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Foreign Legal Education

Introduction. Section 520.6 of the Rules of the Court of Appeals for the Admission of Attorneys and Counselors at Law [22 NYCRR 520.6] contains the eligibility requirements for applicants who wish to qualify for the New York State bar examination based on the study of law in a foreign country. Compliance with the requirements of the Rules of the Court of Appeals must be proved to the satisfaction of the Board before an applicant may be permitted to sit for the bar examination. Therefore, applicants are strongly urged to carefully review Sections 520.6 and 520.3 of the Rules of the Court Appeals before making application to sit for the New York State bar examination.

If after reviewing Sections 520.3 and 520.6 of the Rules of the Court of Appeals you believe that you meet the eligibility requirements to qualify for the bar examination you may file an application during the appropriate filing period (consult the Application Materials). You should attach to your application satisfactory proof of compliance with Section 520.6 as discussed below in the section entitled Proof Required for Compliance with 520.6.

Advance Evaluation of Eligibility. Applicants are not required to obtain an evaluation of their eligibility in advance of their application to the examination. However, if an applicant wishes to request an evaluation of their eligibility in advance of making application to the sit for the examination the applicant shall complete a Request for Evaluation of Foreign Academic Credentials Form, a copy of which may be downloaded from this website, and mail it to the Board offices together with the documentation described below under the section entitled Documentary Proof Required for Compliance with 520.6. Requests for Evaluation shall be made well in advance of the examination for which the applicant intends to apply, preferably at least six months in advance of the application filing period. Due to the volume of applications that the Board must process for each administration of the exam, the Board is unable to issue evaluations after the application filing period opens. At that time it will be necessary for you to attach your credentials to your application. After your application is processed and our staff has had an opportunity to review your supporting documentation you will be contacted should there be a problem with your eligibility.

Evaluations will not be conducted until the Board is in receipt of all required documentation. When the Board is satisfied that all necessary documentation has been received, the Board will commence the evaluation and provide you with a written decision in due course. We kindly ask that you allow at least eight to ten weeks from the date of the Board’s receipt of all of the necessary documentation for a decision to be made in your case. Please also note that all transcripts and proofs submitted to the Board become the possession of the Board and will not be returned to the applicant.

Synopsis of the Requirements of Section 520.6(b)(1). Section 520.6(b)(1) of the Rules of the Court of Appeals requires an applicant to provide satisfactory proof of the following:

(1) that the applicant has fulfilled the educational requirements for admission to the practice of law in a foreign country other than the United States;

(2) that the applicant has successfully completed a period of law study in a law school or schools, that is at least substantially equivalent in duration to that required under subdivisions (d) and (e) of section 520.3;

(3) that throughout the period of the applicant’s study, the law school or schools attended was each recognized by the competent accrediting agency of the government of such other country, or a political subdivision thereof, as qualified and approved;

(4) that the jurisprudence of such foreign country is based upon the principles of the English Common Law; and

(5) that the "program and course of law study" successfully completed by the applicant were the substantial equivalent of the legal education provided by an approved law school in the United States.

Curing a durational or substantive deficiency under subdivision (b)(1)(ii). Subdivision (b)(1)(ii) of part 520.6 permits certain applicants to cure either a durational or substantive deficiency by successfully completing further study at an approved law school in the United States. Specifically, if an applicant cannot satisfy the durational equivalency requirements of section 520.6(b)(1) but has at least two years of substantively equivalent education, or if the applicant cannot satisfy the substantive equivalency requirements of 520.6(b)(1)(i), the applicant may still qualify to sit for the bar examination by showing "that the applicant has successfully completed a full-time or part-time program consisting of a minimum of 20 semester hours of credit, or the equivalent, in professional law subjects, which includes basic courses in American law, in an approved law school in the United States." Prospective applicants should note that subdivision (b)(1)(ii) does not permit use of the "program of study at a U.S. law school" to cure both durational and substantive deficiencies.

Documentary Proof Required for Compliance with 520.6: You must provide the following original documents or copies certified directly by the institution that issued the degree and/or certificate. (Copies that are certified by universities other than the issuing university will not be accepted. Please note that photocopies, faxed copies, and copies certified by a notary public are also not acceptable.) Note: All documents become the property of the Board and will not be returned.

(1) Official transcripts from every law school attended. An official transcript is a record of your law school study that is certified by the law school. The official transcript should set forth the dates of attendance, the courses taken and passed, the degree awarded and the date of the degree. Please note that photocopies or facsimiles of transcripts are not acceptable.

(2) Degree Certificate. If the law school transcript does not set forth the degree awarded or the date the degree was conferred than you must also furnish a copy of your degree certificate.

(3) Proof of admission to practice in the foreign country or if you are not admitted to practice law in the foreign country than you must provide satisfactory proof that you have successfully completed the educational requirements for admission to practice in the foreign country, in compliance with 520.6(b)(1).

(4) Proof of durationally equivalent legal education. Section 520.6(b)(1) of the Rules of the Court of Appeals requires successful completion of law school study that is at least substantially equivalent in duration to that required under subdivisions (d) and (e) of section 520.3. If your foreign law school transcript does not clearly confirm that your law degree was based on classroom study that is substantially equivalent in the number of hours and the number of calendar weeks in residence as required by section 520.3(d) and (e), than it will also be necessary for you to provide a written statement from your law school confirming the number of classroom hours successfully completed, the number of calendar weeks in residence, and that the law school is recognized as "qualified and approved" by the competent accrediting agency of that country.

