faculty the highest standards of public and professional service.

Degrees Offered

LL.M. students can earn certificates of specialization in one of several subjects:

  • LL.M. Program Business Law
  • LL.M. Program Clinical Law
  • LL.M. Program Constitutional Law
  • LL.M. Program Environmental Law
  • LL.M. Program Health Care
  • LL.M. Program International & Comparative Law

Admission Information


Requirements Details
Eligibility Applicants to the LL.M. program must hold a J.D. degree or the equivalent from a law school that, if in the United States, is accredited by the American Bar Association, or, if outside the United States, has comparable standing.
Transcripts This includes transcripts/mark sheets, copies of degrees/diplomas, degree and graduation certificates, and TOEFL scores. The applicant will be required to submit the documents in their native language and to provide English translations. They are only required to submit records from their law school. The school encourages but does not require them to send their university records from other schools that they have attended. *Important note - registration with the LL.M. Credential Assembly Service is valid for five years and allows applicants to make their transcripts and TOEFL scores available for multiple law school applications.
Letters of Recommendation A completed application must include two letters of recommendation. Ideally the letters should come from law professors or others who have personal experience instructing and evaluating the applicant. An applicant may also submit a letter from an employer who can attest to the applicant's intellectual, analytical, writing and (if necessary) English language abilities. A third letter of recommendation is encouraged, but not required. Letters must be mailed to the Office of Admissions (by the recommender or the applicant) in sealed envelopes that have been signed by the recommenders.
Personal Statement N/A
Proof of Competency in English Because facility with written and spoken English is necessary in order to successfully participate in Maryland's academic experience, applicants for whom English is a second language or not their primary language must take the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL). The school's TOEFL code is 5814 03. TOEFL scores are only valid for two years, and outdated scores will not be accepted. Only accept TOEFL scores sent to us directly from Educational Testing Services (ETS) will be accepted. English proficiency is proven by an official TOEFL score of:

550 (paper-based exam)
80 (internet-based exam)
Application Fee $70 Non-refundable Application Fee
Law School Admission Test N/A
Curriculum Vitae A complete resume or curriculum vitae detailing applicants' education, employment, skills, honors, awards and accomplishments should be submitted, and it should be mailed directly to the law school.

Other Information


Criteria Details
Nature and Tenure of Courses Offered One year
Application Procedure/Time to apply/Application deadline Postmarked or submitted online by April 1, 2013. (LL.M. applicants may only apply for fall admission. Applicants may begin to apply on September 1.)
LL.M. Degree Requirements LL.M. students must complete 30 credit hours to satisfy all degree requirements, which include 24 credit hours of qualifying coursework plus 6 credit hours for the Thesis Requirement.

Coursework
Students must successfully complete courses totaling at least 30 credit hours in courses or other credit programs offered by the School of Law. A student may not transfer or apply credits earned at the law school or another college or university toward degree requirements at Maryland, including credits earned through University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law cooperative programs with universities outside the United States, absent exceptional circumstances.

Required Courses:
Due to the individualized design, LL.M. candidates have few required courses, allowing greater flexibility in course selection. All LL.M. students must take the LL.M. Research Colloquium in the fall semester. Students who did not graduate with a J.D. degree from a U.S. law school must also take Introductory Survey of American Law.
To earn an LL.M. degree in the Specialized Programs, students are required to get:

Course Requirement
N/A N/A

Details of Courses Offered


The Maryland LL.M. Program is a centerpiece of Maryland Law's commitment to advancing legal expertise and promoting justice not only across the United States, but across the globe.

Building on the law school's nationally recognized specialty programs, the LL.M. provides advanced legal education for lawyers and law students seeking to develop expertise in a specific area of study. It is an academically rigorous program designed for individuals from the U.S. and abroad who are eager to engage in scholarly explorations of pressing legal issues.

The program's intended students include:
  • American lawyers with a J.D. degree who want to further develop an expertise in one of the nationally ranked areas of strength at the School of Law;
  • Foreign lawyers who want to enhance their international legal training by developing an expertise in U.S. law;
  • Foreign graduate students in law who want to add a depth of expertise in American law to their range of studies.

The program's intended students include:

Specialization
The law school's specialty program attracts top faculty and students from across the country, providing opportunities for in-depth scholarship and teaching. LL.M. students are required to specialize in an area of established expertise at the School of Law, ensuring they will develop expertise in their field of choice, including:

  • Business Law
  • Clinical Law
  • Constitutional Law
  • Environmental Law
  • Health Law
  • International & Comparative Law

Thesis Requirement
LL.M. candidates work closely with the school faculty's nationally recognized scholars to complete an original, scholarly thesis of substantial length and publishable quality in their area of specialization.

