Foreign Llb. grad and Bar passer with foreign Government work experience weighing options for work in America

[Confusedtinybird 41]

http://www.nybarexam.org/Foreign/ForeignLegalEducation.htm

For example the requirement for New York. Some foreign LLB will have to have a Masters. Another problem is the way it's set up. Law in the USA is undergrad then you do your JD. But law in most countries where you have LLB you go straight out of highschool and do yoru LLB. So it's not thought of as the same degree.

"Becoming a lawyer seemed to be one of those career moves that could stand up to any type of economic setback.

The jobs would always be there, as most people, it was assumed, would need a lawyer at some point in their lives—and a downturn in the economy would likely last no more than it took to graduate from law school.

That's no longer the case. Because of the recession of 2007-2009 and a still-struggling economy, the legal profession is under severe stress. Besides not having enough positions for current lawyers, there are too many upcoming law school graduates and too few jobs to employ them.

"We never saw it like this just a few years ago, but now I've seen it first hand," said Ron Lieberman, a matrimonial lawyer the in New Jersey firm of Adinolfi & Lieberman in southern New Jersey. "There are too many lawyers and too few jobs. We just hired someone, but we didn't look very hard, and she was doing volunteer work."

This was the article I was talking about http://www.cnbc.com/id/100569350

But hope everything works out with your engagnment and visa. Just know that you might not be doing your dream job, and it might take you a while to find anything that is similar to law.

[HollyGolightly 72]

http://www.nybarexam.org/Foreign/ForeignLegalEducation.htm

For example the requirement for New York. Some foreign LLB will have to have a Masters. Another problem is the way it's set up. Law in the USA is undergrad then you do your JD. But law in most countries where you have LLB you go straight out of highschool and do yoru LLB. So it's not thought of as the same degree.

"Becoming a lawyer seemed to be one of those career moves that could stand up to any type of economic setback.

The jobs would always be there, as most people, it was assumed, would need a lawyer at some point in their lives—and a downturn in the economy would likely last no more than it took to graduate from law school.

That's no longer the case. Because of the recession of 2007-2009 and a still-struggling economy, the legal profession is under severe stress. Besides not having enough positions for current lawyers, there are too many upcoming law school graduates and too few jobs to employ them.

"We never saw it like this just a few years ago, but now I've seen it first hand," said Ron Lieberman, a matrimonial lawyer the in New Jersey firm of Adinolfi & Lieberman in southern New Jersey. "There are too many lawyers and too few jobs. We just hired someone, but we didn't look very hard, and she was doing volunteer work."

This was the article I was talking about http://www.cnbc.com/id/100569350

But hope everything works out with your engagnment and visa. Just know that you might not be doing your dream job, and it might take you a while to find anything that is similar to law.

I think the recession affected most professions across the board and the situation is not limited to the law profession. Yes, I do agree that an llb is not viewed in the same light as a JD, and for graduates of some jurisdictions, further study (required units only) is needed in order to sit the bar. However, in most cases an equivalency evaluation is sufficient to determine the competency of a foreign lawyer to sit the bar. Every state has different rules but the standards are more or less the same.

Yes, jobs are tough for US law graduates right now, specially those that have just graduated from law school even with a bar qualification. If local graduates are finding it difficult finding jobs, what chance does a foreign lawyer have? Right? The truth is that the law profession is not limited to law firm positions. It has a wide scope and there are many fields of practice from civil, criminal litigation, government, administrative, corporate, labor, mercantile, commercial, tax, torts, labor (and the list goes on). There are lots of possibilities for law graduates out there to pick up a job in any related field of practice. I've been looking at the us.gov site and there are a lot of positions that are a good fit for one that has a law degree.

I'm not hoping to land a $150K/year job for my first job. I just want to work as a lawyer. I think I worked too long and too hard (8 years of pre-law and law school) that I deserve a shot.

Thank you for the info and your best wishes, though. I appreciate it.

[Confusedtinybird 41]

I think the recession affected most professions across the board and the situation is not limited to the law profession. Yes, I do agree that an llb is not viewed in the same light as a JD, and for graduates of some jurisdictions, further study (required units only) is needed in order to sit the bar. However, in most cases an equivalency evaluation is sufficient to determine the competency of a foreign lawyer to sit the bar. Every state has different rules but the standards are more or less the same.

Yes, jobs are tough for US law graduates right now, specially those that have just graduated from law school even with a bar qualification. If local graduates are finding it difficult finding jobs, what chance does a foreign lawyer have? Right? The truth is that the law profession is not limited to law firm positions. It has a wide scope and there are many fields of practice from civil, criminal litigation, government, administrative, corporate, labor, mercantile, commercial, tax, torts, labor (and the list goes on). There are lots of possibilities for law graduates out there to pick up a job in any related field of practice. I've been looking at the us.gov site and there are a lot of positions that are a good fit for one that has a law degree.

