Building Skills for Global Practice

Common law is one of five legal systems in the world and only 23 of the United Nations’ 193 member states use it exclusively.

At Michigan Law, you will have the opportunity to become familiar with other legal systems and begin to understand different approaches to dispute resolution and legal order. Offering courses, internships, externships, panels, and workshops, we provide myriad ways to gain this important global legal skill.

Our courses include:

English is the most common language in the world with 1.5 billion people learning it as a second language. So why do you need to know another one?

First of all, you will be competing for jobs with many of these people who are fluent in English as their second (or more!) language. Additionally, you will be a lawyer. A lawyer’s craft relies on the nuances of language. When working with people and problems from around the world, being sensitive to how another language works and what it means for your client, judge, or opposing counsel to be communicating in a language that is not their own will help you provide better legal services.

Michigan Law offers innovative for-credit and non-credit opportunities for our students to develop the language abilities they need to thrive. Credit-bearing opportunities include the ability to take undergraduate level language courses that count toward your JD degree.

Non-credit opportunities range from Michigan Law professor-taught mini classes in French, German, Italian, and Korean to relaxed language lunch tables with JD students, LLM students, SJD students, research scholars, staff, and faculty, grouped by language. Our LLM students, SJD students, and International and Comparative Law Research Scholars, who come from around the globe, even give casual lectures in their native language for the entire community.

Who you know matters, and being able to reach out to friends and colleagues around the world will make you a better and more valuable attorney. With a rich personal network, you will be able to give and receive business referrals, call on local experts for legal and cultural advice, expand your legal perspective, and enrich your personal and professional life.

To help you along the way, Michigan Law has developed its own global alumni network, participated in international student competitions, created internationally focused student groups, and joined international membership organizations that offer student benefits.

We have also created a partnership with the International Association of Young Lawyers to give all our graduating students one year of free membership in this vibrant organization.

It is estimated that less than 5 percent of U.S. JD students study or work outside the United States during their legal studies.

At Michigan Law, you can seize the opportunity to make yourself stand out, while gaining on-the-ground experience that will give you a global perspective of the law and legal practice, demonstrate flexibility and resilience to employers, and nudge you to grow in ways you never imagined.

We offer internship, externship, clerkship, and study opportunities that span the globe and cover all practice areas. Several placements even come with designated Law School funding.