The LL.M.

Program
A year at Columbia Law School.
An education for a lifetime.
The Columbia LL.M. Program
offers unlimited opportunities
for intellectual, personal, and
professional growth.

Take the next step in advancing your career: Learn

from innovative faculty scholars who actively respond to
the most pressing challenges of our time. Deepen your
current areas of expertise, discover new interests, and
broaden your perspectives. Connect with fellow students,
accomplished professionals who have practiced in the
public and private sectors around the world. Become a
New Yorker and take pride in the city that continues to be
a capital of law, culture, media, advocacy, and finance.

Enjoy all the resources of a prestigious, global university

focused on creating the best possible student experience
under any circumstances. And join a global alumni net-
work of leaders in law, business, diplomacy, government,
human rights, academia, and technology.

Columbia Law School: Your Future

Your LL.M.,
Your Way
Areas of Study
Constitutional Law, Regulation, and Public Policy
Corporate, Business, and Transaction Law
Criminal Justice
Data Analytics
Environment and Energy
Family, Gender, and Sexuality
Each year, Columbia Law School welcomes Intellectual Property and Technology

a cohort of intellectually curious LL.M. students International and Comparative Law

with a broad range of views, backgrounds, Law of the Workplace

Leadership
and accomplishments. Legal History
As an LL.M. candidate, you will join nearly 300 classmates from more than 50 countries Litigation and Dispute Resolution
who have worked in practice areas that encompass all aspects of the legal profession. National Security and Privacy
Together, your experiences illuminate conversations inside and outside the classroom.
Social Justice and Human Rights
The Columbia LL.M. Program is a general degree; no two students’ programs are
alike. You can grow your knowledge of your current field, transition to a new practice
area entirely, or explore additional areas of study that interest you in and out of
the classroom.

Columbia is a storied but nimble institution. Like the city we call home, the univer-
sity is quick to evolve to meet the challenges of our changing world. In this global
university, you will discover new ways of learning, whether in the classroom or virtually.
In addition to rigorous lecture courses taught using the Socratic method, we offer
thought-provoking seminars that provide an intensive focus on specialized areas and
close interaction with faculty; clinics and externships that enable you to study lawyer-
ing in context by providing legal services to clients; and workshops and simulation
courses that tackle real-world legal challenges in small group settings. All of these
help you develop your critical thinking, advocacy, and writing skills.
Centers and programs, including Center for the Columbia Center National Security
Advancement of on Sustainable Law Program
Center for Chinese Center for Public Integrity Investment
Legal Studies International Richard Paul Richman
Commercial & Columbia Center Human Rights Institute Center for Business, Law,
Center for Gender Investment Arbitration for Contemporary and Public Policy
and Sexuality Law Critical Thought Kernochan Center for
Law, Media and the Arts Sabin Center for Climate
Change Law
Your Faculty,
Your Mentors

Our faculty are leading scholars and experts

in foundational subjects and emerging fields,
from constitutional law to cybersecurity.
Many have held leadership positions in governments, NGOs, and international
law firms, and their advice is regularly sought by lawyers and policy-
makers around the world. They integrate that expertise into their teaching
and interactions with students. They are devoted educators and respond to
challenges—such as the need to move courses online during the pandemic—
by innovating new ways to provide exceptional learning experiences. Your
education will be enriched through your consistent engagement with your
professors, whether meeting with them in person or virtually during office
hours, serving as a research assistant, writing a scholarly paper under their
supervision, or simply enjoying a coffee together.

Columbia University is home to world-renowned graduate schools, and as

an LL.M. student, you also may take courses at those divisions, making your
degree truly interdisciplinary. An environmental lawyer can take a course
on global energy policy at the School of International and Public Affairs,
for example, while a corporate lawyer can take a course on managerial
negotiations at the business school.

Members of the Graduate Legal Studies team serve as your advisers during
your LL.M. year and continue to counsel you after graduation. With decades
of combined experience working with LL.M.s, we will help you tailor a program
of study to your interests and career background and help you navigate the
student experience. We look forward to advising you and watching your legal
career flourish.
“I find it fascinating to introduce a new
legal system with a different philosophy
and to be part of the LL.M. students’
learning process. When I travel the world
and see my former students making a
major impact in their home countries,
I feel very proud.”
ZOHAR GOSHEN
JEROME L. GREENE PROFESSOR OF TRANSACTIONAL LAW
DIRECTOR OF THE CENTER FOR ISRAELI LEGAL STUDIES
Your Education,
Your Experience

Real-world learning: From our extensive array

of clinics and externships to new offerings in
simulations, labs, and workshops, experiential
learning is fully integrated into the curriculum.