I'm not hoping to land a $150K/year job for my first job. I just want to work as a lawyer. I think I worked too long and too hard (8 years of pre-law and law school) that I deserve a shot.

Thank you for the info and your best wishes, though. I appreciate it.

Your right it's not limited to 'the practice of law' and some people get so stuck on it that they forget the big picture. There is a lot more you can do with a law degree then practice law. I know how you feel with working so hard and you just want a chance! Wish you the best, and hope you land a job you love.

[elle13 15]

I am a foreign attorney too, (LLB, not JD) and took the bar exam two months after I arrived in the US (I moved to the US at the end of May 2013). I self-studied and it was insane to learn and memorize all that material in 2 months, on top of practising Bar essays and MBE techniques. I wouldn't recommend it! You should definitely start studying now if you're taking the Feb bar exam. We are at a disadvantage because we haven't been studying this stuff for 3 years. For me, there were also the little things like making sure I spell in American English rather than UK English.

I won't get the results until Thanksgiving but the good news is that a couple of weeks after the bar exam, I found a legal job in my desired practice area. The job market is very tough but praise God, not impossible!

[Jacque67 7,328]

I am a foreign attorney too, (LLB, not JD) and took the bar exam two months after I arrived in the US (I moved to the US at the end of May 2013). I self-studied and it was insane to learn and memorize all that material in 2 months, on top of practising Bar essays and MBE techniques. I wouldn't recommend it! You should definitely start studying now if you're taking the Feb bar exam. We are at a disadvantage because we haven't been studying this stuff for 3 years. For me, there were also the little things like making sure I spell in American English rather than UK English.

I won't get the results until Thanksgiving but the good news is that a couple of weeks after the bar exam, I found a legal job in my desired practice area. The job market is very tough but praise God, not impossible!

Good luck!

[ladylex 0]

I am a foreign attorney too, (LLB, not JD) and took the bar exam two months after I arrived in the US (I moved to the US at the end of May 2013). I self-studied and it was insane to learn and memorize all that material in 2 months, on top of practising Bar essays and MBE techniques. I wouldn't recommend it! You should definitely start studying now if you're taking the Feb bar exam. We are at a disadvantage because we haven't been studying this stuff for 3 years. For me, there were also the little things like making sure I spell in American English rather than UK English.

I won't get the results until Thanksgiving but the good news is that a couple of weeks after the bar exam, I found a legal job in my desired practice area. The job market is very tough but praise God, not impossible!

Hi elle13! I wish you good luck on the bar exam result.

Did you take the NY Bar? I am still having my foreign law degree evaluated by the NY BOLE. But in the meantime, I am looking for work here and honestly, I am having a rough time looking for one. May I know where are you situated? Is it in a metro city? I am thinking my location plays a major factor why I couldn't get a job in the legal industry.

Thanks

[elle13 15]

Hi elle13! I wish you good luck on the bar exam result.

Did you take the NY Bar? I am still having my foreign law degree evaluated by the NY BOLE. But in the meantime, I am looking for work here and honestly, I am having a rough time looking for one. May I know where are you situated? Is it in a metro city? I am thinking my location plays a major factor why I couldn't get a job in the legal industry.

Thanks

Hi Ladylex. I took the California Bar and just found out I passed! Results were released last week. It's a complete miracle considering my circumstances and that on average only 40% of applicants pass the exams. My boss is open to promoting me to a full counsel position once I am sworn in.

I live in Southern California - the job market is not great in the US overall but don't let that get you down. Have confidence in your work experience and work hard on making sure your resume is US-friendly. Be persistent and prepared!

[ladylex 0]

Hi Ladylex. I took the California Bar and just found out I passed! Results were released last week. It's a complete miracle considering my circumstances and that on average only 40% of applicants pass the exams. My boss is open to promoting me to a full counsel position once I am sworn in.

I live in Southern California - the job market is not great in the US overall but don't let that get you down. Have confidence in your work experience and work hard on making sure your resume is US-friendly. Be persistent and prepared!

Congratulations!!! I think that's what I need to do over the long weekend. Rewrite my resume

[HollyGolightly 72]

Hi Ladylex. I took the California Bar and just found out I passed! Results were released last week. It's a complete miracle considering my circumstances and that on average only 40% of applicants pass the exams. My boss is open to promoting me to a full counsel position once I am sworn in.

