Juris Doctor

Example of a diploma from Suffolk University Law School conferring the Juris Doctor degree.

The Juris Doctor degree or Doctor of Law degree (J.D.), also known as the Doctor of Jurisprudence degree (D.Jur. or DJur), is a professional doctorate[1][2][3][4][5][6] and first professional[7][8] graduate degree[9][10][11] in law. The degree is earned by completing law school in the United States, Canada, Australia, and other common law countries. Many who hold the degree of Juris Doctor are individuals who practice law and may choose to focus their practice on criminal law, tort, family law, corporate law, and/or a wide range of other areas.

To be authorized to practice law in the courts of a given state in the United States, the majority of individuals holding a J.D. degree must pass a bar examination.[12][13][14][15] The State of Wisconsin, however, permits the graduates of its two law schools to practice law in that state, and in its state courts, without having to take its bar exam - a practice called "Diploma Privilege" - provided they complete the courses needed to satisfy the Diploma Privilege Requirements. In the United States, passing an additional bar exam is not required of lawyers authorized to practice in at least one state to practice in the national courts of the United States, courts commonly known as "federal courts." Lawyers must, however, be admitted to the bar of the federal court before they are authorized to practice in that court. All federal district courts require as condition of admission to their bars that one have previously been admitted to the bar of the state in which the federal court is located; and all federal bankruptcy courts require prior admission to the parallel district court in which the bankruptcy court is located.

The degree was first awarded in the United States in the late 19th century and was created as a modern version of the old European doctor of law degree (such as the Dottore in Giurisprudenza in Italy and the Juris Utriusque Doctor in Germany and Central Europe).[16] Originating from the 19th century Harvard movement for the scientific study of law, it is a law degree that in most common law jurisdictions is the primary professional preparation for lawyers. It is a three-year program in most jurisdictions.[17][18]

Etymology and abbreviations

In the United States, the professional doctorate in law may be conferred in Latin or in English, as Juris Doctor and at some law schools Doctor of Law (J.D. or JD),[19] or Doctor of Jurisprudence (D.Jur. or DJur), respectively.[20] "Juris Doctor" literally means "Teacher of Law", while the Latin for "Doctor of Jurisprudence"—Jurisprudentiae Doctor—literally means "Teacher of Legal Knowledge".

The J.D./D.Jur. is not to be confused with Doctor of Laws or Legum Doctor (LLD or LL.D.). In institutions where the latter can be earned, e.g. Cambridge University, it is a "higher doctorate" representing a level of work beyond a research doctorate and well beyond a taught degree such as the J.D. The LL.D. is invariably an honorary degree in the United States.

Historical context

Origins of the law degree

In Europe the first academic degrees were law degrees, and the law degrees were doctorates.[21][22][23] The foundations of the first universities were the glossators of the 11th century, which were schools of law.[24] The first university, that of Bologna, was founded as a school of law by four famous legal scholars in the 11th century who were students of the glossolalia school in that city. The University of Bologna served as the model for other law schools of the medieval age.[25]

The history of legal training in England

The Inns of Court of London served as a professional school for lawyers in England

The nature of the J.D. can be better understood by a review of the context of the history of legal education in England. The teaching of law at Cambridge and Oxford Universities was mainly for philosophical or scholarly purposes and not meant to prepare one to practise law.[26] The universities taught only civil and canon law (used in a very few jurisdictions such as the courts of admiralty and church courts) but not the common law that applied in most jurisdictions. Professional training for practising common law in England was undertaken at the Inns of Court, but over time the training functions of the Inns lessened considerably and apprenticeships with individual practitioners arose as the prominent medium of preparation.[27] However, because of the lack of standardisation of study and of objective standards for appraisal of these apprenticeships, the role of universities became subsequently of importance for the education of lawyers in the English speaking world.[28]

In England in 1292 when Edward I first requested that lawyers be trained, students merely sat in the courts and observed, but over time the students would hire professionals to lecture them in their residences, which led to the institution of the Inns of Court system.[29] The original method of education at the Inns of Court was a mix of moot court-like practice and lecture, as well as court proceedings observation.[30] By the fifteenth century, the Inns functioned like a university akin to the University of Oxford and the University of Cambridge, though very specialized in purpose.[31] With the frequent absence of parties to suits during the Crusades, the importance of the lawyer role grew tremendously, and the demand for lawyers grew.[32]

Traditionally Oxford and Cambridge did not see common law as worthy of study, and included coursework in law only in the context of canon and civil law and for the purpose of the study of philosophy or history only. The apprenticeship program for solicitors thus emerged, structured and governed by the same rules as the apprenticeship programs for the trades.[33] The training of solicitors by apprenticeship was formally established by an act of parliament in 1729.[34] William Blackstone became the first lecturer in English common law at the University of Oxford in 1753, but the university did not establish the program for the purpose of professional study, and the lectures were very philosophical and theoretical in nature.[34] Blackstone insisted that the study of law should be university based, where concentration on foundational principles can be had, instead of concentration on detail and procedure had through apprenticeship and the Inns of Court.[35]

The Inns of Court continued but became less effective, and admission to the bar still did not require any significant educational activity or examination. In 1846, Parliament examined the education and training of prospective barristers and found the system to be inferior to that of Europe and the United States as Britain did not regulate the admission of barristers.[28] Therefore, formal schools of law were called for, but not finally established until later in the century, and even then the bar did not consider a university degree in admission decisions.[28]

Legal training in colonial North America and 19th century U.S.

Initially there was much resistance to lawyers in colonial North America because of the role they had played in hierarchical England, but slowly the colonial governments started using the services of professionals trained in the Inns of Court in London, and by the end of the American Revolution there was a functional bar in each state.[36] Due to an initial distrust of a profession open only to the elite in England, as institutions for training developed in what would become the United States they emerged as quite different from those in England.[37]

Initially in the United States the legal professionals were trained and imported from England.[38] A formal apprenticeship or clerkship program was established first in New York in 1730—at that time a seven-year clerkship was required, and in 1756 a four-year college degree was required in addition to five years of clerking and an examination.[39] Later the requirements were reduced to require only two years of college education.[39] But a system like the Inns did not develop, and a college education was not required in England until the 19th century, so this system was unique.

