I haven't noticed this program mentioned here before and apologies if it has already come up. A member here has kindly brought to my attention that Florida Coastal Law now offers a LLM in American Law entirely by distance learning. The program looks pretty good, can be completed in just over a year (or so they say) and the cost at $13000 ($500 per credit for 26 credits) is not terrible for a LLM from a school with a JD program accredited by the ABA. What I'm curious about (and by curious I mean just generally curious, not curious because I want to do it) is whether earning this degree on top of a distance learning foreign LLB would allow the graduate to write the bar exam in any states.
Wow, this is a great find. The curriculum covers bar tested subjects. Therefore, earning this degree on top of a DL foreign LLB should qualify you for the DC bar.
I was not at all aware of the DC bar requirements, but looking into it seems that this is right. The DC bar does not have a stellar pass rate mind you (I think the site said last sitting was 72 or 73%). I'm not sure if it has a reputation as a tough bar, like California and New York. All in all Florida Coastal's LLM looks like a very good program, and might make a foreign LLB + Coastal LLM a more attractive and less expensive option than some of the California schools. When I was studying through Northumbria the LLB cost was about GBP 900 per year (plus books). So for 3 years converted to USD that comes to less than $5000, plus $13000 for the LLM at Coastal and you in theory have an accredited LLB plus an LLM from a school with an ABA accredited JD for less than $20,000 in tuition, in 4 years. Looks pretty decent compared to Concord, which is going to ring in at around $40,000 for 4 years. I should note that to do the English LLB in 3 years (parti time distance learning) you need to have an undergraduate degree already. Edit: This is assuming that you do the LLM in a year, and they say it can be completed in as little as 56 weeks. So it really is a bit more than 4 academic years to do this.
Hi novemberdude, Graduate route to English LLB would only require 9 courses vs the regular 12 subjects. Even with the LLM from Florida Coastal, I am not sure if that’s enough to sit for the CA bar.
