• 

  Brooke Arlington

  Lecturer

• 

  Rebecca Pendleton

  Lecturer

No, this is designed as a basic introduction to a variety of aspects of US law studies. While some legal background will be helpful, this is designed to start at the beginning and assumes no prior knowledge. Non-lawyers can take the course, as well.

No. While the course is designed to address topics that are especially useful for students entering a BU LLM program, it is also useful for international students preparing to enter LLM programs at other law schools.

In each class, ASIL teaches you the skills you will need to succeed in your LLM program, and then allows you the opportunity to practice and apply those skills so you can see your own improvement. ASIL focuses specifically on the following areas:

• Introduction to Survival Skills (Notetaking and Time Management Strategies)
• Introduction to Survival Skills (Active Reading and Case Briefing)
• Participating in US Law School Classes and Case Synthesis
• Legal Reasoning and Objective Legal Writing (Case Briefing and Outlining)
• Writing Law School Exams
• Speaking Skills

Reading is a vital skill for success in any US LLM program. Each professor will provide a group of slides to the students and perhaps some short readings that can be reviewed on an overnight basis. There will be no cost for books or materials.

No. ASIL is a zero-credit course and does not count toward LLM degree requirements or GPA. The course is designed to help students strengthen the academic skills they will use in their LLM studies anywhere in the United States.

ASIL is required for certain qualifying Two-Year LLM students who have completed at least one semester of the Two-Year LLM Program. For incoming one-year LLM students and students entering LLM programs outside BU Law, ASIL is optional but strongly recommended.

ASIL is especially useful for international students who want additional preparation before beginning an LLM program in the United States. It is also appropriate for lawyers, law graduates, and other professionals who want a short introduction to US legal education, case reading, legal analysis, academic expectations, and classroom participation.

Classes are held in person during the two-week program. Classes meet in the BU Law Tower from 9:30am – 1:30pm daily, Monday through Thursday. A sample schedule (for reference only) is provided below.

August 10

•  Introduction to Survival Skills (Notetaking and Time Management Strategies)

August 11

• Introduction to Survival Skills (Active Reading and Case Briefing)

August 12

• Participating in US Law School Classes and Case Synthesis

August 13

• Legal Reasoning and Objective Legal Writing (Case Briefing and Outlining)

Week 2

August 17

• Writing Law School Exams

August 18

• Writing Law School Exams continued, and Oral Argument Skills

August 19

• Writing Law School Exams continued, and Oral Argument Skills

August 20

• Oral Argument

Yes. ASIL is designed to help students become familiar with the expectations of US legal education before the semester begins. Students will practice reading and briefing cases, taking notes, participating in class, synthesizing legal rules, preparing for exams, and presenting an oral argument.

Yes. Because ASIL is offered before the start of the academic year, it gives students an early opportunity to meet classmates, become familiar with BU Law, and begin building a sense of community before the fall semester begins.

Yes. Students will have opportunities to practice core academic and oral communication skills and receive feedback from BU Law faculty during the course.

The final project is an oral argument in one of BU Law’s state-of-the-art courtrooms. This project gives students an opportunity to apply the skills they have practiced during the course. The project is designed as a learning exercise, not as a graded law school exam.

Students should be prepared to participate in an English-language academic setting. ASIL is designed to support international students as they build confidence with US law school skills, but it is not an English-language course and does not replace any English proficiency requirement for admission to an LLM program.

Yes. Students with prior exposure to legal English or US legal education may still benefit from ASIL because the course focuses on practical academic skills, classroom expectations, legal analysis, exam preparation, and oral advocacy.

Tuition for this year’s session is $2,000. Tuition must be paid by the first day of the program.

Students who choose to withdraw from ASIL must do so in writing no later than the day before the first day of class in order to receive a 100% refund of tuition and fees. Students withdrawing in the first three days of the course will receive a 100% tuition refund, but no refund of the $60 fee. As of the fourth day of the course, no refund is available.

No. Students who are enrolling in one of BU Law’s LLM programs will take this course within the 30-day period before the start of their graduate program during which they are allowed to enter the United States. International students who are not enrolled in a BU degree program must contact us at isso@bu.edu to discuss their visa status.

Scott G. Alvarez, retired General Counsel, Federal Reserve Board

Grant F. Butler, Partner, K&L Gates LLP

Richard Daingerfield, Member, Board of Directors, Peapack-Gladstone Bank, EVP & General Counsel of Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (retired)

Elisabeth Ditomassi, Former Chief Compliance Officer, AXA XL.

