QLTT as New York Bar Exam Eligibility???

tabatas

Just wondering whether completing the QLTT alone enables you to take the NY Bar Exam? The NY Bar rules are confusing and not really clear.
Grateful for every thought.
Cheers!

dats_right

In order to sit the NY Bar exam you need to be a law graduate. So being a qualified lawyer without a law degree is not sufficient.

Anyway the QLTT is an exam administered by The Law Society of Ireland to enable qualified lawyers practice here. Many Irish law graduates pass the New York Bar and then do the QLTT and thereby gain a sort of 'back door' entrance to the profession without possessing any practical experience. I can't understand why our Law Society doesn't follow the example of the Law Society of England and Wales, who have now put a stop to this ludicrous situation whereby people with no actual experience can become qualified lawyers without ever having even seen, let alone spoken with a client!

Although most firms will see straight through somebody's job application who 'qualified' as a solicitor via the NY Bar without any experience. I really fail to see, why the Law Society allow this scandalous situation to continue, I mean how can answering essay and multiple choice questions on State and Federal U.S law qualify somebody to practice here?

tabatas

Thanks for your reply. Maybe I need to clarify something re my post. I am a German qualified lawyer with a German law school degree and have taken the QLTT to get an additional common law qualification. I do also have 5 years of PQE working in GB. So technically I am a law graduate but not in a common law juristinction.Not interested to practice here anymore but planning to move to the States.... That's why I am wondering whether my situation enables me to take the NY Bar.

dats_right

Ah well, why didn't you just say that you're a 'proper' lawyer! I'm not sure the answer to your question, but you may find it here in the National Conference of Bar Examiners/ American Bar Association Comprehensive Guide to Bar Admission Requirements 2008

http://www.ncbex.org/fileadmin/mediafiles/downloads/Comp_Guide/CompGuide.pdf

sid4lev

if your law degree is from a civil law jurisdiction then you need to do a masters(LLM) in a US law school in order to be eligible to sit the NY bar

a-ha

As a foreign qualified lawyer you are probably eligible to sit the California Bar Examination. It's quite similar to the Neww York Bar exam and every bit as prestigious, so give it a go.