This is the post in which I explain the situation.
As you probably know, I'm an American who has lived in Britain for the last three year. It is time for me to go to law school. Now I have to decide where to apply.
In the UK, law is an undergraduate subject. You can study law for three years from the age of 18 and poof you're a lawyer! Well, okay, it's not quite that simple. You also have to train to be either a solicitor or a barrister. Yes, you have to choose between being a solicitor or barrister. If I understand correctly, solicitors do all the work. Barristers do all the talking and paid more. (I think it may simply be a way for the law profession to make more money, but more on that later.) But would I be able to practice in the US?
If you have already done an undergraduate degree, as I have done, then you can apply to go back to the undergraduate law programme, or you can apply for something called a conversion course. It's a programme for people who already have a bachelor's degree in a different subject and want a law qualification. A conversion course is 2 years after which you are fully qualified to be a lawyer. But would I be able to practice in the US?
The other option for me is to go back to the US and do a 3 year juris doctor degree. This would make me fully qualified (except for passing the bar) to work in the States. But would I be able to practice in the UK?
Questions, questions.
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