Kevin Handly, Director, Graduate Program in Banking and Financial Law and Graduate Tax Program, Boston University School of Law

Samantha M. Kirby, Partner, Goodwin Procter LLP

Frank Morrissey, Partner, Morrissey Wilson & Zafiropoulos LLP

All admitted Banking & Financial Law LLM students may choose to take this summer financial services preparatory course, but for certain prospective students, this course will be strongly recommended as a means of overcoming a lack of financial services experience. The course is also open to students enrolled in other BU LLM programs, students enrolled in non-BU LLM Programs, and non-LLM students on a case-by-case basis.

No, this is designed as a basic introduction to a variety of legal aspects of financial services law. While some legal background will be helpful, this is designed to start at the beginning and assumes no prior knowledge. Non-lawyers can take the course, as well.

Each professor will provide a group of slides to the students and perhaps some short readings that can be reviewed on an overnight basis. There will be no cost for books or materials.

Tuition is $1650. Tuition must be paid by the first day of the program.

Students who choose to withdraw from Financial Services Fundamentals must do so in writing no later than the day before classes begin to receive 100% refund of tuition and fees. Students withdrawing in the first three days of the course will receive 100% tuition refund, but no refund of the $60 fee.  As of the fourth day of the course, no refund is available.

There will be a 90-minute objective examination on the last day of the program, to determine that the student was sufficiently attentive to the material presented in the course and, in the case of Graduate Banking Program students, a particular student is prepared to move into the Banking Program. The course is not offered for academic credit.

No. Students who are enrolling in one of BU Law’s LLM programs will  take this course within the 30-day period before the start of their graduate program during which they are allowed to enter the United States. International students who are not enrolled in a BU degree program must contact us at banklaw@bu.edu to discuss their visa status.

Jera L Bradshaw, Shareholder, Greenberg Traurig, LLP

John Buchman, Chair Emeriti, The George Washington University Law School – The Business and Finance Advisory Council Chairman, Lecturer in Law, University of Southern California Gould School of Law.

Hugh Conroy, Partner, Cleary Gottlieb Steen and Hamilton LLP, New York and former Vice Chair of the Banking Law Committee of the American Bar Association

Sarah Elliott, Advisor, Coastal Community Bank and Bridge Labs (a Stripe company); former Independent Director, Anchorage Digital Bank; former General Counsel and Chief Compliance Officer, ONE; Vice Chair, Banking Law Committee of the American Bar Association

John M. Geiringer, Partner, Barack Ferrazzano Kirschbaum & Nagelberg LLP, Chicago, and former Vice Chair of the Banking Law Committee of the American Bar Association

Kevin J. Handly, Director, Graduate Programs in Banking and Financial Law and Taxation, Lecturer in Law, Boston University School of Law, Principal, bostonbankinglaw.com

Cornelius K. Hurley, the first director of Boston University’s Center for Finance, Law & Policy

Jay Johnson, Managing Director and Deputy Chief Counsel, Technology, Digital and Innovation legal group, Charles Schwab

Sara A. Kelsey, Former General Counsel of the FDIC and former Adjunct Professor, New York University Law School and New York Law School; Solo Practitioner

Joseph E. Silvia, Partner, Duane Morris LLP, former Counsel of the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, and Chair of Banking Law Committee of the American Bar Association

Karol K. Sparks, Senior Counsel, Barack Ferrazzano Kirschbaum & Nagelberg LLP, Chicago; formerly Lecturer in Law, Boston University School of Law; former Chair of the Banking Law Committee of the American Bar Association

Regular Registration Fee as of May 21, 2026

• Government (active and recently laid off) and Public Interest Employees and Graduates of Boston University School of Law – $1500
• General Public – $1700

Groups of at least three registrants from the same employer receive a discount of $100 per registrant for any of the above tuition costs. Please register and pay with credit card, then contact us at banklaw@bu.edu for a refund of $100 per member of a three or more-person group. Please feel free to contact us at banklaw@bu.edu or by phone at 617-353-3023 with any questions.

Meeting attendees may use this booking link to reserve rooms at the Hotel Commonwealth:  2026 BU Fundamentals of Banking Law – Booking Link. 

Attendees who prefer to reserve rooms by phone can do so by identifying yourselves as part of the BU Fundamentals of Banking Law – 2026 room block when calling the Reservations Department toll-free at 1 (866)-784-4000 (in the United States and Canada) or 1 (617)-532-5019 to take advantage of the discounted group rate. You may also make your reservation via e-mail at allreservations@hotelcommonwealth.com.