The clerkship program required much individual study and the mentoring lawyer was expected to carefully select materials for study and guide the clerk in his study of the law and ensure that it was being absorbed.[40] The student was supposed to compile his notes of his reading of the law into a "commonplace book", which he would try to memorize.[41] Although those were the ideals, in reality the clerks were often overworked and rarely were able to study the law individually as expected. They were often employed to tedious tasks, such as making handwritten copies of documents. Finding sufficient legal texts was also a seriously debilitating issue, and there was no standardization in the books assigned to the clerk trainees because they were assigned by their mentor, whose opinion of the law may have differed greatly from his peers.[42] It was said by one famous attorney in the U.S., William Livingston, in 1745 in a New York newspaper that the clerkship program was severely flawed, and that most mentors "have no manner of concern for their clerk's future welfare... [T]is a monstrous absurdity to suppose, that the law is to be learnt by a perpetual copying of precedents."[41] There were some few mentors that were dedicated to the service, and because of their rarity, they became so sought after that the first law schools evolved from the offices of some of these attorneys who took on many clerks and began to spend more time training than practicing law.[41]

Tapping Reeve, founder of the first law school in North America, the Litchfield Law School, in 1773

In time, the apprenticeship program was not considered sufficient to produce lawyers fully capable of serving their clients' needs.[43] The apprenticeship programs often employed the trainee with menial tasks, and while they were well trained in the day-to-day operations of a law office, they were generally unprepared practitioners or legal reasoners.[44] The establishment of formal faculties of law in U.S. universities did not occur until the latter part of the 18th century.[45] With the beginning of the American Revolution, the supply of lawyers from Britain ended. The first law degree granted by a U.S. university was a Bachelor of Law in 1793 by the College of William and Mary, which was abbreviated L.B.; Harvard was the first university to use the LL.B. abbreviation in the United States.[46]

The first university law programs in the United States, such as that of the University of Maryland established in 1812, included much theoretical and philosophical study, including works such as the Bible, Cicero, Seneca, Aristotle, Adam Smith, Montesquieu and Grotius.[47] It has been said that the early university law schools of the early 19th century seemed to be preparing students for careers as statesmen rather than as lawyers.[48] At the LL.B. programs in the early 1900s at Stanford University and Yale continued to include "cultural study," which included courses in languages, mathematics and economics.[49] An LL.B., or Bachelor of Laws, recognized that a prior bachelor's degree was not required to earn an LL. B.

In the 1850s there were many proprietary schools which originated from a practitioner taking on multiple apprentices and establishing a school and which provided a practical legal education, as opposed to the one offered in the universities which offered an education in the theory, history and philosophy of law.[50] The universities assumed that the acquisition of skills would happen in practice, while the proprietary schools concentrated on the practical skills during education.[50]

Revolutionary approach: Scientific study of law

Joseph Story, U.S. Supreme Court Justice, lecturer of law at Harvard and proponent of the scientific study of law

In part to compete with the small professional law schools, there began a great change in U.S. university legal education. For a short time beginning in 1826 Yale began to offer a complete "practitioners' course" which lasted two years and included practical courses, such as pleading drafting.[51] U.S. Supreme Court justice Joseph Story started the spirit of change in legal education at Harvard when he advocated a more "scientific study" of the law in the 19th century.[52] At the time he was a lecturer at Harvard. Therefore, at Harvard the education was much of a trade school type of approach to legal education, contrary to the more liberal arts education advocated by Blackstone at Oxford and Jefferson at William and Mary.[53] Nonetheless there continued to be debate among educators over whether legal education should be more vocational, as at the private law schools, or through a rigorous scientific method, such as that developed by Story and Langdell.[54][55] In the words of Dorsey Ellis, "Langdell viewed law as a science and the law library as the laboratory, with the cases providing the basis for learning those 'principles or doctrines' of which law, considered as a science, consists.'"[56] Nonetheless, into the year 1900 most states did not require a university education (although an apprenticeship was often required) and most practitioners had not attended any law school or college.[53]

Therefore, the modern legal education system in the U.S. is a combination of teaching law as a science and a practical skill,[57] implementing elements such as clinical training, which has become an essential part of legal education in the U.S. and in the J.D. program of study.[58]

Creation of the J.D. and major common law approaches to legal education

The J.D. originated in the United States during a movement to improve training of the professions. Prior to the origination of the J.D., law students began law school either with only a high school diploma, or less than the amount of undergraduate study required to earn a bachelor's degree. The LL.B. persisted through the middle of the twentieth century, after which a completed bachelor's degree became a requirement for virtually all students entering law school. The didactic approaches that resulted were revolutionary for university education and have slowly been implemented outside the U.S., but only recently (since about 1997) and in stages. The degrees which resulted from this new approach, such as the M.D. and the J.D., are just as different from their European counterparts as the educational approaches differ.

Legal education in the United States

Professional doctorates were developed in the United States in the 19th century, the first being the Doctor of Medicine in 1807,[59] but the professional law degree took more time. At the time the legal system in the United States was still in development as the educational institutions were developing. The status of the legal profession was at that time still ambiguous; therefore, the development of the legal degree took much time.[60] Even when some universities offered training in law, they did not offer a degree.[60] Because in the United States there were no Inns of Court, and the English academic degrees did not provide the necessary professional training, the models from England were inapplicable, and the degree program took some time to develop.[61] At first the degree took the form of a B.L. (such as at the College of William and Mary), but then Harvard, keen on importing legitimacy through the trappings of Oxford and Cambridge, implemented an LL.B. degree.[62] This was somewhat controversial at the time because it was a professional training without any of the cultural or classical studies required of a bachelor's degree in England.[63] Thus, even though the name of the English LL.B. degree was implemented at Harvard, the program in the U.S. was nonetheless intended as practical or professional training, and not, as in England, merely a bachelor of arts denoting a specialization in law.[64]

Creation of the Juris Doctor

In the mid-19th century there was much concern about the quality of legal education in the United States. Christopher Columbus Langdell, who served as dean of Harvard Law School from 1870 to 1895, dedicated his life to reforming legal education in the United States. The historian Robert Stevens wrote that "it was Langdell's goal to turn the legal profession into a university educated one—and not at the undergraduate level, but through a three-year post baccalaureate degree."[65] This graduate level study would allow the intensive legal training that Langdell had developed, known as the case method (a method of studying landmark cases) and the Socratic method (a method of examining students on the reasoning of the court in the cases studied). Therefore, a graduate high level law degree was proposed, the Juris Doctor, implementing the case and Socratic methods as its didactic approach.[66] According to professor J. H. Beale, an 1882 Harvard Law graduate, one of the main arguments for the change was uniformity. Harvard's four professional schools of Theology, Law, Medicine and Arts and Sciences were all graduate schools, and their degrees were therefore a second degree. Two of them conferred a doctorate and the other two a baccalaureate degree. The change from LL.B. to J.D. was intended to end this discriminatory practice of conferring what is normally a first degree upon persons who have already completed their primary degree.[67] The J.D. was proposed as the equivalent of the J.U.D. in Germany to reflect the advanced study required to be an effective lawyer.

