Master of Laws

Expand your career or pivot in a new direction with advanced legal training from Drake Law School.

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What You'll Learn

The Master of Laws, or LLM, is an internationally recognized legal degree that allows practitioners to unlock unique career opportunities.

Are you thinking about switching your specialty, diversifying the clients you take on, or entering corporate law? Drake University Law School’s highly customizable program can be built around your interests and goals. Focus on areas like compliance and risk management or business law with a concentration, or create an individualized curriculum to study exactly what you need to move ahead.

The LLM program is open to U.S. and international students who hold a Juris Doctor (J.D.) from an ABA-accredited law school, an LLB, or an equivalent degree from a foreign law school.

For American students, the program facilitates your transition to practice or the expansion of your existing practice into new areas.

For international students, a Drake LLM degree demonstrates your knowledge of American law and culture, positioning you for opportunities in many contexts. In fact, in some U.S. states, an international lawyer holding an LLM can sit for the bar exam and obtain a license to practice law.

About the Master of Laws Program

Study exactly what you need with a flexible curriculum.
The program is open to U.S. and international students.
Learn while you continue to work, with part-time and hybrid study options that fit your schedule as a professional.
Tap into faculty expertise at the Zimpleman College of Business with an LLM in Compliance and Risk Management.

Program Facts

On campus with online components
Full time or part time
24 total credits

LLM in Compliance and Risk Management

Today’s businesses operate in a highly regulated environment. In this concentration, you’ll acquire the business and legal knowledge to help them navigate compliance and ethical standards successfully, learning from expert Law School and Zimpleman College of Business faculty. Courses equip you to implement and monitor compliance programs, engage with government regulatory agencies, and enforce industry-specific regulations within your organization.

LLM in Intellectual Property Law

Develop key competencies and expertise in the intricacies of intellectual property law from an international perspective. The curriculum is designed to equip those without a prior law degree to become successful transnational international property (IP) lawyers.. Ideal for doctoral students, policymakers, government officials, business executives, journalists, technology developers, and intellectual property agents.

LLM in Individualized Legal Studies

Design a course of study that aligns with your career goals and interests. Half of the courses required for the degree will be electives drawn from the broad range of courses offered by Drake Law.

Business Law Concentration

For business professionals all over the world, training in U.S. regulations and legal considerations turns you into an organizational asset. This concentration introduces you to vital corporate, tax, and commercial laws.

Criminal Law Concentration

Deepen your understanding of criminal law. The concentration includes core courses to establish the fundamentals plus electives in areas like constitutional litigation, national security, and global issues in criminal law to further refine your training.

International Law and Global Citizenship Concentration

Examine the roles of nations, international organizations, individuals, and laws in the promotion and protection of human rights. In the process, you’ll consider traditional political rights like free speech along with social and economic rights in healthcare, education, and related areas.

Specialized Study

This specialized study, or "build your own program" concentration, allows each student to design his or her own concentration by devoting 12 of the required 24 credits to a specialized area of study of the student's choice.

Careers & Skills

The LLM builds on your existing legal training and experience with advanced knowledge in line with your career goals.

Harness this degree to quickly build expertise that unlocks new directions, from expanding your legal practice to consulting international organizations that need to be sensitive to the U.S. legal and business environment.

Whatever your particular focus, Drake Law’s Career Development Office helps you leverage your new training to uncover your next opportunity.

Opportunities

Clinical professor
Compliance officer
Corporate counsel
International legal advisor
Partner
Senior attorney
Staff attorney

Skills

Critical thinking
Legal problem solving
Legal research and analysis
Professional communication
Specialized knowledge in domains of focus

Salary & Growth Outlook

The median salary for lawyers in 2024. (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics)

Jeremy Kidd

Professor of Law; Kermit S. Sutton Research Fellow

Jerry Anderson

Interim Dean, Law School; Richard M. and Anita Calkins Distinguished Professor of Law

Melissa Weresh

Dwight D. Opperman Distinguished Professor of Law

Natalie Banta Lynner

Dwight D. Opperman Distinguished Professor of Law

Anthony Gaughan

Kern Family Chair; Associate Dean; Professor of Law

Nickole Miller

Director of the Joan and Lyle Middleton Center for Children's Rights; Associate Professor of Law

Ellen Yee

Director of International Programs; Professor of Law

Doctor of Jurisprudence, JD

Balance in-depth legal knowledge and formative real-world experience as you prepare to promote justice and serve clients effectively.

Master of Jurisprudence, MJ

Pursue advanced legal studies without a JD Choose from a concentration in compliance and risk management or create an individualized program of study.

Take the Next Step

Rise to a new professional level with an LLM degree from Drake Law School.

Contact

Compliance and Risk Management
Julia Steggerda-Corey, Director of the Compliance and Risk Management Program
515-271-2912
julia.steggerda-corey@drake.edu

Individualized Studies
Ellen Yee, Director of International Programs; Professor of Law
515-271-1914
ellen.yee@drake.edu

General Inquiries
For more information, contact the Office of Admission and Financial Aid at 515-271-2782 or law-admit@drake.edu.

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