Juris Doctor
-
J.D.
is an abbreviation for the Latin
Juris Doctor, or Doctor of
Law,
and is the law degree typically awarded by an accredited U.S
law
school after successfully completing three years of post-graduate
law study. Generally, a 4-year undergraduate
degree is required to be eligible for entry into a J.D. program.
Prior to the practice of law, a J.D. holder is required to be
member of the bar
association of the state in which he or she intends to practice.
Washington, DC is a special case-- it's law is Federal law,
and a member of the DC bar may practice Federal law in any state.
Admission to a state's bar requires that the applicant either
sit for the bar exam in that state and submit to that state's
procedures for verifying "character and fitness", or obtain
admission administratively through reciprocity provisions providing
that in some states, lawyers who have practiced in other states
for a set period of time, may be admitted upon application.
The course
of study usually takes 3 years but may take as little as 2
years at some schools.
The J.D.
was formerly known as the LL.B
in most U.S. universities. Doctors of Law who are admitted
to the practice of law often append the suffix Esq
to the end of their names, but are not commonly referred to
as "Doctor". While the Juris Doctor is a professional
doctorate,
similar to the Medicinæ Doctor (Doctor
of Medicine), legal convention stipulates that lawyers
do not use the title.
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