The University of Chicago Law School was the first to offer it.[68] While approval was still pending at Harvard, the degree was introduced at many other law schools including at the law schools at NYU, Berkeley, Michigan and Stanford. Because of tradition, and concerns about less prominent universities implementing a J.D. program, prominent eastern law schools like those of Harvard, Yale and Columbia refused to implement the degree. Indeed, pressure from them led almost every law school (except at the University of Chicago and other law schools in Illinois) to abandon the J.D. and readopt the LL.B. as the first law degree by the 1930s.[69]

It was only after 1962 that a new push—this time begun at less-prominent law schools—successfully led to the universal adoption of the J.D. as the first law degree. Student and alumni support were key in the LL.B.-to-J.D. change, and even the most prominent schools were convinced to make the change: Columbia and Harvard in 1969, and Yale, last, in 1971.[70] Nonetheless, the LL.B. at Yale retained the didactical changes of the "practitioners courses" of 1826 and was very different from the LL.B. in common law countries other than Canada.[51]

Following standard modern academic practice, Harvard Law School refers to its Master of Laws and Doctor of Juridical Science degrees as its graduate level law degrees.[71] Similarly, Columbia refers to the LL.M. and the J.S.D. as its graduate program.[72] Yale Law School lists its LL.M., M.S.L., J.S.D., and Ph.D. as constituting graduate programs.[73] A distinction thus remains between professional and graduate law degrees in the United States.

Major common law approaches

The English legal system is the root of the systems of other common-law countries, such as the United States. Originally, common lawyers in England were trained exclusively in the Inns of Court. Even though it took nearly 150 years since common law education began with Blackstone at Oxford for university education to be part of legal training in England and Wales, the LL.B. eventually became the degree usually taken before becoming a lawyer. Nonetheless, in England and Wales the LL.B. is an undergraduate scholarly program and does not provide all of the training required before becoming licensed in that jurisdiction.[74] Both barristers and solicitors must undertake two further periods of training (the Bar Professional Training Course, BPTC and pupillage for barristers and the LPC followed by a training contract for solicitors).

The bachelor's degree originated at the University of Paris, whose system was implemented at Oxford and Cambridge.[75] The "arts" designation of the degree traditionally signifies that the student has undertaken a certain amount of study of the classics.[76] On continental Europe the bachelor's degree was phased out in the 18th or early 19th century but it continued at Oxford and Cambridge. Today Oxford offers the bachelor's degree in law (B.C.L.) as a second entry program, contrary to the practice of all other English universities. Cambridge followed the same practice until relatively recently, renaming its LL.B. degree as LL.M. in 1982.[77]

Because the English legal education is undergraduate and provides a general education (retaining some of the characteristics of the liberal arts degree advocated by Blackstone) a great number of the graduates have no intention of becoming solicitors or barristers.[78] The approach of the English degree can be seen in the required curriculum, in which there is no study of civil procedure, and relatively few courses in advanced law such as business entities, bankruptcy, evidence, family law, etc.[79] There has been a trend in the past twenty years in England to introduce more professionally relevant courses in the curriculum, particularly in "qualifying law degrees," and the law school has taken a more central role in the preparation of lawyers in England,[79] but the degree is still more scholarly or academic than those in North America. This is also the case for other common law jurisdictions such as in Australia, India and Hong Kong.

Legal education in Canada has unique variations from other commonwealth countries. Even though the legal system of Canada is mostly a transplant of the English system (Quebec excepted), the Canadian system is unique in that there are no Inns of Court, the practical training occurs in the office of a barrister and solicitor with law society membership, and, since 1889, a university degree has been a prerequisite to initiating an articling clerkship (which requirement was not implemented until much later in England).[80] The education in law schools in Canada was similar to that in the United States at the turn of the 20th century, but with a greater concentration on statutory drafting and interpretation, and elements of a liberal education.[81] The bar associations in Canada were influenced by the changes at Harvard, and were sometimes quicker to nationally implement the changes proposed in the United States, such as requiring previous college education before studying law.[81]

Modern variants and curriculum

Legal education is rooted in the history and structure of the legal system of the jurisdiction where the education is given, therefore law degrees are vastly different from country to country, making comparisons among degrees problematic.[82] This has proven true in the context of the various forms of the J.D. which have been implemented around the world.

Until about 1997 the J.D. was unique to law schools in the U.S. But with the rise in international success of law firms from the United States, and the rise in students from outside the U.S. attending U.S. law schools, attorneys with the J.D. have become increasingly common internationally.[83] Therefore, the prestige of the J.D. has also risen, and many universities outside the U.S. have started to offer the J.D., often for the express purpose of raising the prestige of their law school and graduates.[83] Such institutions usually aim to appropriate the name of the degree only, and sometimes the new J.D. program of study is the same as that of their traditional law degree, which is usually more scholarly in purpose than the professional training intended with the J.D. as created in the U.S. Various characteristics can therefore be seen among J.D. degrees as implemented in universities around the world.

Comparisons of J.D. variants[84]
Jurisdiction Scholarly content absent? Duration in years Different curriculum from LL.B. in jurisdiction? Requires more rigorous education for license?
United States Yes 3 No No
Australia No 3 No No
Canada No 3 No Yes
Hong Kong No 2–3 No Yes
Singapore No 2–3 No Yes[85]
Japan No 2–3 Yes Yes
Philippines No 4 Yes Yes

Types and characteristics

Until very recently, only law schools in the United States offered the Juris Doctor. Starting about 1997, universities in other countries began introducing the J.D. as a first professional degree in law, with differences appropriate to the legal systems of the countries in which these law schools are situated.

