Legal competence requirement: Graduates of

Law Schools in Other Nations. Notwithstanding SCR 40.04(1), an individual who has received a law degree in a country other than the United States may apply to take the 215 Wisconsin bar examination, provided the applicant satisfies all of the requirements of subs. (1) or (2): (1) The applicant holds a first professional degree in law from a jurisdiction whose jurisprudence is based on the principles of English common law and from a school or schools each of which, throughout the period of the applicant's study, was recognized by a competent accrediting agency in such country as qualified and approved, and meets all of the following requirements: (a) The applicant has a license to practice law from a common-law jurisdiction and is in good standing in that jurisdiction. (b) The applicant has been substantially engaged in the practice of law in a common law jurisdiction for at least three of the last ten years prior to filing an application to take the Wisconsin bar examination. (2) The applicant holds a first professional degree in law from a school or schools each of which, throughout the period of the applicant's study, was recognized by a competent accrediting agency in such country as qualified and approved, and the applicant has completed a masters of law degree (L.L.M.) that meets all of the following requirements: (a) The program consists of a minimum of 24 semester hours of credit, or the equivalent thereof, if the law school is on an academic schedule other than a conventional semester system that, except as otherwise permitted in this rule, shall be in classroom courses at the law school in substantive and procedural law and professional skills. No credit shall be allowed for correspondence courses, on-line courses, courses offered on DVD or other media, or other distance learning courses. (b) The program requires a minimum of 700 minutes of instruction time, exclusive of examination time, for the granting of one semester hour of credit. (c) The program includes a period of instruction consisting of no fewer than two semesters of at least 13 calendar weeks each, or the equivalent thereof, exclusive of reading periods, examinations and breaks, and shall not be completed exclusively during summer semesters, except that a maximum of six semester hours of credit may be earned in courses completed during summer semesters. 216 (d) The program is completed within 24 months of enrollment. (e) Unless otherwise waived by the board, all coursework for the program is completed at the campus of an American bar association approved law school in the United States. (f) The program completed by an applicant includes all of the following: 1. A minimum of two semester hours of credit in the values and ethical responsibilities of the United States legal profession and its members. 2. A minimum of two semester hours of credit in legal research, writing and analysis, which may not be satisfied by a research and writing requirement in a substantive law course. 3. A minimum of two semester hours of credit in American legal studies, the American legal system or a similar course designed to introduce students to distinctive aspects and/or fundamental principles of United States law, which may be satisfied by a course in United States constitutional law or United States or state civil procedure. 4. A minimum of six semester hours of credit in any of the subjects included in SCR 40.03 (2) (a) or (b). (g) The program completed by an applicant may include: 1. A maximum of four semester hours of credit in clinical courses, provided all of the following requirements are met: a. The clinical course includes a classroom instructional component in order to insure contemporaneous discussion, review and evaluation of the clinical experience; b. The clinical work is done under the direct supervision of a member of the law school faculty or instructional staff whose primary professional employment is with the law school; and c. The time and effort required and anticipated educational benefit are commensurate with the credit awarded. 2. A maximum of six semester hours of credit in other courses related to legal training taught by members of the faculty of the law school or of the 217 university with which the law school is affiliated, or taught by members of the faculty of any university or college with which the law school offers a joint degree program, provided such courses must be completed at the campus of such university or college in the United States. (3) Applicants shall submit proofs and documentation that the board may require. Documents must be in English or must be accompanied by a translation into English prepared and certified by a neutral translator. (4) An applicant shall file all application materials and fees with the board by August 1 to be eligible for the February bar examination and by January 1 to be eligible for the July bar examination. (5) Notwithstanding SCR 40.14 (3) (i), the board may add a surcharge in individual cases if it finds that extraordinary costs have been or will be incurred in its investigation of the applicant’s qualifications.