ABA Considers Plan to Accredit Foreign Law Schools

The American Bar Association (ABA) is considering proposals to accredit foreign law schools in what would be a closely-watched development in the international legal education market, writes The National Law Journal. The recommendation has come from a committee of law professors, lawyers, judges and law deans set up in June to examine whether foreign law schools should be allowed to seek ABA accreditation. The ABA is already responsible for accrediting US law schools.

The committee cited an earlier ABA report's conclusion that state supreme courts and Bar associations are under pressure to make decisions about admitting foreign lawyers as the legal profession becomes increasingly globalized. "Such an expansion would provide additional guidance for state supreme courts when lawyers trained outside the U.S. seek to be allowed to sit for a U.S. Bar examination," the committee said in its report. The committee cited figures from the National Conference of Bar Examiners that between 4,000 and 5,000 foreign-trained law graduates each year take the Bar exam in the U.S.; most of them sit for the exams in California or New York.

If the ABA decides not to expand accreditation, and states are forced to make their own decisions about foreign-trained lawyers, some lawyers with "less reliable training" than graduates of U.S. law schools will be admitted to the Bar, the committee said. Additionally, there will be a lack of consistency among states as to how foreign-trained lawyers are admitted.

"If we believe that the American legal education model is the 'gold standard' for legal education worldwide and that well-trained lawyers are critical to the global economy, then a willingness to expand accreditation to schools embracing the American model is an appropriate way to improve the training of lawyers globally and contribute to the modern economy and the international legal profession," the committee said.

However, the committee did cite potential downsides to accrediting international law schools, including the expansion of practice opportunities for foreign-trained lawyers with no reciprocal benefit for U.S. law school graduates. The committee said that the cost of the overseas accreditation would be borne by the foreign law schools rather than the ABA.

ABA spokeswoman Nancy Slonim said that the committee's nine-page report has been sent to state supreme court justices, the leadership of the ABA, deans of ABA-approved law schools and other interested parties. Relevant parties have until October 15, 2010, to submit comments, she said.

There are a number of reasons why U.S. clients might want a foreign-educated law graduate available in the U.S. to help them. In 2008, for example, the U.S. had exported almost $2 trillion of goods and services and imported $2.5 trillion in goods and services. In 2007, which is the most recent year for which statistics are available, there were $20 trillion in foreign-owned assets in the U.S. and $17 trillion in U.S.-owned assets abroad. Moreover, this international trade is not confined to the largest U.S. states. Every state in the country except Hawaii exported more than $1 billion of goods and services in 2008, and many of them had eight-figure exports. Stay with me….

Because many of the transactions underlying these statistics undoubtedly involved both foreign and domestic lawyers, it should come as no surprise to learn that there is a significant amount of international trade in legal services. For example, in 2007, which is the most recent year for which this data is available, the U.S. exported $6.4 billion in legal services and imported $1.6 billion. Moreover, these statistics do not take into account international legal services trade by affiliates.

In summary, as the globalization of the legal profession materializes, it will be critical to law students in both the U.S. and all foreign countries to have a proper foundation in international law. That is alarmingly lacking in most law schools.

Nelson Tucker is CEO of Process Service Network, LLC in the Los Angeles area. His firm specializes in international service of process and foreign legal issues. He is an Associate Member of the American Bar Association. His website is www.processnet1.com and he can be reached at processnet@sbcglobal.net.