Master of Laws (LLM) - Criminal Law

Globalization is transforming the way lawyers think and work. To be a successful lawyer today, you'll need to broaden your horizons, no matter where in the world you practice. That's one of the ways earning a Master of Laws (LLM) degree can work to your advantage. An LLM degree gives you the opportunity to acquire practical, specialized legal knowledge that will make you more competitive in a tough job market.
Suffolk University Law School's LLM program is for any legal graduate who wants to build upon their educationwhether you're new, experienced, or wanting to make a career change. We offer a variety of LLM options, from General to Global Law & Technology to an accelerated JD/Taxation dual degree. Suffolk Law offers unique and practical LLM programs in the heart of thriving Boston, allowing students to specialize in up-and-coming fields, such as intellectual property law and international business, or to study core U.S. bar-test subjects to gain eligibility to sit for a bar exam in the U.S.Challenge your mind with rigorous curriculum taught by seasoned experts and practitioners. Gain invaluable real-world experience with our nationally ranked and recognized clinics, programs, and experiential opportunities. And advance your degree while getting the added edge to compete in today's legal marketplace.
Criminal law covers a vast area of our legal structure. Unlike many other areas of study, students enter law school with some exposure to and ideas about the subject, gathered from past courses in college, news, reports, personal experiences, novels, movies, and television. However, the actual practice of criminal law includes much more than the courtroom drama or police encounter. From the theories of punishment which inform the creation of laws that define crime, through the procedures and rules which regulate the courts through the prosecution and defense of those statutes, into the theory and politics of punishments, the study of criminal law touches every aspect of legal education. Unlike most other areas of legal study, criminal law is public law, meaning that the state is both the accuser and the victim, the state manages the courts and often supplies the attorneys of the accused. Therefore, the good of the generalized population is the touchstone of criminal law, rather than the vindication of the harm against an individual. To that end, criminal law starts with the creation of statutes defining crimes, procedural rules enacted by legislatures or courts, and administrative laws regulating the punishment and incarceration of wrongdoers. Add on top of all of this the state and federal constitutional provisions that ensure that the awesome power of the state, once turned toward a citizen, is restrained and applied equally and fairly. In some cases, international laws and treaties will also act as a check on the ill use of power against an accused.

Resume - Applicants are required to submit an updated resume with their application. Upload your resume as part of the LSAC application to Suffolk Law School.
Personal statement/Letter of Motivation - Upload your personal statement/letter of motivation as part of the LSAC application to Suffolk Law School.
The applicant's personal statement should address your motivation and preparation for the study of an LLM degree. This is your opportunity to tell the admissions committee more about you and why you wish to pursue an LLM degree at Suffolk Law School. Applicants may choose to include personal and professional reasons, as well as, to highlight any circumstances that you believe are relevant to the evaluation of your credentials. The personal statement should be double-spaced and two pages in length is typically sufficient.
Two Letter of recommendation
Official Academic Transcript
Applicants must demonstrate that they possess the requisite English language skills to undertake and complete their course of study. Applicants should be aware that no remedial language assistance is available for graduate law students. Applicants who received their law degree from an institution in which English is not the language of instruction must take the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) or the International English Language Testing System (IELTS). Although the Law School considers each application in its entirety, applicants with the highest likelihood of admission to the Law School will have attained a score of at least 80 (internet based) or a score of 6.5 on IELTS.