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Mexican lawyers in the United States

In Mexico, the law degree is almost always the Licenciado en Derecho (at some universities, Abogado), and what allows you to practice is the cédula profesional (professional license) issued by the Dirección General de Profesiones of the SEP (Ministry of Public Education) when it registers your degree. The federal statute on the professions requires neither a state exam to practice nor membership in a bar association, and the Constitution does not mention bar membership; each Mexican state also has its own law on the professions. In the United States, your degree is a civil-law degree: which route it opens depends on each state, and we explain it in their guides.

Degree in Mexico
Licenciado en Derecho (licentiate in law; at some universities, Abogado)
Legal system
Civil law
Exam to practice
No, under the federal statute on the professions: neither a state exam nor mandatory bar membership
Document legalization
Hague Apostille
Bar association
Not mandatory. Among the requirements to practice in…
Last reviewed
November 9, 2026

Law school in Mexico

The Licenciatura en Derecho is a university program, and each university sets its length in its curriculum. In the official curricula we consulted it lasts ten semesters or cycles: at UNAM (2019 Curriculum, 450 credits), at the Universidad Autónoma de Aguascalientes (2021 Curriculum, 398 credits), at the Universidad Panamericana in Guadalajara and in the Abogado program of the Universidad de Guadalajara. The Universidad Veracruzana organizes its 2024 Curriculum by areas and credits, with a minimum of 382. In its guidelines on higher education options, which private institutions must follow, the SEP sets a minimum of 300 credits and 4,800 hours for a licenciatura, counting both hours under an instructor's guidance and independent work; in the in-person (escolarizada) modality, at least 2,400 of those hours are with an instructor (Agreement 04/03/24, published in the DOF, the official gazette, on April 1, 2024).

To graduate, you must complete:

  • Passing every course and credit in your curriculum. At UNAM, that is 51 required courses and 12 electives, 450 credits in all.
  • Servicio social (social service), which the law defines as temporary work, "mediante retribución" (for remuneration), done by professionals and students in the interest of society and the State (Article 53). The Ley Reglamentaria del Artículo 5o. Constitucional (the federal statute on the professions) provides that professional curricula shall require it before the degree is granted, for no less than six months and no more than two years (Article 55). At UNAM it is a requirement for the degree: at least 480 hours, over no less than six months, starting once you have 70% of the credits (Reglamento General del Servicio Social, Articles 5, 6 and 10). At the Universidad Autónoma de Aguascalientes it is 500 hours.
  • A graduation option (opción de titulación), set by each university. UNAM's 2019 Curriculum offers seven: a thesis and professional exam (the only one that can earn honors), graduate studies, completion of all credits with a high academic record, a general knowledge exam, extended and in-depth coursework, legal practice through professional work, and a research project on national or global legal challenges. The Universidad Autónoma de Aguascalientes requires an exit exam.
  • A language, at some universities. To graduate, UNAM requires reading comprehension of a foreign language (English, French, German, Italian or Chinese) or of a Mexican indigenous language.

The courses in the law degree

Each university approves its own curriculum. The courses below are those of the 2019 Curriculum of UNAM's Faculty of Law, approved by its Technical Council on November 8, 2018 and by the Academic Council for the Social Sciences on March 20, 2019, for students entering from the 2020-1 term on: ten semesters, 450 credits and a pensum (total study load) of 4,032 hours; 51 required courses in the first eight semesters and 12 electives in the last two, chosen from 62. The revised curriculum was approved for the Faculty's three modalities: in-person, open and distance. The same areas, under other names and in another order, appear in the curricula of the Universidad Veracruzana, the Universidad Autónoma de Aguascalientes, the Universidad de Guadalajara and the Universidad Panamericana, cited in the sources: Guadalajara, for example, numbers its courses (Derecho Civil I to IV) and adds a case study in each of its first eight cycles.

