Why and How to Become an International Lawyer Prof. Dr. Frank Emmert, LL.M. John S. Grimes Professor of Law Director of the Center for Int´l & Comparative Law Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law

 What is an „International Lawyer“?  Three good reasons for becoming an international lawyer  Introducing the Lego Block system  What is important and what is not, on the way to becoming an international lawyer?  Your next steps Overview

Who works with int´l law? Attorneys in large firms and multinationals Attorneys in smaller firms and SMEs Single practitioners and small firm managers/lawyers Diplomats, lawyers in IGOs and NGOs Other government officials and civil servants Academics, consultants, arbitrators Lawyers outside of traditional law jobs, eg. media, politics, management What is an „International Lawyer“?

Q: Who does NOT work with international law these days? A: Small and purely local attorneys, provided they can avoid cases that reach beyond national borders such as family law or inheritance issues with int´l elements, contracts or torts with foreign elements, etc. Q: Who would want to be a lawyer that has to send clients away, every time there is an int´l element? Or be constantly worried about making a mistake? The real question is…

#1 – all business is international (Emmert: from Fortune 500 to SMEs; in U.S. 297,000 SMEs among 306,000 exporters; even more in the EU) #2 – get away from the office (Ferris) #3 – when in doubt, go for international (McCormick; new horizons change personalities…; the Emmert experience) Three good reasons for becoming an international lawyer

 Sooner or later you will need to be successful in applying for one of the jobs in one of the categories noted above or in getting clients to trust you with their international problems  Your future employer or your client has to trust that you are an international lawyer  Use the Lego Block System!  Examples of Lego Blocks right in front of you: your information consumption; courses in your curriculum; seminar and research papers; student organizations; moot courts; legal clinics; internships/externships; summer study abroad; semester exchanges; publications; post-graduate studies for an LL.M.; your presence on social media; your IT skills and usage; etc. etc. Ok, so you want to become an international lawyer – but how?

What about languages? Remember Henry Ford? “You can have my cars in any color you like, as long as it is black.” In international law That color is English. Important and not so important steps and qualifications

 So is it worth learning another language to become a (more) international lawyer?  Give me a typical lawyer’s answer!

#1 – Money: What about the cost of a post-graduate degree or an internship in China or a summer study abroad? Remember: If you do the right things, the money will always come back. If you do the wrong things, the time will never come back! #2 – Where you come from: your country, family, ethnicity, religion, resources, schooling, first degree(s) etc. Remember: It is not about where you come from but where you are going to. And while you can’t change the past, you are much more in charge of your future than you think! Some things that are not (very) important

If you think you can, And if you think you cannot, You are right each time Remember…

 Get an international education! by getting degrees from at least two different legal families (which brings us to the importance of a Master of Laws (LL.M.) from the US or UK)  Develop your soft skills!  Distinguish yourself from the next candidate!  Determine your goals and start hunting! (By the way, today is a really good day to get started…) So what is really important?

Working as a lawyer is sometimes like going hiking in the mountains in October. At the bottom, it is often foggy and grey. But once you climb high enough, the sun is shining a lot more and your spirits soar. And for many reasons, the top of the legal profession belongs to the best international lawyers…

 Selecting the best programs for YOU (if you have a good general legal education, don’t get another; get specialized!)  Preparing your application (including the TOEFL)  Remember that your application is the first sample of the work you are suggesting to do for your employer or professor(s)!  Negotiate your package!  Once there, work hard & fun hard!  Continue building Lego Blocks!  Make connections!  Make them help you with your next step(s) How to get into a good US or UK law school for an LL.M.

 Make up your mind! What is your Plan A and your Plan B?  Start playing Lego  Set some goals for  This month  This summer  This year  Next year  By the time you graduate  Your next steps after you graduate  Get off your butt and get busy! What YOU can do NOW

Suggestion for this summer

 Prof. Dr. Frank Emmert, LL.M.: staff/profile.cfm?Id=166http://mckinneylaw.iu.edu/faculty- staff/profile.cfm?Id=166   CV and List of Publications:  Publications for free download:  Or just google “Frank Emmert” Contact Info