Orientation in USA Law marks 30-year anniversary

For 30 years, the Orientation in USA Law Program at UC Davis School of Law has served international legal and business professionals who wish to gain a better understanding of the U.S. legal system. This year’s program ran July 7-Aug. 3 and welcomed students from 14 countries around the world.

During this time, UC Davis School of Law hosted lawyers, judges, prosecutors and academics (including incoming LL.M. students) who engaged in more classes, seminars, moot court, mock trial and more. Sessions are taught by UC Davis professors as well as practicing judges and attorneys. Academic field trips, including a visit to the California state courts, the Capitol, and the Yolo County Jail introduce students to the California justice system in action. Social events and recreational trips to Lake Tahoe and San Francisco help round out the experience as the participants form a worldwide legal community.

Beth Greenwood, Associate Dean of International Programs at UC Davis School of Law, speaks to the multifaceted experience available to Orientation in USA Law participants: "The Orientation in USA Law program has served thousands of professionals from around the globe over the past 30 years, In addition to being an outstanding program, the Orientation in USA  Law provides an amazing legacy—a global network of thousands of legal professionals who are connected through the rule of law.”

Program participant Kentaro Sekiya moved to Davis with his wife and 2-year-old daughter to participate in the summer programs and LL.M. His main practice is in corporate law and governance, and he looks forward especially to learning negotiation skills as they are taught in the United States.

“UC Davis really focuses on education for international students and is one of the most diverse campuses in the United States,” Sekiya said. “The members of the Davis community are very friendly to us. My daughter will attend preschool near our home, and I think she will speak better English than I will!” he said with a smile.

Traveling from Russia, where he is studying at Moscow State University, Alexander Boltunov was excited to visit the U.S. for the first time and experience the legal and social culture while he improved his English in the legal context. “I liked the UC Davis campus, which has so much green space,” Boltunov reflected. “I also enjoyed lectures from practicing judges and lawyers who have real-world experience.”

Carola Cambiaghi of Italy, Alexandra Stead of Australia and Felix Fernando Sam Chec of Peru  all attended the program from different global offices of the same U.S.-based international law firm. They had not met until arriving in Davis, and became fast friends. Cambiaghi focuses on mergers, acquisitions and global reorganizations. Stead specializes in cross-border and domestic direct tax issues. Sam Chec also works in mergers and acquisitions, as well as banking and finance, and private equity.

Cambiaghi was delighted with “the deeper context and consciousness” she developed for working with her clients. “The whole experience of going to class again and meeting new people has been great,” Cambiaghi shared, “especially enlarging my network, both in terms of people from other countries as well as in other areas of practice, and making new friends.”

“Australia and the USA certainly share core legal fundamentals,” Stead commented, “and, there are some key differences, such as the U.S. Bill of Rights, which make comparing the two countries’ systems quite interesting.” Given that she comes from a common-law legal system and already speaks English, the benefit of participating in this program for Stead is that she gained “depth of knowledge on procedural processes and corporate law, and especially tax-system practicalities, as they operate in the USA. This knowledge will be really relevant to how I interact with clients who have U.S.-based operations.”

Sam Chec found the sessions on contracts and constitutional law the most relevant to his work, and the procedural law sessions much more exciting than he expected. He noted, “I really appreciate how the professors have shaped these subjects so that we can understand them, given that we are not based in the USA.”

Associate Dean Greenwood is proud of the Orientation in USA Law Program’s lasting impact. “Each summer’s legal professionals learn about the US legal system while sharing knowledge from their own legal systems,” Greenwood said. “Their deep engagement with the law inspires us to continuously tailor the program to the changing international legal landscape. It is an incredible honor for King Hall to host these wonderful colleagues.”

For information about Orientation in U.S.A. Law and other International Programs, please visit law.ucdavis.edu/international or contact Kate Asche at internationallaw@ucdavis.edu or 530-757-8569.