Foundations of law
Introduction to Legal Theory (Introducción a la Teoría del Derecho), Roman Law I and II (Derecho Romano, Derecho Romano II), History of Mexican Law (Historia del Derecho Mexicano), Sociology of Law (Sociología Jurídica), General Theory of the State (Teoría General del Estado), Contemporary Legal Systems (Sistemas Jurídicos Contemporáneos) and Philosophy of Law (Filosofía del Derecho).
Civil law
Juridical Acts and Persons (Acto Jurídico y Derecho de las Personas), Property and Real Rights (Bienes y Derechos Reales), Obligations (Obligaciones), Civil Contracts (Contratos Civiles), Family Law (Derecho Familiar) and Succession (Derecho Sucesorio).
Commercial and economic law
Commercial Law (Derecho Mercantil), Negotiable Instruments and Credit Transactions (Títulos y Operaciones de Crédito), Commercial Contracts (Contratos Mercantiles), Banking and Securities Law (Derecho Bancario y Bursátil), Economics and Economic Law (Economía y Derecho Económico), and Foreign Trade Law (Régimen Jurídico del Comercio Exterior).
Constitutional law and human rights
Constitutional Theory (Teoría de la Constitución), Constitutional Law (Derecho Constitucional), Human Rights and their Guarantees (Derechos Humanos y sus Garantías), Amparo and Constitutional Procedure (Juicio de Amparo y Derecho Procesal Constitucional), and Conventionality Review and Case Law (Control de Convencionalidad y Jurisprudencia).
Administrative and tax law
Administrative Law (Derecho Administrativo), Administrative Procedure (Derecho Procesal Administrativo), Tax Law (Derecho Fiscal) and Tax Procedure (Derecho Procesal Fiscal).
Criminal law
Criminal Law (Derecho Penal), Specific Offenses (Delitos en Particular) and Criminal Procedure (Derecho Procesal Penal).
Labor and social security law
Labor Law (Derecho del Trabajo), Labor Procedure (Derecho Procesal del Trabajo) and Social Security Law (Derecho de la Seguridad Social).
Procedure and dispute resolution
General Theory of Procedure (Teoría General del Proceso), Civil Procedure (Derecho Procesal Civil) and Alternative Dispute Resolution (Mecanismos Alternos de Solución de Controversias); the other procedural courses are in their own areas.
International law
Public International Law (Derecho Internacional Público) and Private International Law, or conflict of laws (Derecho Internacional Privado).
Other courses in the curriculum
Agrarian Law and Rural Development (Derecho Agrario y Desarrollo Rural), Indigenous Law (Derecho Indígena), Environmental Law and Sustainable Development (Derecho Ambiental y Desarrollo Sustentable), Energy Law (Derecho Energético) and Telecommunications Law (Derecho de las Telecomunicaciones).
Argumentation, research and ethics
University Life and the Culture of Legality (Ser Universitario y Cultura de la Legalidad), Professional Ethics of the Jurist (Ética Profesional del Jurista), Legal Research Methods (Metodología de la Investigación Jurídica), Rhetoric for Legal Interpretation and Argumentation (Retórica para la Interpretación y Argumentación Jurídica), Courtroom Speaking and Legal Debate (Oratoria Forense y Debate Jurídico), and the Case Method (Método del Caso).
Electives
Twelve free electives, of 7 credits each, in the ninth and tenth semesters.

Other curricula place social service and practice within the degree: the Universidad Veracruzana gives 12 credits to social service and 12 to the final graduation project (experiencia recepcional); the Universidad de Guadalajara's Abogado program includes professional internships in the seventh cycle and social service in the eighth and ninth, and the Universidad Autónoma de Aguascalientes requires 500 hours of social service and 240 of professional internships. Some curricula include a foreign language: Legal English (Inglés Jurídico) at the Universidad Panamericana; Foreign Language I to III and Specialized Foreign Language I and II at the Universidad de Guadalajara; Language I and II at the Universidad Veracruzana.

Year by year

According to the curriculum map of the 2019 Curriculum of UNAM's Faculty of Law, with semesters grouped two by two.

