If you hold a law degree from a non-U.S. jurisdiction (a J.D. or its equivalent), you may qualify for our Advanced Standing Two-Year J.D. for Internationally-Trained Lawyers program.

The Advanced Standing Two-Year J.D. for Internationally Trained Lawyers is intended for students who:

already hold a law degree from a jurisdiction outside the United States; would like to earn a Juris Doctor degree from the University at Buffalo School of Law; and wants to take the New York State Bar.

In this new and innovative program, they can receive advanced standing, and therefore can finish the J.D. degree in just two years.

About the Program

These students are just like the traditional three-year J.D.s – they join the entering class, take all the classes required of J.D. students, and form all the bonds that constitute the U.S. legal profession. Through the Advanced Standing Two-Year J.D. program, appropriately qualified students may be granted advanced standing for up to 30 credits in recognition of their prior studies. As a result, students may complete their J.D. in approximately two years of full-time study.... [-]

Peking University School of Transnational Law (STL) offers a Juris Doctor (J.D.) degree, pursuant to a three-year full-time program based on a J.D. curriculum comparable to that offered in the United States. The language of instruction is English. The program also includes an elective fourth-year course, devoted to a survey of Chinese law, with instruction in Mandarin Chinese. Courses in Chinese law are mainly open to students from Mainland China or whose first language is Chinese.

Both curriculums emphasize lawyering skills and knowledge for the 21st century: (i) transnational law and practice, (ii) cross-cultural competence, and (iii) the professional responsibilities of lawyers in these contexts. No law school anywhere better equips graduates for the private sector, public sector, or public interest legal work in China, the United States, the United Kingdom, or British Commonwealth nations.... [-]

In an increasingly globalized world, the study of international law subjects is increasingly vital to legal education and practice. The faculty has already recognized this reality by requiring Transnational Law in the first year. Students enrolled in the International Law Honors Concentration (the Concentration) will receive additional instruction and training in subject areas fundamental to the development of a transnational legal practice and in specialized courses related to their individualized career goals.

The Concentration provides a robust framework to guide students seeking to acquire the substantive legal knowledge, skills, work experiences, and professional contacts important for embarking on legal practice informed by international law subjects.... [-]