Standard Juris Doctor curriculum

As stated by James Hall and Christopher Langdell, two people who were involved in the creation of the J.D., the J.D. is a professional degree like the M.D., intended to prepare practitioners through a scientific approach of analysing and teaching the law through logic and adversarial analysis (such as the Casebook and Socratic methods).[86] It has existed as described in the United States for over 100 years, and can therefore be termed the standard or traditional J.D. program. The J.D. program generally requires a bachelor's degree for entry, though this requirement is sometimes waived.[87] The program of study for the degree has remained substantially unchanged since its creation, and is an intensive study of the substantive law and its professional applications (and therefore requires no thesis, although a lengthy writing project is sometimes required[88]). As a professional training, it provides sufficient training for entry into practice (no apprenticeship is necessary to sit for the bar exam). It requires at least three academic years of full-time study. Strictly defined, the United States is the only jurisdiction with this form of a J.D., but the University of Tokyo (in Japan) and the University of Melbourne (in Australia) are attempting to follow this model closely. While the J.D. is a doctoral degree, lawyers usually use the suffix of "esquire" as opposed to the prefix "Dr." Although calling a lawyer "doctor" would not be incorrect - provided the attorney has a J.D. or other doctoral degree, as opposed to a LL.B. (which is a baccalaureate not a doctorate), it is more commonly used in Europe and Asia than in the U.S. or Canada.

Replacement for the LL.B.

Canadian and Australian universities have law programs that are very similar to the J.D. programs in the United States. These include Queen's University, University of British Columbia, University of Alberta, University of Victoria, Université de Moncton, University of Calgary, University of Saskatchewan, University of Manitoba, University of Windsor, University of Ottawa, University of Western Ontario, York University[89] and University of Toronto[90] in Canada, RMIT and the University of Melbourne in Australia.[11] Therefore, when the J.D. program was introduced at these institutions, it was a mere renaming of their second-entry LL.B. program and entailed no significant substantive changes to their curricula.[91] The reason given for doing so is because of the international popularity and recognizability of the J.D., and the need to recognize the demanding graduate characteristics of the program.[92] Because these programs are in institutions heavily influenced by those in the UK, the J.D. programs often have some small scholarly element (see chart above, entitled "Comparisons of J.D. Variants"). And because the legal systems are also influenced by that of the UK, an apprenticeship is still required before being qualified to apply for a license to practice (see country sections below, under "Descriptions of the J.D. outside the U.S.").

Descriptions of the J.D. outside the U.S.

Australia

The Juris Doctor is now offered at a number of Australian Universities including: Australian National University, University of Canberra, Bond University, Macquarie University, RMIT, Monash University, University of Melbourne, University of New South Wales, University of Notre Dame Australia, RMIT University, University of Southern Queensland, University of Sydney, The University of Newcastle, University of Technology, Sydney, University of Western Australia, University of Western Sydney, and Murdoch University. Recent, Top Education in Sydney created a new Law School called Sydney City Law School which offers a law degree to those students who would be ordinarily rejected a place at traditional law schools due to significantly lower HSC scores than those who are accepted at established schools but nevertheless provide a path to those students who have a dream to be a lawyer. This prompt a discussion of bar examination in Australia in order to hold standard for those who will be appeared before the court.

University of Queensland and University of New England used to offer Juris Doctor's degree. Now it has been discontinued.

Generally universities that offer the J.D. also offer the LL.B. Recent changes in J.D. degree offering, such as the University of Melbourne, RMIT University and the University of Western Australia, law can now only be studied at the postgraduate level and the J.D. has completely replaced the LL.B. This trend became more closer to the original intention when J.D. was created in USA.

An Australian Juris Doctor consists of three years of full-time study, or the equivalent. In ordinary course arrangement, J.D. study includes two dissertations on law topic research in addition to LL.B core curriculum together with electives. Same as with LL.B graduates, graduates of the J.D. need to complete practical training (PLT) requirement before they are eligible for admission to practice.

University of Technology Sydney offers practical training for admission (PLT) which is usually offered by College of Law . At University of Technology Sydney, PLT became a part of J.D. course at University of Technology Sydney which enables direct admission upon graduation.

In summary, the Juris Doctor is a post-graduate entry degree in Australia. It is a professional degree which is similar to the Doctor of Medicine.

Canada

The J.D. degree, an undergraduate degree,[93][94][95][96] is the dominant law degree in Canada, replacing the traditional LL.B. degree prominent in Commonwealth countries.[97] The University of Toronto became the first to rename its law degree from LL.B. to J.D. in 2001. As with the second-entry LL.B., in order to be admitted to a Juris Doctor program, applicants must have completed a minimum of 2 or 3 years of study toward a bachelor's degree and scored high on the North American Law School Admission Test.[98] As a practical matter, nearly all successful applicants have completed one or more degrees before admission to a Canadian common law school.[99] All Canadian Juris Doctor programs consist of three years, and have similar content in their mandatory first year courses. The mandatory first year courses in Canadian law schools outside Quebec include public law (i.e. provincial law, constitutional law, and administrative law), property law, tort law, contract law, criminal law, and legal research and writing.[100] Beyond first year and other courses required for graduation, course selection is elective with various concentrations such as commercial and corporate law, taxation, international law, natural resources law, real estate transactions, employment law, criminal law, and Aboriginal law.[101] After graduation from an accredited law school, each province's or territory's law society requires completion of a bar admission course or examination, and a period of supervised "articling" prior to independent practice.[102]

Use of the "J.D." designation by Canadian law schools is not intended to indicate an emphasis on American law, but rather to distinguish Canadian law degrees from English law degrees, which do not require prior undergraduate study.[83] The Canadian J.D. is a degree in Canadian Law. Accordingly, United States jurisdictions other than New York and Massachusetts,[103] do not recognize Canadian Juris Doctor degrees automatically.[104][105] This is equivalent to the manner in which United States J.D. graduates are treated in Canadian jurisdictions such as Ontario.[106] To prepare graduates to practise in jurisdictions on both sides of the border, some pairs of law schools, such as the New York University (NYU) Law School and Osgoode Hall Law School,[107] the University of Ottawa Law School and the Michigan State University Law School or American University,[108] and the University of Windsor Law School and the University of Detroit Mercy Law School,[109] have developed joint American-Canadian J.D programs.