First year (semesters 1 and 2)
Juridical Acts and Persons, Roman Law, History of Mexican Law, Introduction to Legal Theory, University Life and the Culture of Legality, Sociology of Law and General Theory of the State; then Roman Law II, Constitutional Theory, Contemporary Legal Systems, Property and Real Rights, Professional Ethics of the Jurist, Criminal Law, and Courtroom Speaking and Legal Debate.
Second year (3 and 4)
Legal Research Methods, Constitutional Law, Rhetoric for Legal Interpretation and Argumentation, Obligations, General Theory of Procedure and Specific Offenses; then Economics and Economic Law, Human Rights and their Guarantees, Public International Law, Civil Contracts, Alternative Dispute Resolution and Commercial Law.
Third year (5 and 6)
Administrative Law, Amparo and Constitutional Procedure, Private International Law, Family Law, Civil Procedure, and Negotiable Instruments and Credit Transactions; then Administrative Procedure, Conventionality Review and Case Law, Indigenous Law, Labor Law, Succession, Criminal Procedure and Commercial Contracts.
Fourth year (7 and 8)
Philosophy of Law, Agrarian Law and Rural Development, Labor Procedure, Foreign Trade Law, Tax Law, and Banking and Securities Law; then the Case Method, Environmental Law and Sustainable Development, Social Security Law, Energy Law, Tax Procedure and Telecommunications Law.
Fifth year (9 and 10)
Six free electives each semester.

The heaviest courses

In UNAM's 2019 Curriculum, almost every required course is worth 7 or 8 credits; University Life and the Culture of Legality is worth 6. Worth 8 are Roman Law I and II, Introduction to Legal Theory, General Theory of the State, Constitutional Theory, Contemporary Legal Systems, Legal Research Methods, Rhetoric for Legal Interpretation and Argumentation, Philosophy of Law and the Case Method. The longest sequences are civil law, from Juridical Acts and Persons to Succession (six courses, one in each of the first six semesters), and procedure: General Theory of Procedure, Amparo and Constitutional Procedure, and five procedural courses (civil, criminal, administrative, labor and tax).

Where to study law in Mexico

To be confirmed: how many law programs (licenciaturas en Derecho) there are in Mexico. The official figure, with its date, is in the statistical yearbooks of ANUIES, the national association of universities, which we could not consult. Below, some of the country's law schools, with their official pages.

Some of the country's law schools, with their official pages. This is not a complete list or a list of approved universities: check yours in the official register, below.

Accreditation and licensing

Law school accreditation

Universities granted autonomy by law, such as UNAM, set their own curricula and programs (Constitution, Article 3, section VII). Private universities need official recognition of studies (reconocimiento de validez oficial de estudios, RVOE) for each program, granted by the SEP or by each state's education authority: SEP Agreement 17/11/17 (DOF of November 13, 2017) regulates the RVOE for higher education and cites the concurrent power that the Ley General de Educación (General Education Act) then gave to both. Other private schools are incorporated into an autonomous university instead: UNAM's General Regulation on Social Service, for example, also applies to students of "las escuelas incorporadas" (incorporated schools) (Article 5). To be confirmed: the legal basis for incorporation and how to verify it. Under the Ley Reglamentaria del Artículo 5o. Constitucional, only degrees issued by public or decentralized institutions and by private ones with an RVOE are professional degrees (Article 1). The RVOE number usually appears on the university's documents: the law curriculum of the Universidad Panamericana in Guadalajara, for example, cites its 1986 SEP RVOE. To be confirmed: whether there is a voluntary accreditation of law programs apart from the RVOE, and which body grants it.

The license to practice

The Constitution leaves it to each state's law to decide which professions require a degree to practice, under what conditions, and which authority issues it (Article 5). In Mexico City, and throughout the country in federal matters, the Ley Reglamentaria del Artículo 5o. Constitucional applies (Article 7); a 1974 transitional article, in force until the laws mentioned in its Article 2 are issued, lists the licenciado en derecho among the professions that require a degree. To practice in Mexico City, that law requires full enjoyment of your civil rights, a lawfully issued and registered degree, and a license to practice from the SEP's Dirección General de Profesiones (Article 25): the cédula profesional, which the Dirección issues when it registers your degree, serving as a license to practice and as identification in your professional work (Articles 3 and 23). Since October 1, 2018, the SEP has issued it online, as an electronic cédula: your university first registers your electronic degree, and you apply with your e.firma (electronic signature) and pay the fee online. Courts do not accept as counsel or adviser to a party anyone without a registered degree, with some exceptions (Article 26), and anyone who practices without a cédula has no right to charge fees (Article 68). Some states also issue their own cédula: in October 2018, the Dirección General de Profesiones counted eight. Jalisco, for example, issues it through its state Dirección de Profesiones. The Dirección General de Profesiones may also authorize a pasante, a student who does not yet hold the degree, to practice for no more than three years, unless the Secretary of Public Education extends it in special cases (Article 30): that authorization is not the cédula.

