New degree program will amplify traditional legal education

The Fletcher School is adding a new degree program: a Master of Laws (LLM) in International Law. It will be the first LLM program at a non-law school in the United States.

“A traditional legal education is not sufficient to educate a literate international lawyer in the arts needed to practice law in the globalized 21st century,” said Michael J. Glennon, professor of international law, who will direct the LLM program. The first class of 20 to 30 students will start the one-year degree program in September 2008.

“Modern international lawyers require a broader contextual understanding—not only of the law, but also of the disparate societies and inter-societal milieu in which it is made, interpreted and applied,” Glennon said.

The LLM courses will be taught by a distinguished international law faculty with extensive real-world experience and complemented by the Fletcher School’s offerings in international relations, development economics, international security, environment and diplomacy.

“The LLM program will address the historical, political, cultural and economic framework within which contemporary international lawyers operate,” Glennon said. “It will provide superb preparation for a new or continuing career in international or non-governmental organizations, executive and congressional organs, diplomatic missions, foreign and defense ministries, law firms, media and other international institutions.”

LLM students will complete their year in residence with a capstone symposium at the Tufts European Center in Talloires, France, during the spring semester.

This story appeared in the October 2007 issue of the Tufts Journal.