Two notable exceptions are Université de Montréal and Université de Sherbrooke, which both offer a one-year J.D. program aimed at Quebec civil law graduates in order to practice law either elsewhere in Canada or in the state of New York.[110][111]

China

J.D.'s are not generally awarded in the People's Republic of China (P.R.C.) instead，a J.M. (Juris Magister) is awarded as the counterpart of JD in the United States, the professional degree in law in China.[112] The primary law degree in the P.R.C. is the bachelor of law. In the fall of 2008 the Shenzhen campus of Peking University started the School of Transnational Law, which offers a U.S.-style education and awards both a Chinese master's degree and, by special authorization of the government, a J.D.[113]

Hong Kong

The J.D. degree is currently offered at The Chinese University of Hong Kong,[114]The University of Hong Kong,[115] and City University of Hong Kong.The degree is known as the 法律博士 in Chinese, and in Cantonese it is pronounced as Faat Leot Bok Si.[116] The J.D. in Hong Kong is almost identical to the LL.B. and is reserved for graduates of non-law disciplines, but the J.D. is considered to be a graduate-level degree and requires a thesis or dissertation.[117] Like the LL.B. there is much scholarly content in the required coursework. Although the universities offering the degree claim that the J.D. is a two-year program, completing the degree in two years would require study during the summer term.[118] There seems to be much confusion of the role or status of the J.D. in Hong Kong, as the City University website states that their J.D. is not a research doctorate.[119] Neither the LL.B. nor the J.D. provides the education sufficient for a license to practice, as graduates of both are also required to undertake the PCLL course and a solicitor traineeship or a barrister pupillage.[120]

India

At this time the Juris Doctor does not exist in India; no official entity in India authorizes the award of such a degree. A new venture Jindal Global Law School sought to start an academic program with a recognized Juris Doctor degree,[121] and the plan is well on track according to sources.

Italy

No university in Italy awards a Juris Doctor degree, nor are there any plans to implement the degree. However, the law degree in Italy is longer (5 years of coursework) than a standard undergraduate program,[122] and lawyers in Italy often use the title of "doctor"[123] (Italian law authorizes all university graduates, including undergraduates, to use the title of doctor).[124]

Japan

In Japan the J.D. is known as Homu Hakushi (法務博士).[125] The program generally lasts three years. Two year J.D. programs for applicants with legal knowledge (mainly undergraduate level law degree holders) are also offered .This curriculum is professionally oriented,[126] but does not provide the education sufficient for a license to practice as an attorney in Japan, as all candidates for a license must have 12 month practical training by the Legal Training and Research Institute after passing the bar examination.[127]

Mexico

To become a licensed lawyer, a person must hold the Licenciado en Derecho degree obtainable by four to five years of academic study and final examination. After these undergraduate studies it is possible to obtain a Maestria degree, equivalent to a master's degree. This degree requires two to three years of academic studies. Finally, one can study for an additional three years to obtain the Doctor en Derecho degree. It is not termed "J.D." but it essentially comparable for the purposes of the Mexican legal system. Since most universities and law schools must have approval from the ministry of education (Secretaría de Educación Pública) through the general office of professions (Direccion General de Profesiones) all of the academic programs are similar throughout the country in public and private law schools.

Philippines

In the Philippines, the J.D. exists alongside the more common LL.B. Like the standard LL.B, it requires four years of study, is considered a graduate degree and requires prior undergraduate study as a prerequisite for admission, and covers the core subjects required for the bar examinations. However, the J.D. requires students to finish the core bar subjects in just 2½ years; take elective courses (such as legal theory, philosophy, and sometimes even theology); undergo an apprenticeship; and write and defend a thesis.[128]

The degree was first conferred in the Philippines by the Ateneo de Manila Law School, which first developed the model program later adopted by most schools now offering the J.D.. After the Ateneo, schools such as the University of Batangas College of Law and the De La Salle Lipa College of Law[129] began offering the J.D., with schools such as the Far Eastern University Institute of Law offering with De La Salle University's Ramon V. Del Rosario College of Business for the country's first J.D. - MBA program.[130] In 2008, the University of the Philippines College of Law began conferring the J.D. on its graduates, the school choosing rename its LL.B. program into a J.D. because to accurately reflect the nature of education the university provides as "nomenclature does not accurately reflect the fact that the LL.B. is a professional as well as a post baccalaureate degree."[131] In 2009, the Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila (PLM) and the Silliman University College of Law also shifted their respective LL.B Programs to Juris Doctor -applying the change to incoming freshmen students for School Year 2009–2010.[132][133] The newly established De La Salle University College of Law is likewise offerimg the J.D. , although it will offer the program using a trimestral calendar, unlike the model curriculum that uses a semestral calendar.In 2014, New Era University has renamed their Bachelor of Laws program to the Juris Doctor.

Singapore

The degree of Doctor of Jurisprudence (J.D.) is offered at the Singapore Management University (SMU), and it is treated as a qualifying law degree for the purposes of admission to the legal profession in Singapore.[134] A graduate of this programme is a "qualified person" under Singapore's legislation governing entry to the legal profession, and is eligible for admission to the Singapore Bar.[135]

However, like its counterpart the Bachelor of Laws (LL.B.), whether obtained from the National University of Singapore, Singapore Management University or recognised overseas universities ("approved universities"),[136] the SMU J.D. is not in itself sufficient for entry into the Singapore legal profession. Qualified persons are still required to fulfill other criteria for admission to the Singapore Bar, most importantly being the completion of Part B of the Singapore Bar Examinations, and completion of the Practice Training Contract.[137]

In academia

As a professional doctorate, the Juris Doctor is the degree that prepares the recipient to enter the law profession (as do the M.D. in the medical profession and the D.D.S in the dental profession). While the J.D. is the sole degree necessary to become a professor of law or to obtain a license to practice law, it (like the M.D. or D.D.S.) is not a "research degree".[138] Research degrees in the study of law include the Master of Laws (LL.M.), which ordinarily requires the J.D. as a prerequisite,[139] and the Doctor of Juridical Science (S.J.D./J.S.D.), which ordinarily requires the LL.M. as a prerequisite.[139] However, the American Bar Association has issued a Council Statement,[140] advising law schools that the J.D. should be considered equivalent to the Ph.D. for educational employment purposes. Accordingly, while most law professors are required to conduct original writing and research in order to be awarded tenure, most only have a J.D.