Not mandatory. Among the requirements to practice in Mexico City, the Ley Reglamentaria del Artículo 5o. Constitucional does not include membership in a bar association (colegio): it requires full enjoyment of your civil rights, a registered degree and a license to practice (Article 25). It says that professionals in the same field "may form" (podrán constituir) one or more colegios, up to five per field (Article 44), and Article 5 of the Constitution does not mention bar membership either. The law makes the Dirección General de Profesiones the link between the State and the professional associations (Article 21), and gives these associations purposes such as overseeing professional practice, arbitrating between professionals and clients who agree to it, sanctioning professionals who fail in their duties and expelling members (Article 50).

Examination process

There is no state exam to practice law: the Ley Reglamentaria del Artículo 5o. Constitucional requires a registered degree and the cédula, with no separate exam. The "professional exam" (examen profesional) that many universities mention is part of graduation: at UNAM, for example, the thesis is defended in a professional exam. Each state has its own law on the professions; if you will practice outside Mexico City, check your state's.

How to verify the license of a lawyer from Mexico

The official lookup is Registro Nacional de Profesionistas (National Registry of Professionals, SEP). It is run by the SEP's Dirección General de Profesiones. You search by cédula number or by name, and it shows the cédula number, the profession, the year of issue and the institution. According to its terms, the result is only preliminary (the document that certifies it is requested from the Dirección General de Profesiones as "Antecedentes Profesionales"), and the registry holds only the cédulas issued by the federal government: if the lawyer registered with a state authority, ask that authority. The electronic cédula can also be verified with its QR code.

Lawyer discipline in Mexico

The federal statute on the professions creates no single body that disciplines lawyers: neither a mandatory bar association nor a bar court. In Mexico City and in federal matters, the Ley Reglamentaria del Artículo 5o. Constitucional charges the SEP's Dirección General de Profesiones with overseeing professional practice (Article 21): it registers degrees, issues cédulas and records in each professional's file the sanctions that involve suspension from practice (Article 23). Each state has its own law on the professions.

A lawyer's misconduct is addressed in several ways. Offenses committed in the practice of the profession are punished by the competent authorities under the criminal code (Article 61). If a client is dissatisfied with the service, the law provides for an expert review (juicio de peritos), judicial or private if the parties so agree, which examines whether the professional acted according to the profession, with the proper means and time; the procedure is confidential (Article 34). Professional associations may sanction professionals who fail in their professional duties, when the acts or omissions are not ones the authorities must sanction, and may expel, by a two-thirds vote of their members and after hearing them, anyone who dishonors the profession (Article 50). Anyone may report a person who practices without a degree or authorization (Article 73).

How a lawyer loses the license

A lawyer loses the right to practice when a court sentences them to disqualification from practice (inhabilitación): the Dirección General de Profesiones then cancels the registration of their degree and must give the cancellation wide publicity (Ley Reglamentaria del Artículo 5o. Constitucional, Article 23, section VII). Under that law, what cancels the registration is the court sentence, not a sanction by an association. To be confirmed: the suspension and disqualification penalties that the Código Penal Federal (Federal Criminal Code) and the state codes provide for lawyers' offenses, and whether a lawyer may practice again after serving them; we could not read the full current text of the Code.

The law requires the cancellation of a degree's registration to be publicized (Article 23, section VII). In the expert review, only a decision against the professional may be made public (Article 34). To be confirmed: whether the public cédula search shows suspensions or cancellations.

The certificates you will be asked for in the United States

For Foreign Legal Consultant, to register as in-house counsel or for the character and fitness review, states usually ask for recent proof that your license is in good standing, and for your records.

