#itlaw

Meme Source: Granoff, S, "Copyright, Memes, and Article 13" (2019), Medium

Regulation of Certifying Authority under Information Technology Act, 2000

 By Amit Sheoran (Symbiosis Law School, Nagpur) Introduction Modern era is the era of science and technology. Science and technology make our life easy, fast, and smart. We can keep our documents in digital form and also can share with any authority and any person whom we want to share. Today we see the authority of various organization and institutions create and send our certificate or any…

The Information Technology Law online LLM at the University of Edinburgh is the second LLM I am taking. I already have a master's degree in Theory and Philosophy of Law from Rio de Janeiro State University (UERJ), which I acquired in 2013.

Although you probably have never heard about it, UERJ is one of Brazil's most prestigious law schools. Currently, 2 of the 11 Brazilian Supreme Court judges have studied and are professors there. The selection process is by public exam. In other words, applicants have to read papers and books that are announced yearly and take a test about them according to the area of Law they want to study. People whose primary language is not Portuguese, also have to take a Portuguese test. The course is free, and scholarships offering additional monthly payments are available.

But it is not a world-renowned university as Edinburgh. Although UERJ Law School is highly regarded nationally, it does not even appear at international rankings, and teaching is in Portuguese.  Therefore, for those who want an international career or are looking for more impact on their academic publications, it is not the best place to take an LLM.

Besides, six years after having finished my first master's, studying specifically the Information Technology Law LLM seemed like an excellent way to update my legal knowledge in a relatively new area of the Law. Besides, it is an area that lacks academic publication, with a lot of room to grow, and that I would be unable to study in Brazil.

So, regarding the question "is a second LLM worth it?", my answer is: I think it depends. It depends on your professional goals; it depends on the current stage of your career; it depends on where you are from; it depends on when and where you took the first one.

And why not going for a Ph.D., you may be wondering. Actually, as I have already posted, I was looking for a Ph.D. when I came across this LLM and chose to go for it. I still intend to take a Ph.D.. However, it would be better if I could take it remotely, without having to live abroad. This was already my preference since I am very attached to my family, and the desire to do so only grew with the pandemic. I do like to take short courses abroad, and I would be ok with spending short periods on campus for the Ph.D.. Still, I do not want to leave my home for long periods, and I believe that the moment we are going through may build the basis for this kind of mixed or remote education shortly.

Is there a role for an Information Technology Lawyer in 2020?

At first glance, the question may look strange. If we are living in the Age of Information, in a more connected world than ever, why wouldn't there be? The answer is simple: because in the Age of Information, every lawyer must be something of an IT Lawyer and must have digital skills. In this context, the previous question may be re-written as: wouldn't the IT Lawyer be just a generalist? What makes this specialisation something different?

First, I believe it is all about the range of courses. You may study digital software taxation in a tax course, or digital currencies in banking law, or maybe smart contracts in business law, or cybercrime in criminal Law. But if you want to study all those topics together and others, such as robotics, artificial intelligence and telecommunications (think about the legal issues related to 5G), you must choose an LLM related to technology. Also, at least for me, the IT Law focus helps to achieve comprehensive legal reasoning on the subject and the courses complement each other.

Second, the fact that IT Law per passes many law domains does not make it less prominent, on the contrary, the field becomes more important, because it enables the IT Lawyer to work on many areas of the Law.

Finally, the LLM student may choose to focus on subareas, according to their preferences and the skills.

Regarding my motivation, I started taking this LLM for personal satisfaction and academic enrichment. Since I am a public servant, it does not grants me more money, and since I have a lifelong job, I am not looking for openings elsewhere. However, I am having opportunities to apply my learnings to my job, and people have been inviting me to give seminars and lectures or to write book chapters about IT Law topics.

Therefore, although the "Master of Laws" in "Information Technology Law" is not a title that will substantially change my professional status, it has been changing my academic standing. The fact that I already have a master's degree in Brazil, in Theory and Philosophy of Law, seems to help, but it looks clear that it is the focus on technology that people want to hear about. In other words, it is clear that there is a shortage of specialists in this field.

And if I were a lawyer, I don't think it would be difficult to find a job at a reputable law firm after this LLM.