In order to earn the LL.M. degree, students must complete 22 credit hours in the three components of the program described below. Students pay a flat tuition rate in two installments, and they make take additional credits without additional charge. Courses shown below are representative of those that have been offered in the past. Some courses are repeated every year, while others vary from year to year.

1. The International Business and Trade Summer Law Program in Kraków
Students must take at least one course in this component but may sign up for two, three or all four courses. The number of credits depends on the duration of each course. In 2024, we offered four 2-credit courses.
  • Comparative & International Trade
  • International Business Transactions
  • Law of the European Union
  • Global Issues in Intelectual Property
  • International Investment Law
  • The Impact of American Securities Law on Foreign Capital

2. American Law Program in Kraków (ALP)
Students take at least nine weeks of courses from offerings like the following (One-week courses are one credit. Two-week courses are two credits.):

  • The American Legal Profession: Regulation, Professional Responsibility, and Discipline
  • American Legal Research
  • American Legal Analysis and Writing
  • Remedies in American Law: Public & Private
  • American Public Law: Constitutional Principles of Government
  • American Intellectual Property Law
  • American Business Organizations
  • Negotiation for Lawyers: Theory and Practice
  • American Tort Law
  • American Criminal Procedure
  • Organization of American Government: Principles of Operation and Sources of Authority
  • Corporations
  • The Craft of Judging
  • The American Litigation Process: Discovery, Pleadings, and Advocacy
  • American Tax Law

3. Catholic Law Summer Session in Washington, D.C.
Students must take at least six credits in this component. Three of these credits must be in a legal reasoning and writing course designed specifically for foreign LL.M. students. The course develops skills in objective and persuasive legal writing with assignments tailored to deepen students' understanding of the American legal system.

In addition, students may elect a substantive law course offered during the Catholic Law Summer Session. The following are previous years’ offerings.

  • Evidence
  • Commercial Transactions
  • Legal Drafting – Contracts

Students may elect to write a 25-40 page scholarly paper in lieu of the substantive course. Many students who are pursuing research, e.g., toward a Ph.D., elect to take the course but use Catholic Law's excellent facilities to gather materials and work on their paper during the summer session. Catholic Law's highly-qualified and service-oriented reference librarians are eager to help. Catholic Law professors also are willing to provide suggestions and guidance on students' research.