Javascript is currently not supported, or is disabled by this browser. Please enable Javascript for full functionality.

Skip to Main Content
2019-2020 Graduate & Professional Studies Catalog
University of Pittsburgh
   
2019-2020 Graduate & Professional Studies Catalog 
    
 
  Mar 28, 2024
 
2019-2020 Graduate & Professional Studies Catalog [Archived Catalog]

Law - International and Comparative Law Certificate


Return to School of Law Return to: School of Law

The International & Comparative Law Certificate program is intended to provide a foundation for careers and further study in the application of legal regimes to transnational and international relationships.  Students should keep in mind that in order to be a good international or comparative lawyer, one must first be a good domestic lawyer.  Thus, students in the certificate program are expected and encouraged to obtain the same broad background in law expected of all graduates of the University of Pittsburgh School of Law.

 

Requirements


To receive the International & Comparative Law Certificate upon graduation, students must complete:

  • the required courses (below);
  • satisfy the Upper Level Writing Requirement (ULW) with a paper focused on international or comparative law content;
  • complete twelve credits of elective courses (below);
  • and attenda two designated CILE programs in each of the candidate’s 2L and 3L years at the School of Law.

The courses that qualify as international and comparative law electives for purposes of the Certificate requirements are determined annually. In general, a course will satisfy the elective requirement if at least 25 percent of its content is in the areas of international or comparative law. Listed below are courses offered in recent years that have satisfied this elective requirement - you should consult the schedule of courses for any given term to determine what courses are being offered and the credits awarded. For new course offerings, you should contact CILE to determine if a given course will satisfy the elective requirement. Courses in the School of Law that do not have a predominantly international or comparative law subject matter may be approved for elective purposes on a case-by-case basis at the discretion of the CILE Academic Director if, in practice, the student’s work in the class included that element in a particularly substantial manner; for example, the student satisfies the written requirement of a “W” course with a paper using a comparative law approach. (Note this would not be permitted if the given paper was also being used to satisfy the ULW requirement.)

Coursework outside the School of Law may also be eligible to satisfy up to 3 elective credits if the CILE Academic Director determines that at least 25 precent of its content is in international topics, that it otherwise is an appropriate course for these purposes, and the use of these credits has been approved by the Associate Dean of the School of Law as qualifying under School policy for the six credits of non-School of Law coursework permitted to be credited towards the JD degree. Proposed elective courses outside the School of Law must be approved in advance by the CILE Academic Director as well as in accordance with general School of Law policies.

Note


For detailed term-specific course descriptions, please go to the Schedule of Classes Course Lists on the Law School web site.

Return to School of Law Return to: School of Law



Catalog Navigation