Personalized Attention
With a select group of no more than 10 LL.M. students per semester, Maryland LL.M. students work closely with faculty supervisors, ensuring that they receive the individual attention that is crucial to a successful LL.M. experience.

International Focus
The Maryland LL.M. brings advanced American and foreign-trained lawyers together, exposing students to a variety of approaches on law- and policy-making domestically and internationally, and prepares them for the challenges of an increasingly global legal community.

Extensive Curriculum
LL.M. students can take courses of interest from across the law school's extensive offerings. Maryland's specialty programs offer overview introductory courses, supplemented by advanced courses and seminars that enable students to develop a deep understanding of subject areas. In-depth and interdisciplinary offerings in emerging areas of legal practice provide the opportunity to work with lawyers and law professors, as well as professionals from other fields, on issues that transcend traditional boundaries.

Financial Aid


Fellowships for LL.M. Students

The University of Maryland School of Law offers a limited number of David Hoffman Fellowships for highly qualified LL.M. candidates. The Fellowship provides enrolling LL.M. students tuition support of up to $5000.

Maryland Law is the third-oldest law school in the United States, and its founder, David Hoffman is the father of American legal education. Dean Phoebe Haddon is proud to honor his legacy creating Fellowships that will attract students from around the world to the Law School he established."

All candidates admitted to Maryland Law's LL.M. Program may be considered for Fellowships. Following acceptance, qualified LL.M. candidates chosen by a selection committee will be informed of their eligibility to apply for a David Hoffman Fellowship.

Cost of Attendance

FALL 2013 AND SPRING 2014

DAY SCHOOL
Tuition & Fees* FULL TIME PART-TIME LESS than 9 Credits *
Tuition:
Resident $12,716.00 $1,099.00
Non-Resident $18,757.00 $1,603.00
Auxillary Fees:
Student Activities $26.00 $26.00
Student Government $10.00 $10.00
Supporting Facilities *3 $720.00 $80.00
Transportation $55.00 $17.50
Technology Fee:
Full-Time $60.00 $0.00
Part-Time (per credit hour, not to exceed $60.00) $0.00 $10.00
Hospitalization Insurance: *1
Student $1,743.00 $1,743.00
Student & Child $3,919.50 $3,919.50
Student & Spouse/Partner $5,224.00 $5,224.00
Family $6,705.00 $6,705.00
Malpractice Fee-1st Year-Day-Fall: $112.00 N/A
Graduation (Diploma) Fee - Spring: $55.00 $55.00
Late Registration: $40.00 $40.00
Late Payment: *2 $100.00 $100.00
EVENING SCHOOL
Student FULL TIME PART-TIME LESS than 9 Credits *
Tuition:
Resident $9,531.00 $1,099.00
Non-Resident $14,601.00 $1,603.00
Auxillary Fees:
Student Activities $19.50 $19.50
Student Government $10.00 $10.00
Supporting Facilities *3 $720.00 $80.00
Transportation $55.00 $17.50
Technology Fee:
Full-Time $60.00 $0.00
Part-Time (per credit hour, not to exceed $60.00) $0.00 $10.00
Hospitalization Insurance: *1
Student $1,743.00 $1,743.00
Student & Child $3,919.50 $3,919.50
Student & Spouse/Partner $5,224.00 $5,224.00
Family $6,705.00 $6,705.00
Malpractice Fee-1st Year-Day-Fall: N/A N/A
Graduation (Diploma) Fee - Spring: $55.00 $55.00
Late Registration: $40.00 $40.00
Late Payment: *2 $100.00 $100.00

* Tuition billed per credit hour, plus flat rate of $31.75 - Day School, $6.25 - Evening P/T.
* 1. University's program or equivalent coverage is required of all full-time students, not required for Evening Law.
* 2. Or 5% of the balance, whichever is less.
* 3. Supporting Facilities fee billed $80.00 per credit hour, not to exceed $720.00

Career Development/Services Offered


In addition to Career Counseling, the Career Development Office (CDO) offers many services to students to assist with job searches and skill development:

  • Recruitment programs, job fairs, & career consortia
  • Job postings
  • Professional development workshops and programs
  • Resume and application development

Students may also consider Asper Fellowships as an excellent opportunity to gain exposure to the practical workings of the legal system and receive course credit for volunteer internships with public service employers.

The Career Development Office is ready to assist them at any time. They should get to know the staff in the law schools' office, and see a counselor throughout the different stages of their job search process.

The CDO also offers Reciprocity Services for 3L students and alumni to request career services at other law schools outside the school's region.