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2007-2008 Law Catalog [ARCHIVED BULLETIN]
LL.M. Program
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Hofstra University School of Law offers an LL.M. degree with three concentrations – American Legal Studies for foreign law graduates, and Family Law and International Law for American and foreign law graduates.
All LL.M. candidates must complete 24 credit hours of courses from the Hofstra Law School curriculum. Normally, these credits are earned over two semesters (one academic year). LL.M. students may also earn credits in the Summer Law Programs in Sorrento, Italy, Sydney, Australia, and Nice, France, held in June-July of each year and in the winter law program in Curaçao, the Dutch Antilles, in December-January of each year. With permission, candidates may complete LL.M. degree requirements on a part-time basis. This permits completion of the LL.M. over four semesters, or three semesters and summer sessions, with an average course load of six credits each semester. To earn an LL.M. degree, students must achieve a cumulative grade point average (GPA) of at least 3.0 out of a possible 4.0.
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LL.M. Concentration in Family Law
Hofstra Law School established the LL.M. Program in Family Law in response to cotemporary family law practice’s increased demand for specialization and need for an interdisciplinary focus for resolving family issues. The only program of its kind in the eastern United States, and one of only three programs in the country, Hofstra’s LL.M. Program in Family Law furthers the Law School’s commitment to developing skilled and compassionate family lawyers who have a thorough grounding in the issues central to the field – divorce, family violence, child custody, abuse, neglect and support – as well as knowledge in related areas such as tax, contracts, real estate, and partnership law, child psychology and treatment options. Hofstra’s LL.M. program meets the needs of all students whether they seek to concentrate on matrimonial issues – marital dissolution, child custody, and property distribution; child protection issues – child abuse and neglect and the child welfare system; or one of the growing areas of subspecialty – international family law, legislative reform, or representing gay and lesbian families.
Concentration in American Legal Studies
The concentration in American Legal Studies should appeal to foreign law graduates who wish to obtain legal training in U.S. law and practice in order to compete more effectively on behalf of U.S. law firms operating in foreign countries. Foreign law graduates seeking U.S. law training in order to make themselves more attractive to U.S. law firms will also benefit from this degree program. Every LL.M. student who has successfully completed 20 credits may be eligible for admission to practice law in New York after passing the New York State Bar Examination.
The Law School’s extensive selection of courses in American Litigation and Advocacy should be of particular interest to foreign law graduates who want comprehensive exposure to American approaches to litigation theory and techniques in a variety of lecture, simulation and practice settings. The Law School is the Northeast region’s base for the National Institute of Trial Advocacy, and the Hofstra faculty has extensive expertise in American litigation and advocacy.
LL.M. candidates who concentrate in American Legal Studies must:
- take a mini-course on U.S. Legal Methods and Systems at the start of their first semester of study;
- complete the legal writing course taken by J.D. students; and
- complete an analytic writing requirement in the form of a seminar paper or independent study that meets the standard for J.D. writing requirements.
LL.M. candidates are free to select their remaining courses from any courses offered in the Law School curriculum, but must obtain approval from their faculty adviser before registering for classes each semester. Concentration in International Law
The concentration in International Law allows LL.M. candidates to take advantage of Hofstra’s substantial and growing International Law curriculum and its intellectually diverse international law faculty. The International Law concentration is designed to serve the needs of candidates with either foreign or U.S. degrees in law. LL.M. candidates concentrating in international law are strongly encouraged to take up to six credits of independent research under the direct supervision of a faculty member.
The remaining 12 credits are selected with faculty advice and administrative approval. Students in the International Law concentration normally are permitted to use six credits of the remaining 12 elective credits for concentrated written research under the active supervision of a faculty member. To earn credit for these six hours, students must produce a written product of publishable quality in international law. All students who elect this writing option meet together regularly to discuss their topics and progress on their papers. If recommended by the faculty member supervising the research, papers may be submitted to the Hofstra Law Review, the Hofstra Labor and Employment Law Journal, the Hofstra Journal of International Business and Law, or the Family Court Review for possible publication. Students may choose to have an additional or alternative writing experience by taking a seminar that has a paper component or by doing an independent study.
Students pursuing an LL.M. with a concentration in International Law must fulfill a minimum of 12 credit hours from the following courses:
Admissions
For U.S. law graduates, a candidate must hold a first degree in law from an ABA-approved law school. An LL.M. candidate who is a foreign law graduate must hold a first degree in law from an accredited or comparably recognized foreign law school or law faculty. The Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) must be taken by all applicants for whom English is not their native language, with a minimum required score of 580 on the paper-based test or 237 on the computer-based test. Information about the TOEFL can be obtained by contacting the Educational Testing Service, P.O. Box 6155, Princeton, NJ 08541-6155, USA. Tel: (609) 921-9000, Web: http://www.toefl.org/.