  • Cédula profesional (professional license; Dirección General de Profesiones, SEP): your proof that your degree is registered and that you hold the license to practice.
    The Dirección General de Profesiones issues it when it registers your degree; since October 2018, online and as an electronic cédula, verified with its QR code. The federal statute on the professions provides for no bar association or court that certifies you are in good standing, with no sanctions. To be confirmed: what document each U.S. board accepts instead; ask it before you apply.
  • Federal criminal record certificate (Constancia de Antecedentes Penales Federales): your federal criminal record: it shows whether you served a sentence in a prison.
    It is issued by the Órgano Administrativo Desconcentrado de Prevención y Readaptación Social, part of the Secretaría de Seguridad y Protección Ciudadana (Ministry of Security). According to the Consulate of Mexico in Atlanta (page of January 16, 2025), it is requested online, at constancias.oadprs.gob.mx, or in person at a consulate, which asks for your CURP (population registry number), your birth certificate, an official ID and a document showing why you need it; that consulate had temporarily suspended the service. It is a federal document: it is apostilled by the Secretaría de Gobernación (Ministry of the Interior).
  • State criminal record certificate (constancia de antecedentes penales del estado): your record in the state where you request it: the federal certificate does not include it.
    An authority of each state issues it. From the United States, the Consulate of Mexico in San Diego starts the process, and then you or a relative must go to an office in Mexico (page of November 21, 2022). As a state document, it is apostilled in the state that issued it. To be confirmed: which authority issues it in your state and whether it can be requested online.
  • Registry data certificate (constancia de datos registrales, Fiscalía General de la República): if you are asked for it: it covers offenses committed or proceedings pending nationwide, according to the Consulate of Mexico in San Diego.
    The consulate starts the process, and then you or a relative must go to an office in Mexico.

How to check that your university is recognized

Mexico has no single registry of law schools. If your university is public or decentralized, the law recognizes its degrees; if it is private, each program needs its RVOE, from the SEP or your state's education authority, and its number usually appears on your documents, unless the school is incorporated into an autonomous university such as UNAM (Ley Reglamentaria del Artículo 5o. Constitucional, Article 1; Agreement 17/11/17). Your cédula profesional is also proof: the Dirección General de Profesiones issues it only when it registers a lawfully issued degree (Articles 3 and 25). To be confirmed: the SEP's official public RVOE search, and how to verify that a school is incorporated.

If your university closed

To be confirmed: who keeps the records, and issues documents, for a private university that closed or lost its RVOE. Ask the authority that granted the RVOE, the SEP or your state's, before you start.

Documents usually requested

  • Your Licenciado en Derecho or Abogado degree and, if you have it, the record of your professional exam or of the graduation option you chose.
  • Your transcript (certificado de estudios), with the grades and credits for each course.
  • Your program's curriculum and the course syllabi, with their hours, if your university certifies them.
  • Your cédula profesional, federal or state.
  • The certificate that you completed your social service, if your university issues it separately.
  • Your passport or an official ID.
  • An English translation of everything that is in Spanish.

Hague Apostille

Mexico is a party to the 1961 Hague Apostille Convention: it acceded on December 1, 1994, and the Convention has been in force for Mexico since August 14, 1995, according to the HCCH. The United States is also a party, so your Mexican public documents are apostilled and need no consular legalization. The apostille is handled in Mexico: embassies and consulates do not issue apostilles. Federal documents are apostilled by the Secretaría de Gobernación, through its Dirección de Coordinación Política con los Poderes de la Unión; a state's documents, by the Secretaría de Gobierno of the state that issued them, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The HCCH lists 32 state authorities. A federal cédula is issued by the Dirección General de Profesiones, a federal authority; a state cédula, by the state. To be confirmed, document by document: which authority apostilles your cédula, your degree and your transcript, and whether they first need a legalization by the education authority; it depends on who issued them. Apostille before you translate, so the translation includes the apostille.

