Author: Kiran Raval

On September 5, 2024, the ”Building Belonging” podcast, hosted by the Office for Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging at the New York City Bar Association, released their interview with Christina Chelliah, a member of AABANY. The series considers the perspectives of marginalized voices within the legal industry, and in an episode entitled “A Seat at the Table for Foreign-Trained Attorneys,” Chelliah shared her experiences getting admitted and practicing as a foreign-born attorney in New York City.

Originally from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Chelliah explained that her path to becoming an attorney was much different than her counterparts in the United States. In Malaysia, students do not need an undergraduate degree to attend law school, so Chelliah graduated from law school when she was just twenty-two years old. After studying for the bar for a year and then completing a year-long pupillage, she worked as a corporate attorney in mergers and acquisitions at one of Malaysia’s leading firms. After applying for and receiving a Diversity Visa, she moved from Malaysia to the United States, whereupon she was faced with several challenges because of her background.

Chelliah described the major obstacles that most foreign-trained attorneys face. First, because foreign attorneys do not have a J.D. from an American university, they only have the opportunity to sit for the bar in just two states – New York and California. Second, regardless of any professional experience they might already have, they likely would have to go back to school and receive an LLM degree. Chelliah’s story, however, was different as she came to the US already with an extensive common law background and a British law degree, thus exempting her from having to complete an LLM program. Though she initially was grateful for this – as it meant she wouldn’t have to pay for additional schooling – it made getting jobs all the more difficult for Chelliah as she neither had a JD or LLM. She commented, “When I tell [recruiters] that I am neither [a JD or LLM], people are confused … I come under this third, unseen category.” 

Chelliah explained that a lack of understanding around how foreign-born attorneys are trained is commonplace among recruiters. Said Chelliah, “There is this divide … between how you get qualified to sit for the Bar in New York and what happens after you pass the Bar and how you are perceived. It’s [due to] that lack of understanding of what foreign credentials mean … we have been left out of the process of inclusion or consideration for positions because of that first part of our resume.” This problem, Chelliah stated, is widespread and institutionalized. “The system is not set up to provide means and ways … for people who are not the traditional type of lawyers to get into the profession.” 

Chelliah identified several crucial ways that the legal system could better handle these issues moving forward. First, she noted that it is imperative to keep having conversations like these. She proposed that the Board of Law Examiners and bar associations work together to share more resources for foreign-trained attorneys. Bar associations, for example, could set up sections on their websites or a committee to support these individuals. Second, Chelliah called for a reform to technology and application services to account for the fact that not all attorneys have an undergraduate degree. Third, she asked HR departments and recruiters to revise their training practices and place a greater emphasis on understanding the different trajectories beyond a traditional American education for attorneys. And finally, she implored listeners “[to] be willing to understand that what you think you know about the extent of DEI within the legal profession is an ever-evolving topic.”

To listen to the full podcast, please click here.