8
Clinics
Community Advocacy Lab
Entrepreneurship and Community
Development
Environmental Law
Human Rights
Immigrants’ Rights
Lawyering in the Digital Age
Mediation
Sexuality and Gender Law
30
Externships, including
Copyright Dispute Resolution
Immigration Defense
Knight First Amendment Institute
Law, Power, and Social Change
Lawyering for Social Justice
(Pro Bono Scholars Program)
Neighborhood Defender Services of Harlem
Community Defense
United Nations
“Before the LL.M., I worked at
a financial law firm specializing
in private equity, doing deals every
day. I gained more knowledge of
securities regulation here in 10
months than I did in six years at
the firm.”
AMANDA SOTTO FONTES ’18 LL.M., MEXICO,
CHIEF LEGAL OFFICER AND CO-FOUNDER,
PLAY BUSINESS
Your Classmates,
Your Community
85+
Student organizations, including
American Constitution Society
Black Law Students Association
Columbia Antitrust Law and Economics Association
Columbia Business and Law Association

Committed. Entrepreneurial. Accomplished. Columbia International Arbitration Association

Columbia Law and Entrepreneurship Society
Columbia LL.M. students demonstrate these Columbia Law School Soccer Club
and so many other traits of successful lawyers/ Columbia Law Women’s Association
professionals full of potential, in the classroom Columbia Society of International Law

and beyond. Entertainment, Arts, and Sports Law Society

Latinx Law Students Association
Being a Columbia Law School student means being fully engaged, in every
Legal Technology Association
possible way.
National Security Law Society
You and your classmates will find ample learning opportunities outside the
OutLaws (LGBTQ+ students)
classroom, whether you join any of our more than 85 student organizations,
attend online and in person lectures hosted by our research centers, work Society for Immigrant and Refugee Rights
on a student-run journal, or form study groups with your peers. Every day, South Asian Law Students Association
Columbia University hosts dozens of events—from panel discussions on the Student Senate
legal implications of advances in information technology to forums featuring
world leaders in government and business—that reflect its central role in
domestic and global conversations.

One feature of the LL.M. Program is that most of our students choose to live
either in Columbia University housing or in the neighborhood surrounding
campus, enhancing both the social and the academic vitality of the LL.M. year.
Living and studying with J.D.s helps foster a strong sense of community. Your
classmates will become not only your friends and extended family but also your
lifetime professional network.
 “My LL.M. year was one of the most defining
moments in my life, both career-wise and
also through the development of long-lasting
relationships. The exposure to various
course offerings has, to a larger extent,
defined the trajectory of my life as a human
rights lawyer.”
VICTORIA MODONG TABAN ‘20 LL.M., SOUTH SUDAN
HUMAN RIGHTS LAWYER

13
The American Review of Columbia Journal of Columbia Journal of
International Arbitration Asian Law Gender and Law

Columbia Business Columbia Journal of Columbia Journal of Law

Law Review Environmental Law and the Arts
student-run law journals in which
LL.M. students participate, including Columbia Human Rights Columbia Journal of Columbia Science and
Law Review European Law Technology Law Review
Your Campus,
Your City

Columbia Law School’s location

in New York City offers
LL.M. students unparalleled
advantages for exploration.
New York is a resilient city. It perseveres and moves
forward boldly—and so does Columbia. Situated in
Manhattan’s historic Morningside Heights neighbor-
hood, Columbia’s iconic campus reflects the university’s
rich Ivy League tradition and spirit of the place it calls
home. Nestled between Morningside and Riverside
parks and intersected by the energy of Broadway,
the campus is at once an intellectual hub and a
tranquil home.

