Master of Laws (LL.M./ 1st State Law Examination) - Fee Benning: Unknown Freedom.

2022-10-24 The 24-year-old successfully completed her Bachelor of Laws (LL.B.) degree programme in Law (Corporate and Commercial Law) at Leuphana College. For the winter semester, Fee Benning has now started studying the new model programme in Law at the Graduate School. As soon as she completes the Master's programme, she will not only be awarded the academic degree of Master of Laws (LL.M.), but will also be able to sit for the First State Examination in Law, which is a novelty to traditional legal education in Germany.

Fee Benning in front of the Central building ©Leuphana
"I couldn't imagine learning in an anonymous study environment."

Business or law, international or national? Fee Benning was faced with a directional decision after her Abitur, a stay abroad and an internship with a lawyer. "With the Bachelor's programme in Law and its focus on business law, I was able to cover both areas. In addition, I chose Business Administration as a minor. I like Leuphana's interdisciplinary approach. It leads to a holistic understanding and an interdisciplinary exchange," says Fee Benning. But the University of Lüneburg has other advantages for her: "I couldn't imagine learning in an anonymous study environment." With Leuphana, she came across a university with small study groups and close supervision, which create a conducive learning atmosphere - and that is now of significant value to Fee Benning when choosing a Master's degree and preparing for the state examination.

Another decisive point for Fee Benning: the Bachelor's programme at Leuphana is internationally oriented, for example, European law and international law are also part of the curriculum: "I was already able to complete a semester abroad at the University of Limerick during my Bachelor's programme and dealt with core issues of comparative law as well as European and international tax law there. With my studies at Leuphana, I was able to build a bridge abroad. In addition, the transfer of credits from Ireland proved to be unproblematic. Leuphana has always supported me." Fee Benning then wrote her Bachelor's thesis on lawsuits before English civil courts for alleged human rights violations in global supply chains: "During our studies, we dealt with different legal systems such as common law. The Anglo-American legal system traces back significantly to judicial rulings and is based on so-called precedents."

Fee Benning has not regretted her decision to move from Göttingen to Lüneburg: "I am very happy that, thanks to the establishment of the model degree programme, things are now moving forward for me at Leuphana and that, after gaining plenty of international experience and building on my basic understanding of legal thinking and working, I can finally deepen my knowledge of German law and still not ignore global and innovative legal issues," says the Bachelor's graduate. The model degree programme offers a freedom unknown in Germany and demonstrates unique flexibility in legal studies: it is the first degree programme that will offer students the opportunity to obtain both a law master's degree (LL.M.), taking into account societal challenges and transformations, and to pursue the state law examination.