A decision as to whether or not accredit foreign law schools has been put on hold by the ABA Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar, which provides accreditation to law schools in the United States. The governing council of the section met on Saturday in Boston with the goal of acting on a recommendation that the ABA not get itself involved in the issue of offering foreign law schools accreditation.
The council decided to hold off on making a decision until it meets again on August 2-3 in the city of Chicago. The council postponed the decision so its members could research and study all of the material the committee gathered in support of its recommendation. This is the second time that the council has postponed making a decision on the issue, which arose when Peking University of Transnational Law said it would like accreditation from the ABA so its graduates could practice in the United States.
The past year has seen the committee surveying major stakeholder groups about the issue and said that it has not found much support for accrediting foreign law schools. The committee has said that accrediting foreign law schools would put a strain on the section’s finances and personnel. The section would also find it difficult to teach the foreign students the culture, value and ethics of practicing law in the United States.