(5) Proof of substantively equivalent legal education. If you are asserting that your foreign law school study satisfies the substantive equivalency requirements of subdivision (b)(1)(ii) of 520.6 than you should be prepared to furnish, if so requested by the Board, written statements from your law school and/or the competent accrediting authorities in the foreign country describing the basis for the belief that (a) the jurisprudence in that country is based upon the principles of the English Common Law, and (b) the "program and course of law study" that was completed at the foreign law school was the substantial equivalent of the legal education provided at an approved law school in the United States.

(6) English translation. If the law school transcripts, degree certificate, or any of the other documentation requested above are not in English you must also furnish duly authenticated English translations of the documents that accurately reflect the originals (translations made directly by the candidate are not acceptable).

520.6(b)(2) – Qualifying to Sit for Bar Exam based on Admission in an English Common Law Jurisdiction and Successful Completion of a Law School/Law Office Study Program. Subdivision (b)(2) of part 520.6 permits certain applicants to qualify for the bar examination where: (1) the applicant has been admitted to practice law in a foreign country whose jurisprudence is based upon the principles of the English Common Law; and (2) the admission was based on a program of study in a law school and/or law office, that is recognized by the competent accrediting agency of the government of such other country; and (3) the combination of the law school and law office programs of study is durationally equivalent but yet substantively deficient under subdivision (b)(1)(i) of section 520.6; and (4) the applicant has also successfully completed a full-time or part-time program consisting of a minimum of 20 semester hours of credit, or the equivalent, in professional law subjects, which includes basic courses in American law, in an approved law school in the United States. Historically, applicants who may qualify under Section 520.6(b)(2) generally have been solicitors or barristers in English Common Law jurisdictions who do not have an LLB degree but who were admitted to practice in their foreign jurisdiction based on successful completion of either the Common Professional Examination course or the Bar Vocational Course, a practical skills course, and a training contract (i.e., articles), the aggregate of which satisfies the durational equivalency requirements.

In order to qualify under 520.6(b)(2) the Board requires proof of the following in the form of original documents or copies certified by the issuing institutions: (1) an admission certificate from the competent accrediting agency of the government of the foreign jurisdiction; (2) transcripts of the law school programs confirming the dates of attendance and successful completion of the program(s); (3) a certificate or written statement verifying the successful completion of the law office study (i.e., clerkship or articles) and the dates of the employment; (4) a transcript from the U.S. law school confirming successful completion of the program of study described in 520.6(b)(2).

Guide to the U.S. Law School Program of Study required by 520.6(b)(1)(ii). Section 520.6(b)(1)(ii) of the Rules of the Court of Appeals requires certain applicants to successfully complete a program of study consisting of a minimum of 20 semester hours of credit in professional law subjects, including basic courses in American law, at an approved law school in the United States. The following information is intended as a guide to provide prospective applicants with an explanation how the Board interprets the requirements of Section 520.6(b)(1)(ii).

Program of Study – The credits must be taken as part of a "program of study." Courses taken on a non-matriculated basis are not acceptable. While the rule does not require the "program of study" to be an LLM or Masters Degree, many applicants choose to pursue such a program. Some New York law schools have implemented foreign lawyer certificate programs which consist of at least 20 credits for the purpose of assisting foreign educated individuals in qualifying to sit for the bar examination.

Minimum of 20 Semester Hours of Credit – The program of study must be a minimum of 20 semester hours of credit. The Board has no authority to waive the 20 credit requirement or any of other requirements of the Court Rules.

Professional Law Subjects – The credits must be in "professional law subjects." Generally, most courses that are typically taught in an approved law school qualify as "professional law subjects." Non-law courses will not be counted towards the 20 credits. The Board also does not count "directed research" or "independent study" as part of the 20 credits but applicants are free to take such credits over and above the 20 credits in professional law subjects required by the rule.

Basic Courses in American Law - The Board interprets "basic courses in American law" as a minimum of two courses from the list of subjects which are tested on the bar examination as set forth in Board Rule 6000.6 subdivision (c). The Board does not require that the two "basic courses in American law" be from different subjects. Board Rule 6000.6(c) provides that the bar exam may test on the following subjects: business relationships; conflict of laws; constitutional law (NY and Federal); contracts; criminal law procedure; evidence; family law; New York and federal civil jurisdiction and procedure; professional responsibility; real property; remedies; torts (including statutory no-fault provisions); trusts, wills and estates; and Uniform Commercial Code articles 2, 3 and 9. Many law schools have obtained advance approval from the Court of Appeals of acceptable "basic courses in American law" and we suggest that that you contact the graduate office at your law school to consult their list of approved "basic courses in American law."

Successful Completion – The "program of study" that the applicant chooses to pursue must be successfully completed before the applicant may qualify to sit for the bar exam. If the program of study that the applicant has chosen to pursue is more than 20 credits the applicant will not qualify until all of the law school’s requirements for that program are satisfied. A transcript showing that the LLM, Masters degree, or Foreign Lawyer Certificate program has been successfully completed will be required before an applicant is qualified to sit for the bar exam.

Approved Law School - Approved law school means a U.S. law school approved by the American Bar Association (ABA). Please note that the Board cannot recommend a particular law schools nor does the Board maintain a list of schools that offer programs that will satisfy the Rule 520.6. You may contact the ABA's Section on Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar at their website (http://www.abanet.org/legaled) to obtain a list of ABA approved law schools.

"In the United States" - Section 520.6 specifically requires the "program of study" to be completed in the United States. The Board has no authority to substitute a program of study completed at a foreign law school even if that program is affiliated with or administered by an ABA approved law school. Distance study, correspondence study, external study, and on-line programs are not acceptable.