I live in Southern California - the job market is not great in the US overall but don't let that get you down. Have confidence in your work experience and work hard on making sure your resume is US-friendly. Be persistent and prepared!

Wow, I haven't logged on to this post for a while and am surprised with the new responses. Congratulations elle13! I've had a friend take the July Cali Bar too and she made it as well. We graduated from law school together in 2005 and she's been here for over 2 years so she's had time to prepare for the bar. I've just finished AOS and have started my review using Barbri materials. I will be taking the Colorado bar in July 2014. I didn't make the Dec 1 deadline for the February 2014 schedule and didn't want to pay the late filing fee just to be able to take the test in Feb.

Taking the bar in July is actually perfect for what I have lined up at the moment. I've just interviewed for a Court Clerk post in my local municipal courthouse. The job starts in early January, the hours are flexible and the Judge I interviewed with understood that I was going to take the bar. He was actually very supportive of the idea and told me the job would be perfect for me while I study.

What jobs are you planning to apply for now that you passed the bar? My friend in Cali has been looking for law firm posts but have had no luck getting offers. She says Cali is saturated with not only local lawyers but foreign ones as well and the job market is super cutthroat.

[HollyGolightly 72]

Hi elle13! I wish you good luck on the bar exam result.

Did you take the NY Bar? I am still having my foreign law degree evaluated by the NY BOLE. But in the meantime, I am looking for work here and honestly, I am having a rough time looking for one. May I know where are you situated? Is it in a metro city? I am thinking my location plays a major factor why I couldn't get a job in the legal industry.

Thanks

Hi ladylex, have you tried looking at local government job postings? I've only applied for local government related jobs within my area (and as far as 1 hours commute) and I've had some luck with them. I've had 3 rejections, saying I was somewhat overqualified (I've applied for temp chore jobs with my llb.) and 2 that have passed me off but have said they will keep my resume for future job openings and 1 interview/offer.

My main field of practice has been administrative law and government service. I did that for 5 years and have some background in litigations, family and election law. I was looking for paralegal work and consulting initially but that requires certification. What field of practice are you looking to get into? If you are interested in jobs in the legal field try looking at this website: http://www.nalpdirectory.com

It is a directory of legal employers in the US. I got it from a book authored by a Philippine educated lawyer that transitioned his practice to the US. It is targeted mainly to legal professionals looking for a guide on legal studies in the US but it has some helpful tips on how to take the bar and find work.

[elle13 15]

Wow, I haven't logged on to this post for a while and am surprised with the new responses. Congratulations elle13! I've had a friend take the July Cali Bar too and she made it as well. We graduated from law school together in 2005 and she's been here for over 2 years so she's had time to prepare for the bar. I've just finished AOS and have started my review using Barbri materials. I will be taking the Colorado bar in July 2014. I didn't make the Dec 1 deadline for the February 2014 schedule and didn't want to pay the late filing fee just to be able to take the test in Feb.

Taking the bar in July is actually perfect for what I have lined up at the moment. I've just interviewed for a Court Clerk post in my local municipal courthouse. The job starts in early January, the hours are flexible and the Judge I interviewed with understood that I was going to take the bar. He was actually very supportive of the idea and told me the job would be perfect for me while I study.

What jobs are you planning to apply for now that you passed the bar? My friend in Cali has been looking for law firm posts but have had no luck getting offers. She says Cali is saturated with not only local lawyers but foreign ones as well and the job market is super cutthroat.

Hi Holly, I'm staying with my current company and will be promoted to corporate counsel once I am sworn in (I'm still waiting for my moral character determination to complete - only submitted it after I passed the bar exam because it costs $500 and I thought it would be a waste of money because didn't think I was going to pass the bar!). Perhaps your friend could do the same, start working for a law firm or legal department of a corporate while waiting to pass the bar exam, then seek to be promoted to attorney level.

[HollyGolightly 72]

Hi Holly, I'm staying with my current company and will be promoted to corporate counsel once I am sworn in (I'm still waiting for my moral character determination to complete - only submitted it after I passed the bar exam because it costs $500 and I thought it would be a waste of money because didn't think I was going to pass the bar!). Perhaps your friend could do the same, start working for a law firm or legal department of a corporate while waiting to pass the bar exam, then seek to be promoted to attorney level.

Nice, sounds like you have found your niche at your current company. I agree, everything is so expensive here. You have to pay a lot of money just to take the test and with books and reviews on top of that. Are you done with the MPRE too? I am not sure if that is required in California but it is required that you pass it either prior to taking the bar or within 2 years from passing in Colorado.

[namour7997 2]

Hello im also in the same boat as you, i have a couple of questions for you and i sent you a message