The United States Department of Education and the National Science Foundation do not include the J.D. or other professional doctorates among the degrees that are equivalent to research doctorates.[141] Among legal degrees, they accord this status only to the Doctor of Juridical Science degree.[141] In Europe, the European Research Council follows a similar policy.[142]

See also

Notes and references

  1. ↑ Association of American Universities Data Exchange. "Glossary of Terms for Graduate Education". Retrieved 2010-09-01.
  2. ↑ National Science Foundation (2006). "Time to Degree of U.S. Research Doctorate Recipients" (PDF). InfoBrief, Science Resource Statistics. NSF. 06-312: 7. Under "Data notes" this article mentions that the J.D. is a professional doctorate.
  3. ↑ San Diego County Bar Association (1969). "Ethics Opinion 1969-5". Retrieved 2008-05-26.. Under "other references" differences between academic and professional doctorates, and contains a statement that the J.D. is a professional doctorate
  4. ↑ University of Utah (2006). "University of Utah – The Graduate School – Graduate Handbook". Retrieved 2008-05-28.
  5. ↑ German Federal Ministry of Education. "U.S. Higher Education / Evaluation of the Almanac Chronicle of Higher Education" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on April 13, 2008. Retrieved 2008-05-26. Report by the German Federal Ministry of Education analysing the Chronicle of Higher Education from the U.S. and stating that the J.D. is a professional doctorate.
  6. ↑ Encyclopædia Britannica 3. 2002. p. 962:1a.
  7. ↑ U.S. Department of Education (2008). "USNEI-Structure of U.S. Education - Graduate/Post Education Levels". Archived from the original on 2007-12-14. Retrieved 2008-05-25.
  8. ↑ College Blue Book (1999). Degrees Offered by College and Subject. New York: MacMillan. p. 817.
  9. ↑ University of California, Berkeley. "General Catalog – Graduate Education – Graduate Degrees and Certificates". Retrieved 2008-05-25.
  10. ↑ University of Southern California (1995). "Undergraduate and Graduate Degree Programs". Archived from the original on 2008-04-22. Retrieved 2008-05-25.
  11. 1 2 University of Melbourne. "About Use - The Melbourne JD". Retrieved 2008-05-26.
  12. ↑ "North Carolina Board of Law Examiners -NCBLE 919-848-4229". Retrieved 28 August 2015.
  13. ↑ "VBBE - Welcome". Retrieved 28 August 2015.
  14. ↑ http://admissions.calbar.ca.gov/Requirements.aspx
  15. ↑ "BOLE- OFFICIAL PAGE NEW YORK STATE BAR EXAMINATION". Retrieved 28 August 2015.
  16. ↑ Stevens, R. (1971). "Two Cheers For 1870: The American Law School", in Law in American History, eds. Donald Fleming and Bernard Bailyn. Boston: Little, Brown & Co., 1971, p. 427.
  17. ↑ University of Washington School of Law. "JD Program & Policies". Retrieved 2008-09-02.
  18. ↑ Russo, Eugene (2004). "The Changing Length of PhDs". Nature 431 (7006): 382–383. doi:10.1038/nj7006-382a. PMID 15372047. Retrieved 2008-09-02.
  19. ↑ "JD". Oxford Dictionaries. April 2010. Oxford Dictionaries. April 2010. Oxford University Press. 6 December 2010 <http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/view/entry/m_en_us1259689>
  20. ↑ "DJUR - Doctor of Jurisprudence - AcronymFinder". Retrieved 28 August 2015.
  21. ↑ Verger, J. (1999). "Lexikon des Mittelalters" 5. Stuttgart: J.B. Metzler. |contribution= ignored (help)
  22. ↑ Verger, J. (1999). "Lexikon des Mittelalters" 3. Stuttgart: J.B. Metzler. |contribution= ignored (help)
  23. ↑ de Ridder-Symoens, Hilde: A History of the University in Europe: Volume 1, Universities in the Middle Ages, Cambridge University Press, 1992, ISBN 0-521-36105-2
  24. ↑ Herbermann, et al. (1915). Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Encyclopedia Press. Accessed May 26, 2008.
  25. ↑ García y García, A. (1992). "The Faculties of Law," A History of the University in Europe, London: Cambridge University Press. Accessed May 26, 2008.
  26. ↑ Stein (1981), 434, 435.
  27. ↑ Stein (1981), 434, 436.
  28. 1 2 3 Stein (1981), 436.
  29. ↑ Stein, R. (1981). The Path of Legal Education from Edward to Langdell: A History of Insular Reaction, Pace University School of Law Faculty Publications, 1981, 57 Chi.-Kent L. Rev. 429, p. 430.
  30. ↑ Stein (1981), 431.
  31. ↑ Stein (1981), 432.
  32. ↑ Stein (1981), 433.
  33. ↑ Stein (1981), 434.
  34. 1 2 Stein (1981), 435.
  35. ↑ Moline, Brian J., Early American Legal Education, 42 Washburn Law Journal 775, 793 (2003).
  36. ↑ Moline (2003), 775.
  37. ↑ Stein (1981), 429.
  38. ↑ Stein (1981), 438.
  39. 1 2 Stein (1981), 439.
  40. ↑ Moline (2003), 781.
  41. 1 2 3 Moline (2003), 782.
  42. ↑ Moline (2003), 782 and 783.
  43. ↑ Sonsteng, J. (2007). "A Legal Education Renaissance: A Practical Approach for the Twenty-First Century" . William Mitchell Law Review, Vol. 34, No. 1, Revised April 2, 2008. Accessed May 26, 2008. page 13.
  44. ↑ Stein (1981).
  45. ↑ Stein (1981), 442.
  46. ↑ Kirkwood, M. and Owens, W. A Brief History of the Stanford Law School, 1893–1946, Stanford University School of Law. Accessed May 26, 2008.
  47. ↑ Moline (2003), 794.
  48. ↑ Moline (2003), 795.
  49. ↑ Kirkwood, 19.
  50. 1 2 Sonsteng (2007), 15.
  51. 1 2 Moline (2003), 798.
  52. ↑ Moline (2003), 800.
  53. 1 2 Moline (2003), 801.
  54. ↑ Stein (1981), 445.
