The Parasol Foundation International LL.M. at Tel Aviv University Faculty of Law is a 10 month program which brings outstanding students from all over the world for a rigorous, highly-academic LL.M. degree.
The program language of instruction is English, and although there may be a course or two on Israeli law, the focus of the LL.M. is international law.
Students can choose a general course of study or may specialize in:
The rigorous academic curriculum is based on innovative approaches to legal theory, providing law students analytical tools and skills to engage in serious academic research and practical insights. Classes explore contemporary challenges to law that stem from the processes of globalization to specific courses on the Israeli legal and social systems, the complexities of the Middle East region and the legal aspects of the Start-up Nation.
The curriculum consists of courses, seminars and workshops. The selection of courses will allow students to pursue several disciplines, including: International Law and Human Rights; Law and Technology and Business Law. The program also enables the participants to choose electives from the rich variety of English-language graduate programs.
Throughout the year, LL.M. students take trips to various start-ups, NGOs and non-profits to be introduced to the human rights and start-up ecosystems of Tel Aviv. The program also sponsors various trips around Israel so students can get to know the many cultures and societies that exist within its borders.
The LL.M. is without thesis.
Below you will find a list of the workshops, seminars and electives you can take throughout your year. For courses for each specializations, please visit that specialization's page.
The academic year is broken into 3 semesters, the first of which is a one-month Core Semester, then Fall, and Spring. Each semester is followed by an exam period.
CORE SEMESTER
During this one month intensive Core Semester students are required to take the following courses:
Introduction to Law and Society
The course explores the interrelations between the law and the society in which it operates. We will focus on sociological theories of the law, its origins and functions, and on law & society methodologies. We will discuss issues such as access to justice, law as a tool for social change, compliance and obedience to the law, the gap between the law in the books and the law in action, and the social roles of judges and lawyers. The purpose of the course is to expose students to socio-legal theories and to empirical studies of the law as well as to provide them with analytical and critical tools that will enable them to further investigate the law as a social field and their role within it.
Introduction to Israeli Law
This course will introduce international students to the Israeli legal system. Like Israeli society, Israeli law is a rich tapestry, a product of many different cultural influences, and many historical layers. The course will provide a survey of the history of Israeli law, beginning with the late-Ottoman and British mandatory eras, moving to the post-independence phase of Israeli law, discussing the history of Israeli civil legislation in the 1960s and 1970s, the constitutional revolution of the 1990s, and concluding with a discussion of the state of Israeli law in the early 21st century. The Israeli legal system will be compared both to common law and civil law legal systems. We will also discuss the role of the Israeli Supreme Court in the Israeli legal system, analyzing some of the landmark decisions of this court, decisions which reflect major questions and conflicts facing Israel today.
Introduction to Law and Economics
The course is designed to introduce you to the major insights of the economic analysis of law in central areas of law such as torts, property, criminal law, and legal procedure. While the course is not a technical course, and no background in economics is required, insights from game theory and economics are intellectually interesting, and, more importantly, are useful for analyzing legal policy, in theory and in practice.
FALL, SPRING SEMESTERS
During the fall and spring semesters, students will take a variety of elective courses as well as the following mandatory courses:
Scholars' Workshop: Legal Theory
The twentieth century was marked by intense debates concerning the basic ideas about the law: What is the role of law in society? What is the relation between politics and law? What is the nature of the legal process? What should be the guiding principles of legal interpretation and judicial reasoning? And, what is the role of the various legal institutions of the state? American legal theory, which dealt with these questions, has been globally influential, impacting the consciousness of legal elites – lawmakers, legal academics, judges and administrators – throughout the world. The Workshop will examine the internal evolutions within the American legal field and the way it has disseminated to the field of international law as well as to various jurisdictions across the world.
Contemporary Issues in Israel
The course aims to acquaint students with salient issues in Israel and the diversity of Israeli society. These will be presented from legal, political, cultural and historical perspectives. We will discuss issues such as the Israeli parliamentary system, the Judiciary; religion and state; the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and different core sociological aspects of Israeli society, focusing on the diverse social and political groups and legal struggles that have shaped Israeli society. Every session will feature a speaker at the forefront of practice or research in the relevant field.
WORKSHOPS
Every student must complete an additional workshop from the list below.
- Law and Economics
- MPI-TAU Transnational Legal History Work
- Law and Technology
- International Law
- Legal Theory
ELECTIVES
The Parasol Foundation International LLM offers a rich variety of elective courses to allow students to further tailor the program to meet their interests:
Courses listed refer to the 2023-24 academic year. Courses are subject to change each year.
For course information for specializations, please visit that specialization's page.
LL.M. candidates will be eligible to apply for admittance to the Ph.D Program at the Faculty of Law, following the successful completion of the LL.M. degree.
Financial aid / scholarships will be offered to promising candidates according to needs or academic qualifications, and in order to promote diversity.
Ranked #1 in Israel and #1 outside the US and UK, Tel Aviv University's Faculty of Law has the greatest scientific research impact factor and highest citations per paper (2013 QS World University Rankings).
#1 ranked International Business Law program in Eurasia and Middle East (EdUniversal Ranking (2019)).
#1 Law School in Israel offers LLM concentrations in: Business; Technology, International Law & Human Rights
For Application Information, please click here.
