Online law degrees typically include the Juris Doctor (J.D.), Master of Laws (LL.M), and the Master of Science in Law. An online J.D. is a professional program that may qualify a person to sit for the bar exam in their state and become licensed as an attorney, while the others are post-J.D. programs for licensed lawyers who want to expand their legal knowledge in a specialized area. Still others are post-baccalaureate programs for people who do not want to be an attorney, but work in a career where legal knowledge would be beneficial.
Law degrees offered primarily or entirely online are not widely available, since the American Bar Association (ABA) does not accredit online law programs. However, not every state requires people to graduate from an ABA-accredited law school before being allowed to sit for the bar exam. Therefore, online programs tend to be more widely available in those states.
Students in online law programs gain skills in legal analysis, researching case law and statutory law, representing clients, and more. Course work will cover constitutional law, criminal law, contracts, torts, lawyering skills, civil procedure, and other important areas you would expect in a traditional law school. Online LL.M programs typically feature course work in a specialized field of law, such as tax law, or may center on U.S. law for foreign lawyers moving to the country.
While the most common career for graduates of these programs is an attorney, other job opportunities are also available. Those might include legal consulting, legal writing/publishing, paralegal work, legal recruiting management, legal analysis, and legal project management.