By studying in a truly global metropolis, you will find the

entire city is your classroom. A short walk or subway ride
will transport you from Columbia’s lecture halls to the
halls of the United Nations, the headquarters of Fortune
500 companies, the New York Stock Exchange, or the
Metropolitan Museum of Art. Whether you are studying
private equity, arbitration, immigration, intellectual
property, or human rights, you will have the advantage
of seeing legal issues unfold in real time.
“My experience at Columbia Law School
allowed me to learn and grow beyond my
imagination. I was even able to serve
my country through my work with the
Pakistan Mission to the United Nations
and the Columbia Center on Sustainable
Investment. And then, serving on the
Student Senate in the midst of a pandemic
was definitely an unforgettable challenge!”
FAKHRUDDIN ALI VALIKA ‘20 LL.M., PAKISTAN
INTERNATIONAL DISPUTES LAWYER
Your Career,
Your Impact

Since its founding in 1858, Columbia Law School

has trained future leaders in law. They have “My time at Columbia
launched international law firms, advocated exposed me to a network
for civil and human rights, argued precedent-
of people—especially
setting cases, led multinational businesses,
and shaped world affairs. as one of the founding
board members of the
Columbia Law School
From Silicon Valley to São Paulo, Nairobi to New Delhi, and Brussels to Beijing,
Columbia Law School graduates occupy influential roles in law, finance, academia,
human rights, technology, international affairs, and the judiciary. As a graduate of
the Columbia LL.M. Program, you will become part of this distinguished tradition.
Legal Technology
Whether you are seeking to further your current practice, switch fields, or something Association—without
in between, our expert team of advisers in the Office of Career Services and
Professional Development (private sector employment), Social Justice Initiatives
which I would not be
(public sector employment), and Careers in Law Teaching Program (careers in where I am today.”
academia) will guide you through individualized counseling, networking events,
TOM DREYFUS ’18 LL.M., AUSTRALIA
career fairs, résumé reviews, and mock interviews. In addition, LL.M. students are
CEO AND CO-FOUNDER, JOSEF
eligible for postgraduate fellowships offered through Columbia to advance their
careers in the domestic and international public interest domains.
YOUR NETWORK:
MORE THAN

27,000
ALUMNI IN
MORE THAN

119
COUNTRIES
Contact Us

We invite you to learn more

about Columbia Law School.
A member of our team will gladly answer your questions
and provide more insight into the Law School experience,
including information about classes, the campus, and
other student resources. Visit our website for our current
office hours and comprehensive information about
the program.

We also encourage you to explore our blog, which

contains firsthand accounts of life as an LL.M. student.
Check the LL.M. Admissions Events section of our
website to find upcoming webinars and admissions fairs.

Office of Graduate Legal Studies

Columbia Law School
1125 Amsterdam Avenue, 6th Floor
New York, NY 10025
Email: gls@law.columbia.edu
law.columbia.edu/llm
law.columbia.edu/llmblog

“The international
student body makes
Columbia a thrilling and
energizing environment
to teach. I love how
the students bring their
diverse experiences to
the classroom and enrich
the conversations with
their unique and varied
perspectives every day.”
ANU BRADFORD
HENRY L. MOSES PROFESSOR OF LAW AND
INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATION
The Application
Process
Columbia Law School seeks candidates who are intellectually ambitious,
thoughtful, and highly motivated, as demonstrated by their prior academic
records and letters of recommendation. In reviewing these materials, we
endeavor to gauge how candidates have chosen to commit their time, energies,
and talents; have made use of their opportunities; and may contribute those
attributes to the Law School community. Given the high level of discourse
required at Columbia, we also give strong preference to candidates who have
at least one year of full-time work experience after earning their first law degree.
Application Deadline: December 18
Admission decisions for the 2021–2022 LL.M. Program will be sent by March 15,
2021. Admission decisions are sent by email from gls@law.columbia.edu. Offers
of admission are also sent in writing, by courier.
If you apply to both the general LL.M. Program and the Executive LL.M. in
Global Business Law, you may receive one admission decision before the other,
as admission decisions are made independently by separate offices. If you are
admitted to both, you must select one; enrollment in both degree programs
is not possible. Representatives of both the LL.M. Program and the Executive
LL.M. in Global Business Law Program will be happy to speak with you to discuss
your options throughout the application process.
All applicants must apply online through the Law School Admission Council.
Complete instructions are available on both the LSAC website and the Columbia
Law School Graduate Legal Studies website.
Financial Assistance
Columbia Law School offers one of the largest financial aid programs for
LL.M. students in the United States. Our financial assistance is in the form of
scholarships and institutional loans. See our website section entitled Fellowships,
Scholarships, and Financing for more detailed information.
Your Future. Your Columbia LL.M.
“Columbia Law School has
a distinguished tradition of
leadership in areas ranging
from international trade and
corporate law to human rights
and climate change law. Our
faculty and graduates shape
law and policy at the highest
levels, in the public and private
sectors, in the United States
and around the world.”
GILLIAN LESTER
DEAN AND THE LUCY G. MOSES PROFESSOR OF LAW