Each application is individually assessed. All LL.M. applicants must demonstrate ability in prior law studies and in practice, if applicable. Admission decisions are based on a variety of factors, including law school record, recommendations, professional accomplishments and areas of interest. Financial aid from the Law School may be available for admitted students, depending on citizenship status. Sources of student funding can be found at the LL.M. Web site: http://law.hofstra.edu/LLMAdmissions/index.html. Applications
Hofstra Law School begins accepting LL.M. applications for the fall semester from the first day of September prior to the August in which the applicant seeks to be admitted. Applications for the spring semester are accepted from the first day of February prior to the January in which the applicant seeks to be admitted. Applications are processed on a rolling admissions basis. Therefore, it is advisable to complete the application and related materials as early as possible. Please refer to the Application Procedures for detailed instructions and requirements for a completed application (online at law.hofstra.edu).
The priority deadlines for filing applications are July 1 for the fall and November 1 for the spring semester.
The Law School Office of Enrollment Management is open Monday and Tuesday 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Wednesday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., except on holidays and during the summer when the Office closes at 4 p.m. on Fridays. For more information, including tuition and fees, tours, and an academic calendar, please visit the Hofstra Law School Web site, law.hofstra.edu or contact the Office of Enrollment Management via email llmadmissions@hofstra.edu or via phone during business hours at (516) 463-5916. Tuition
An applicant for admission who has been accepted must pay a deposit of $850 to secure a position in the incoming class. Students receiving full-tuition scholarships are required to pay the deposit and the deposit will be refunded after the start of the fall semester. Applicants who are accepted are urged to send in their seat deposit as soon as possible, because until we have received the deposit, the applicant’s place at the Law School cannot be guaranteed.
Tuition for the first semester must be paid by the date indicated on the bill. Tuition and fees for each semester thereafter must be paid in full prior to the start of lectures as directed by the Office of Student Accounts at the University. (For the remission policy, see Withdrawal from the School of Law in the Course of Study section.)
Students applying for University-owned housing will be charged a prepayment housing fee of an additional $300 to be considered for such accommodations.
We estimate that the cost for new casebooks, which may be obtained at the University Bookstore, will be $1,400 for an entire year. Used copies may be substituted.
Tuition and fees for 2007-2008 as of June 15, 2007.
| Application Fee (must accompany the application form; not credited to tuition, non refundable) |
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$60 |
| Deposit; credited to tuition, non refundable |
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$850 |
| Law School Tuition |
Full-time students |
$18,487 per term |
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Part-time students |
$1,320 per credit hour |
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Part-time LL.M. students |
$9,243.50 per term |
| University Fee |
Full-time students (Fall and Spring) |
$125 per term |
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All Part-time students (Fall and Spring) |
$75 per term |
| Technology Fee |
Full-time students (Fall and Spring) |
$105 per term |
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All Part-time students (Fall and Spring) |
$75 per term |
| Wellness Center Fee |
Full-time students (Fall and Spring) |
$53 per term |
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All Part-time students (Fall and Spring) |
$32 per term |
| Activity Fee |
Full-time students (Fall and Spring) |
$30 per term |
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All Part-time students (Fall and Spring) |
$15 per term |
| Tuition, Study Abroad Nice Program |
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$2,950 (2007) |
| Tuition, Study Abroad Sorrento Program |
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$1,700 (2007) |
| Tuition, Study Abroad Curacao Program |
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$2,850 (2006) |
| Tuition, Summer, per credit |
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$1,320 |
| Late Payment Fee |
Payments received/uncleared accounts after August 2, 2007 (for Fall 2007) |
$50 |
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Payments received/uncleared accounts after September 16, 2007 (for Fall 2007) |
$100 |
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Payments received/uncleared accounts after October 15, 2007 (for Fall 2007) |
$100 |
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Payments received/uncleared accounts after January 3, 2008 (for Spring 2008) |
$50 |
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Payments received/uncleared accounts after February 15, 2008 (for Spring 2008) |
$100 |
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Payments received/uncleared accounts after March 17, 2008 (for Spring 2008) |
$100 |
| Interest Charges |
Unpaid balances after the payment due date |
1% per month |
| Deferred tuition payment fee, per semester |
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2% for 2 months, minimum of $50 |
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Summer Externship Fee *
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$500 |
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Letter of Good Standing to ABA Accredited Law School
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$40 |
| Transcripts, each |
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Free |
The University reserves the right to change its tuition and fees at any time, and it is likely that tuition will increase each year.
*If other courses are taken during the same summer session, the student must pay the prevailing per-credit tuition rate for the summer externship as well as for other summer courses.
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