What weighs when a degree from Mexico is evaluated

  • Civil law. Your degree is a civil-law degree. To take their bar exam with a degree from another country, several states require additional study in the United States (an LL.M., some credits at an ABA-approved law school, or a J.D.), and some, such as New York and Texas, require it precisely of those who studied civil law. What each one requires is in its guide, below.
  • Length and hours. Some states compare the length of your degree with that of a J.D. UNAM's curriculum totals 450 credits and a pensum of 4,032 hours over ten semesters; the SEP's guidelines for private institutions require at least 300 credits and 4,800 hours, counting independent work. As those figures show, neither credits nor hours are counted the same way in every curriculum. That is why it matters that your documents state the class hours for each course.
  • Your degree and your cédula. The degree proves your education; the cédula, that you may practice. For Foreign Legal Consultant, and in some states to take the bar exam with your degree, you must be admitted and in good standing in your country. The federal statute on the professions provides for no bar association or court that certifies it. To be confirmed: what document each board accepts; ask it before you apply.
  • If your cédula is a state one. In October 2018, the Dirección General de Profesiones counted eight states that issue their own cédula. To be confirmed: whether a U.S. board accepts a state cédula in the same way as the federal one.
  • Modality. UNAM also offers its curriculum in open and distance modalities. Some states do not count distance courses or do not accept a degree earned mainly at a distance, as our New York and Texas guides explain. If you studied that way, tell your evaluator.
  • Your university's recognition. Some states require a degree from a law school accredited or recognized in your country. In Mexico, if your university is private, the proof is your program's RVOE or its incorporation into an autonomous university; we explain it above, in "How to check that your university is recognized".
  • Your years of practice. For Foreign Legal Consultant (Legal Consultant in New York, Registered Foreign Legal Consultant in California and Foreign Law Consultant in Georgia), Texas, New York, Florida, California and Georgia require several years practicing the law of your country, and some require evidence of each position; the District of Columbia's Special Legal Consultant has no minimum number of years. Keep that evidence starting now; how many years and what evidence, in each state's guide.
  • Documents your university sends. Some states want your transcript sent directly by your university, not by you, with an English translation. Request it early.

Good to know

Your degree and your cédula are two different things. Your university grants the degree when you finish your courses, social service and graduation option; the Dirección General de Profesiones grants the cédula when it registers your degree, and the cédula is what allows you to practice. In the United States you may be asked for proof of both.

If you do not yet hold the degree, a pasante authorization from the Dirección General de Profesiones lasts no more than three years, unless the Secretary of Public Education extends it in special cases, and it is not the cédula (Ley Reglamentaria del Artículo 5o. Constitucional, Article 30). To be confirmed with each board whether it takes it into account.

The routes to practice in the United States

What a Mexican degree opens depends on each state. These NAFA pages explain each route and the evaluation of your degree; each state's rules are in its guide, below.

Where to move forward with this degree

  • Texas Bar exam with your degree, your admission in Mexico and an LL.M. that meets its criteria; without an exam, Foreign Legal Consultant, also to work as in-house counsel. The requirements are in its guide.
  • California If you are admitted in Mexico, you take its bar exam with no further study in the United States. You can also register as a Registered Foreign Legal Consultant.
  • New York Where the most foreign-trained lawyers take the bar exam; with a civil-law degree, after an LL.M. It also has the Legal Consultant license (Foreign Legal Consultant) and in-house counsel registration.
  • Florida Without an exam: Foreign Legal Consultant, or in-house counsel for a company in Florida. Its bar exam requires prior practice in another U.S. jurisdiction.
  • District of Columbia Bar exam with your foreign degree, after taking credits at an ABA-approved law school, and Special Legal Consultant. The requirements are in its guide.
  • Georgia Bar exam with a degree from a law school recognized in your country, if you are authorized to practice there and complete an LL.M. that meets its criteria; it also has Foreign Law Consultant.
  • Louisiana Its private law follows the civil-law tradition: instead of a full LL.M., an equivalency determination and credits at an ABA law school. We found no Foreign Legal Consultant route.
  • Puerto Rico Civil law and a bar exam (the Reválida) in Spanish, but it requires a J.D., in which part of your degree's credits can be recognized.

General information, not legal advice. Each evaluation depends on the individual file. Last reviewed: November 9, 2026.

Sources

How we choose and check these sources: How we verify.

What is your degree from Mexico worth in the United States?

A credential evaluation compares your degree, your curriculum and your license with what each state requires.

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