  55. ↑ For detailed discussions of the development of Langdell's method, see LaPiana, W. (1994). Logic and Experience: The Origin of Modern American Legal Education, New York: Oxford University Press; and Stein, R. (1981). The Path of Legal Education from Edward to Langdell: A History of Insular Reaction, Pace University School of Law Faculty Publications, 1981, 57 Chi.-Kent L. Rev. 429, pp. 449–450.
  56. ↑ Ellis, D. (2001). Legal Education: A Perspective on the Last 130 Years of American Legal Training, 6 Wash. U.J.L. & Pol'y 157, p. 166.
  57. ↑ Moline (2003), 802.
  58. ↑ Sonsteng (2007), 19.
  59. ↑ Reed (1921), 162.
  60. 1 2 Reed (1921), 165.
  61. ↑ Reed (1921), 164.
  62. ↑ Reed (1921), 167.
  63. ↑ Reed (1921), 161; and Reed, A. (1928). Present-Day Law Schools in the United States and Canada, Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, Bulletin 21, Boston: Merrymount Press, p. 78
  64. ↑ Reed (1928), 74; and Reed (1921), 169.
  65. ↑ Stevens, R. (1971). "Two Cheers For 1870: The American Law School", in Law in American History, eds. Donald Fleming and Bernard Bailyn. Boston: Little, Brown & Co., 1971, p. 427.
  66. ↑ Harno, A. (2004) Legal Education in the United States, New Jersey: Lawbook Exchange, page 50.
  67. ↑ William Roscoe Thayer; William Richards Castle; Mark Antony De Wolfe Howe; Arthur Stanwood Pier, Bernard Augustine De Voto, Theodore Morrison (1902). "Shall the degree be J. D. instead of LL. B.". The Harvard graduates' magazine. Harvard Graduates' Magazine Association. pp. 555–556. Retrieved 24 August 2011. Cite uses deprecated parameter |coauthors= (help)
  68. ↑ Herbermann, 112–117.
  69. ↑ David Perry, "How Did Lawyers Become ’Doctors’?," New York State Bar Journal, June 2012, 20 at p. 21, available at [www.heinonline.org|title=Heinonline] (login required).
  70. ↑ David Perry, "How Did Lawyers Become ’Doctors’?," New York State Bar Journal, June 2012, 20 at pp. 22-23, available at www.heinonline.org title=Heinonline (login required); see also "What is the difference between the LL.B. degree and the J.D.degree?". asklib.law.harvard.edu. Retrieved 26 August 2012.; Schoenfeld, M. (1963). "J.D. or LL.B as the Basic Law Degree," Cleveland-Marshall Law Review, Vol. 4, pp. 573–579, quoted in Joanna Lombard, LL.B. to J.D. and the Professional Degree in Architecture, Proceedings of the 85th ACSA Annual Meeting, Architecture: Material and Imagined and Technology Conference, 1997. pp. 585–591.
  71. ↑ Harvard Law School. "Graduate Program". Retrieved 28 August 2015.
  72. ↑ "Graduate Legal Studies". Columbia Law School. Retrieved 28 August 2015.
  73. ↑ https://www.law.yale.edu/study-law-yale/degree-programs/graduate-programs
  74. ↑ John H. Langbein, "Scholarly and Professional Objectives in Legal Education: American Trends and English Comparisons," Pressing Problems in the Law, Volume 2: What are Law Schools For?, Oxford University Press, 1996.
  75. ↑ Reed, (1921), 160
  76. ↑ Reed (1921), 161
  77. ↑ "LLM". Retrieved 28 August 2015.
  78. ↑ Langbein, J. (1996). "Scholarly and Professional Objectives in Legal Education: American Trends and English Comparisons," Pressing Problems in the Law, Volume 2: What are Law Schools For?, Oxford University Press.
  79. 1 2 Langbein (1996).
  80. ↑ Reed (1921), 27.
  81. 1 2 Reed (1928), 390.
  82. ↑ See, Langbein (1996).
  83. 1 2 3 University of British Columbia Board of Governors approves request for LL.B to be renamed J.D. .
  84. ↑ Verification of the data in this table can be found in the subsequent paragraphs of this section.
  85. ↑ Singapore Management University's (SMU) Juris Doctor degree, Ministry of Law (Singapore). Retrieved 14 February 2014.
  86. ↑ Hall, J. (1907). American Law School Degrees, Michigan Law Review, Vol. 6, No. 2, pp. 112–117.
  87. ↑ ABA Standard 502, http://www.americanbar.org/content/dam/aba/publications/misc/legal_education/Standards/2015_2016_chapter_5.authcheckdam.pdf ; See, e.g. http://lawschool.tiu.edu/how-to-apply/requirements/ and http://www.cooley.edu/prospective/bachelors.html and http://www.lawdegree.com/content/admission/faq.asp
  88. ↑ For example, see J.D. Substantial Writing Requirement, NYU School of Law. Accessed July 23, 2009.
  89. ↑ Belford, T. (2009). "Why Change to a J.D. Degree?
  90. ↑ University of Toronto J.D. admissions FAQ .
  91. ↑ Belford, T. (2009). "Why Change to a J.D. Degree? Globe Campus. Accessed August 24, 2009.
  92. ↑ idem
  93. ↑ "Law". Retrieved 28 August 2015.
  94. ↑ Windsor Law
  95. ↑ Alberta Law
  96. ↑ "UVic Calendar: Law Courses". Retrieved 28 August 2015.
  97. ↑ "Dean Patrick Monahan on the Growing Number of Canadian Law Schools Switching from the LLB to JD Degree Designation". Osgoode Law School. May 2012. Archived from the original on April 1, 2013.
  98. ↑ Archived July 15, 2009, at the Wayback Machine.
  99. ↑ Archived December 10, 2007, at the Wayback Machine.
  100. ↑ "Osgoode Hall Law School - JD Program - Degree Requirements - First Year Courses". Osgoode.yorku.ca. Retrieved 2011-08-25.
  101. ↑ Canadian law school concentrations, certificates and joint-degree programs .
  102. ↑ Law Law Society of Upper Canada (Ontario) PRP .
  103. ↑ "University of Toronto - Faculty of Law: Prospective Students". Law.utoronto.ca. Retrieved 2011-08-25.
  104. ↑ NYU Law. Law.nyu.edu. Retrieved on 2013-07-15.
