Stetson University College of Law, home to the top-ranked trial advocacy program in the country, is launching an online LL.M. in Advocacy, starting in August 2013. Courses leading to the advanced degree will be offered through a part-time, distance-learning platform.

Stetson’s Master of Laws (LL.M.) in Advocacy program is designed to meet the needs of busy legal practitioners who wish to learn the Stetson method of advocacy. Students enrolled in the program will complete courses online with some limited in-person participation. Applicants for admission to the LL.M. program must have a law degree from a U.S. law school or a law school approved by the appropriate authority outside the U.S.

“Stetson sets the benchmark for trial advocacy in the country,” said Charles Rose III, director of the Center for Excellence in Advocacy and Professor of Excellence in Trial Advocacy. “We focus on preparing our students for the practice of law, providing them the skills, knowledge and confidence to be as comfortable before the bench as they are drafting a brief for a case or interviewing a client. Stetson gives students the skills they need to conduct the business of law in the real world.”

The new online LL.M. program is offered through Stetson’s Center for Excellence in Advocacy, home to advocacy teams who have won four international titles, 60 national championships, 40 state titles, 38 best brief awards, and 96 best oralist/advocate awards. In the 18 years that U.S. News and World Report has ranked trial advocacy programs, Stetson has been ranked the top program 14 times.

Stetson’s advocacy center is also a resource for law professors and practitioners, hosting an annual Educating Advocates: Teaching Advocacy Skills conference and maintaining an Advocacy Resource Center.

The deadline for applications is June 1. Application fees for the new program have been waived. To download an application and view eligibility requirements, visit http://law.stetson.edu//academics/advocacy/llm/.