Skip to main content

Global Law Seminar

Dates: 2 September–10 December 2026 (approx.)
Application Deadline: 1 March 2026

Central and South America: Gain valuable experience in a legal externship with firms and organizations located in such cities as Mexico City, Mexico; Asunción, Paraguay; and São Paulo, Brazil while learning about international transactions and corporate law during a semester abroad. Improve language skills while addressing interesting US issues related to immigration, trade, and business.

Eastern Asia: As an important region of international transactions and human rights organizations, externships in cities like Seoul, Korea and Tokyo, Japan offer meaningful opportunities for BYU law students to achieve a global perspective of legal topics. Learn about international business transactions and public international law from experts at BYU and be mentored by your externship provider, while living in a beautiful international city for a semester.

Middle East: Earn law school credit through an exciting externship with providers actively involved in international transactions and litigation while studying international legal topics remotely. Work and study in cities such as Dubai, United Arab Emirates, which is an English-speaking city at the center of countless global deals and is a key hub for the Middle East; it is also one of the safest and most modern places to live, with world-class public transportation.

Western Europe: Take courses in corporate and international law while participating in an externship with providers such as the United Nations, UK barristers’ chambers, international law firms, the U.S. State Department, international trade or human rights organizations, and businesses in the financial sector. You will spend the semester living in cities like London, England; Berlin, Germany; and Geneva, Switzerland, which are epicenters of the global legal market and public international law. Study at the crossroads of the US and European law.

Click here to apply today!

data-content-type=""

Contact Us

Professor Todd Goodsell
375A JRCB
(801) 422-6642
goodsellt@law.byu.edu

Professor Gordon Smith
534 JRCB
(801) 422-3233
smithg@law.byu.edu

PDF

Program Flyer

FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions
overrideBackgroundColorOrImage= overrideTextColor= promoTextAlignment= overrideCardHideSection= overrideCardHideByline= overrideCardHideDescription= overridebuttonBgColor= overrideButtonText= promoTextAlignment=

More Information

Pencil and paper BIG-01.svg

Courses

Students will spend approximately thirty hours per week working at their externship (for 6–9 credit hours) and then will take one or two 3-credit law classes to be taught by distance learning, such as:

LAW 602—Administrative Law
LAW 617—Comparative Law
LAW 639—International Business Transactions
LAW 796R—International Criminal Law
LAW 796R—The Law & Economics of US Trade Policy

Participants may not take any other courses during this program, including BYU Online courses, without approval by the program director and ISP.
moneystack NAVY BIGsvg-01.svg

Cost

Students pay full-time Law School tuition plus a $1,800 program fee. $200 of this program fee is a nonrefundable deposit required to secure placement in the program if accepted. These fees cover housing, externship placement, online instruction by law faculty, and international health insurance coverage. Does not include airfare, visa, local ground transportation, personal expenses, or meals.

Cost for accompanying spouses: $4,000 (approx.)
Accompanying spouse cost covers Latter-day Saint BYU undergraduate tuition for 1 credit hour and housing. Does not include airfare, local ground transportation, visa, personal expenses, or meals.

Any accompanying children are required to have international health insurance coverage through the program, which costs an additional $24 per week per child, or $384 per child for a 16-week semester.
Scroll NAVY BIG-01.svg

Funding Sources

Regular full-time Law School tuition scholarships, Pell Grants, and Federal Insured Student Loans may be applied to international programs. VA/GI bill benefits may not be used.
Backpack NAVY-BIG-01.svg

Preparation

Passports must be valid for at least six months beyond the end of the program.

Students accepted to the program must participate in a required 1-credit hour preparation course (LAW 795R) during block 2 of winter semester 2026, which will include international law presentations and instructions regarding respecting the host country’s culture and laws. Accompanying spouses need to be credit-bearing participants on the program; they will need to apply online.

Students must meet all country- and program-specific COVID and health requirements for travel.

International study programs are physically, emotionally, and mentally taxing and you must be in good health to participate. These programs often take place in international locations that do not have the same level of safety and services in terms of transportation, living conditions, residential accommodations, food, public behavior, and policing that you may be used to on campus.
House NAVY-BIG-01.svg

Housing

BYU Law will coordinate with the students and provide acceptable living arrangements for the duration of the externship. Accommodations will be apartment-style living so the students can cook their own meals.
Plane NAVY-BIG-01.svg

Travel

Students are responsible for purchasing their own airfare to, from, and throughout the program. Airline reservations must be coordinated with BYU Travel. Students should contact a BYU Travel agent.

BYU Travel
280 HRCB
(801) 422-6293
travel@byu.edu
Check mark NAVY BIG-01.svg

Application Process

Students must be enrolled in the J.D. program at the Law School and must be 18 years of age or older to participate.

Complete the online application here. A nonrefundable $35 application fee is required; applicants will be interviewed once the application is complete.

Students will be notified via email of their acceptance into the program. The first payment is due upon acceptance.

Application Deadline: 1 March 2026
Gears NAVY-BIG-01.svg

Program Adjustments

International Study Programs (ISP) reserves the right to cancel this program, revise its offerings, or make any adjustments to the preliminary cost.

If it becomes necessary for ISP to cancel a program, all program payments made to BYU ISP will be refunded to the student’s BYU Financial account.

ISP is the only office authorized to cancel any of its programs.
Faculty NAVY-BIG-01.svg

Faculty

Professor Todd Goodsell
375A JRCB
(801) 422-6642
goodsellt@law.byu.edu

Professor Gordon Smith
534 JRCB
(801) 422-3233
smithg@law.byu.edu
Phone NAVY-BIG-23.svg

Contact Us

International Study Programs
101 HRCB
(801) 422-3686
isp@byu.edu
Book NAVY-BIG-21.svg

ISP Student Handbook

To see the student handbook, click here.
Calendar NAVY-BIG-01.svg

Payment Schedule

To see the payment schedule, click here.