  105. ↑ "Foreign Legal Education". Nybarexam.org. 2011-04-27. Retrieved 2011-08-25.
  106. ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20100331053539/http://www.citizenship.gov.on.ca:80/english/working/career/professions/lawyers.shtm. Archived from the original on March 31, 2010. Retrieved September 11, 2009. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  107. ↑ NYU/Osgoode Joint LL.B/J.D. .
  108. ↑ Michigan State University School of Law and the University of Ottawa Joint J.D. - LL.B. Degree Program
  109. ↑ University of Windsor / University of Detroit. J.D./LL.B. Program Accessed June 1, 2008.
  110. ↑ University of Montreal J.D. (Programme No 2-328-1-1) Accessed December 31, 2013.
  111. ↑ Université de Sherbrooke - Diplôme de 2e cycle en common law et droit transnational (Juris Doctor) Assessed July 23, 2014.
  112. ↑ P.R.C. National People's Congress. Regulations of the People's Republic of China on Academic Degrees(2004). Accessed September 12, 2008.
  113. ↑ http://www.stl.szpku.edu.cn/upFile/20106/20106101133125.pdf
  114. ↑ http://www.law.cuhk.edu.hk/programmes/juris-doctor.php
  115. ↑ The University of Hong Kong. Juris Doctor (JD) Overview. Accessed December 15, 2008.
  116. ↑ The Chinese University of Hong Kong School of Law. The Juris Doctor (JD) Programme. Accessed June 29, 2008. City University of Hong Kong. Programmes and Courses: Juris Doctor. Accessed June 29, 2008.
  117. ↑ The University of Hong Kong. Juris Doctor (JD) Overview. Accessed December 15, 2008. The Chinese University of Hong Kong. JD Programme Structure. Accessed June 29, 2008. City University of Hong Kong. Academic Programmes: Juris Doctor. Accessed June 29, 2008.
  118. ↑ The University of Hong Kong. Juris Doctor (JD) Overview. Accessed December 15, 2008. The Chinese University of Hong Kong. The Juris Doctor (JD) Programme: Courses and Recommended Sequences. Accessed June 29, 2008. City University of Hong Kong. Academic Programmes: Juris Doctorate. Accessed June 29, 2008. (The City University website says at the top of the page that it is a two-year program, then later on the same page, and on other pages in the site, says that "normally, full-time J.D. students can complete the programme in 3 years.")
  119. ↑ City University of Hong Kong. Programmes and Courses. Accessed April 7, 2008.
  120. ↑ Hong Kong Bar Association. General Admission. Accessed June 1, 2008.
  121. ↑ About O.P. Jindal Global University. O.P. Jindal Global University. Accessed February 16, 2009.
  122. ↑ The Laurea Magistrale in Giurisprudenza is a second level (master's) degree, which does not require a previous bachelor's degree for the admission
  123. ↑ Studio Misuraca, Franceschin and Associates. Accessed February 16, 2009.
  124. ↑ Regio Decreto 4 giugno 1938, n.1269, art. 48 (in Italian). Accessed February 16, 2009.
  125. ↑ Justice System Reform Council (2001). For a Justice System to Support Japan in the 21st Century.
  126. ↑ Yokohama National University Law School.Program Introduction and Dean's Message. Accessed April 7, 2008.
  127. ↑ Foote, D. (2005). Justice System Reform in Japan. Annual meeting of the Research of Sociology of Law, Paris. European Network on Law and Society.
  128. ↑ Ateneo de Manila Law School. Philippine Leadership Crisis and the J.D. Program. Accessed April 7, 2008.
  129. ↑
  130. ↑ Curriculum models (2006). Philippine Association of Law Schools.
  131. ↑ University of Philippines College of Law. News. April 25, 2008.
  132. ↑ The Weekly Sillimanian Vol. LXXXII No.4: SU Law adopts Juris Doctor Program. By: Princess Dianne Kris S. Decierdo. Published July 15, 2009. Archived copies can be viewed and verified at the Sillimaniana Section of the Silliman University Main Library.
  133. ↑ PLM Curricula and Degree Programs
  134. ↑ http://www.mlaw.gov.sg/practising-as-a-lawyer/unis/is-the-juris-doctor-degree-offered-by-the-singapore-management-university-smu-an-approved-degree.html Singapore Management University's (SMU) Juris Doctor degree, Ministry of Law (Singapore), Retrieved 14 February 2014.
  135. ↑ Rule 5A, Legal Profession (Qualified Persons) Rules (Cap. 161, s.2(2)) , Ministry of Law (Singapore), Retrieved 14 February 2014.
  136. ↑ List of approved universities, Ministry of Law (Singapore), Retrieved 14 February 2014.
  137. ↑ What admission requirements must I fulfill?, Ministry of Law (Singapore), Retrieved 14 February 2014.
  138. ↑ Kenneth Kaoma Mwenda, Gerry Nkombo Muuka (eds.), "The Challenge of Change in Africa's Higher Education in the 21st Century", Cambria Press (2009) ; see esp. Mwenda's comments on pp. 87–88, in the section labeled "The Academic Rank of a JD" and the quoted material from Pappas immediately preceding it.
  139. 1 2 LL.M. Program Eligibility, Yale Law School
  140. ↑ Council Statements are intended to provide law schools with guidance on a variety of issues and are advisory only. Council Statements are not and should not be considered the equivalent of Standards, Interpretations, and Rules for the Approval of Law Schools.
  141. 1 2 http://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ous/international/usnei/us/doctorate.doc
  142. ↑ "PhD and Equivalent Doctoral Degrees: The ERC Policy" (PDF). Retrieved 2013-05-25.

External links

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