Program Structure - Two-Year J.D.
Program information
Your route to completing the Two-Year J.D. for international attorneys depends on whether you obtained a foreign law degree in a common law jurisdiction.* Common law students do not need to follow the first-year curriculum, and will spend both of their years in the Two-Year J.D. program taking upper-level courses.
Students who did not obtain a degree in a common law jurisdiction will begin the program with the standard first-year curriculum. Complete program requirements are outlined in the tables below.
If an applicant has not received J.D. (or equivalent) based in common law from a university in a common law jurisdiction, but has completed common law classes as part of an L.L.M., S.J.D. or Ph.D. from a university in a common law jurisdiction, whether or not any of these classes will be considered equivalent to KU Law classes will be considered on a case-by-case basis.
Program Structure
| Credit hour source | Credit hours |
|---|---|
| Transfer from LL.B. | 30 |
| Course | Credit hours |
|---|---|
| First-Year Courses | |
| Civil Procedure | 4 |
| Contracts | 4 |
| Criminal Law | 4 |
| Introduction to Constitutional Law | 4 |
| Lawyering Skills I | 2 |
| Lawyering Skills II | 3 |
| Property | 4 |
| Torts I | 4 |
| Total first-year credit hours | 29 |
| Course | Credit hours |
|---|---|
| Second-Year Courses | |
3 courses from the following menu:
| 9 |
| Experiential Coursework | 6 |
| Professional Responsibility | 2 |
| Professional & Scholarly Writing Coursework | 9 |
| Elective Coursework | 5 |
| Total second-year credit hours | 31 |
| Grand total credit hours | 90 |
Students in the Two-Year J.D. Program are subject to the same grading system that applies to other J.D. candidates. All other law school and university rules apply, as appropriate, to students in the Two-Year J.D. Program. These include rules governing credits from outside the law school and cross-listing of courses.
The Two-Year J.D. Program is not limited to foreign citizens. American citizens who have foreign law degrees are also eligible, whether they were born or raised overseas, or elected to complete their education abroad after high school.
* Australia, Bangladesh, Canada, England, India, New Zealand, Malaysia, Pakistan, Singapore and Sri Lanka will typically qualify as common law jurisdictions. Hong Kong and Macau also currently qualify. The dean or a designated faculty member makes the decision about whether certain other countries qualify.