IIT Chicago-Kent establishes LL.M. program in trial advocacy for international students and practitioners

IT Chicago-Kent College of Law has established a new LL.M. program designed to provide training in the adversarial system for both practicing international attorneys and foreign law students.* The program, which is scheduled to begin in 2014, is the first program of its kind developed exclusively for foreign lawyers.

Students in the new program must complete 24 credits to earn the LL.M. in Trial Advocacy for International Students. Courses include Introduction to the American Legal System, Trial Advocacy, Litigation Ethics and Professionalism, Evidence and the Art of Advocacy, and Litigation Technology. In addition to the course work, students will complete an externship in litigation.

"Many countries—most notably those in Latin America and Asia—are making the transition from inquisitorial systems to adversarial systems," said Patricia Sudendorf, director of the Trial Advocacy for International Students Program, who will oversee the new program. "IIT Chicago-Kent is in a unique position to teach foreign legal professionals how to practice effectively in adversarial legal systems that rely on oral advocacy skills."

For more than 30 years, IIT Chicago-Kent's trial advocacy program has developed a solid reputation for excellence. In addition to its strong curricular foundation, the law school's teams have won numerous championships and individual student honors in regional and national competitions. In 2008, IIT Chicago-Kent joined an elite group of only four law schools to have won three prestigious National Trial Competition championships. U.S. News & World Report this year ranked Chicago-Kent's trial advocacy program among the top five in the country.

In addition, the law school has provided training in recent years for Mexican judges, practicing attorneys, law professors and students to help them practice amid dramatic changes to the country's criminal justice system. Courses have been taught by IIT Chicago-Kent faculty in Mexico and Chicago.

Established in 1888, IIT Chicago-Kent College of Law is the law school of Illinois Institute of Technology, a private, Ph.D.-granting institution with programs in engineering, psychology, architecture, business, design and law.

*The LL.M. program in Trial Advocacy for International Students is pending final approval by the IIT Board of Trustees.

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