Director Susan Karamanian; Faculty Advisers K. Brown, S. Charnovitz, D. Clarke, S. Murphy, D. Shelton, J.A. Spanogle, R. Steinhardt

The International and Comparative Law Program offers one of the most extensive international law curricula in the country. More than 40 courses focus on a wide range of issues in both public and private aspects of the field as well as the domestic law of other countries. Complementing and enriching the program are the Oxford-GW International Human Rights Program, held in Oxford each summer, and the International Rule of Law Center, which engages in research and study relating to international norms and institutions that advance human rights, the rule of law, democratic pluralism, and conflict resolution.

Degree Requirements

To earn the LL.M. degree in International and Comparative Law students complete 24 credit hours that include a minimum of 12 hours in courses in the field and 4 hours of thesis (except for those non-U.S. law school graduates who have been granted a waiver). Students may attend the program either full or part time. In the application process, preference will be given to applicants who, in addition to outstanding academic qualifications, have special international experience or interests and a working knowledge of one or more foreign languages.

International and Comparative Law Curriculum

Courses on international human rights, law of international organizations, international commercial law, public international law, and comparative law are focal points of the program. The curriculum is continually updated to keep pace with developments in these fields. Complementing the full-time faculty is a corps of distinguished adjunct faculty members who offer seminars in their fields of specialization. The wealth of available legal talent in the Washington area is an important component of the dynamic character of the program.

For students in the LL.M. in International and Comparative Law program Thesis (690–91) and a minimum of 12 credits from the following courses are required; if the thesis is waived, the 12 credits must include at least 2 credits graded on the basis of a research paper.

• International Taxation I (312)
• International Taxation II (313)
• Counterterrorism Law (383)
• U.S. Foreign Relations Law (385)
• National Security Law (386)
• Trade and Sustainable Development (435)
• International Environmental Law (454)
• International Copyright Law (473)
• International Law (520)
• International Business Transactions (522)
• International Commercial Law (524)
• International E-Commerce Seminar (525)
• International Trade Law (526)
• Advanced International Trade Law (527)
• International Litigation (528)
• International Labor Standards and the Global Economy (529)
• International Organizations (530)
• International Judicial Assistance (531)
• Comparative Law (532)
• Transnational Family Law (533)
• Law of the European Union (534)
• Islamic Law (535)
• Law of Japan (536)
• Traditional Jewish Civil Law (537)
• Immigration Law I (538)
• Immigration Law II (539)
• Refugee and Asylum Law (540)
• Introduction to Chinese and Japanese Law (541)
• International Banking (542)
• Law of the People’s Republic of China (543)
• Foreign Direct Investment (544)
• International Project Finance (545)
• International Law of Human Rights (546)
• Regional Protection of Human Rights (547)
• Chinese Business Law (549)
• Law of the Sea (550)
• International Law of Territory and Territorial Disputes (551)
• Law of War (552)
• U.S. Export Control Law and Regulation (553)
• International Criminal Law (554)
• Comparative Constitutional Law (555)
• International Arbitration (556)
• International Negotiations (558)
• Nation Building and the Rule of Law (559)
• Nuclear Nonproliferation Law and Practice (560)
• Trade Remedy Law (563)
• Law of Race and Slavery (596)
• Public International Law Seminar (562)
• International Business Transactions Seminar (564)
• Comparative Law Seminar (565)
• Human Rights Advocacy Seminar (567)
• Human Rights Lawyering (568)
• International Human Rights Clinic (633)

GW Oxford International Human Rights Law Program Courses

The following courses are offered as part of the GW-Oxford International Human Rights Law Program, which is held in summer at the University of Oxford. Credit earned in these courses may be applied toward LL.M. program requirements in International and Comparative Law.

• Comparative Human Rights Institutions
• Human Rights and the International Criminal Process 
• Human Rights and Refugee Law
• Human Rights in the Marketplace
• International Rights of Women
• Human Rights Advocacy and Dissemination
• Rights of Minorities, Groups, and Indigenous Peoples
• Humanitarian Law and Populations at Risk
• Human Rights and Military Responses to Terrorism