Study Law in Canada

Study Law in Canada

If you dream about practicing law in a modern country, you should study Law in Canada. As one of the wealthiest countries in the world, Canada offers plenty of opportunities for international students looking to achieve their law degrees and get the best academic experience. It is very important to highlight that you have to be a citizen or a permanent resident of Canada to study Law. If you are not a citizen or a permanent resident of Canada, there are two options to consider. First, you can graduate from a Law-related program open for foreigners, get the necessary work experience in Canada, become a permanent resident of the country and only then continue to study Law in Canada and become a lawyer. The second option is to study any program you like, then get the permanent resident status and after that study Law and become a lawyer.

 

Overview of the Programs

Since Canada has a dual law system, colleges train students to practice either English common law or French civil law. Common law is a collection of precedents and explanations of legal concepts in the English-speaking world. In the civil law tradition, judges interpret laws in a literal way that considers the circumstances of the specific case. The province of Quebec follows the civil law tradition, while other provinces use English common law tradition.

When you want to study Law in Canada at the undergraduate study level, you can obtain a Bachelor of Law, Bachelor of Arts in Law, Justice and Society, Bachelor of Civil Law, Juris Doctor, Juris Doctor and HBA (Bachelor of Arts in Honours Business Administration), Juris Doctor and BESc (Bachelor’s in Engineering Science), Juris Doctor and MBA (Master of Business Administration) degrees. If you study Law in Canada at the graduate level, you get an LLM (Master of Laws) degree. The postgraduate study level offers a Ph.D. degree in Law.

International students can study Law in Canada at more than 70 schools. The most popular one among international students is the University of Toronto that offers Juris Doctor (JD) and LLM degrees. Then goes McGill University that issues Bachelor of Civil Law (BCL), JD, LLM and Ph.D. degrees. One more place to study Law in Canada is the University of British Columbia that offers a JD and MBA degree. University of Montreal issues Bachelor of Law, Juris Doctor in North American Common Law (Dual Degree), LLM, and Ph.D. degrees. The University of Alberta offers JD (Dual Degree), LLM, and Ph.D. degrees. If you want to get a Master of Arts in Social and Legal Studies, you should study at the University of Waterloo. The other place to study Law in Canada is the University of Ottawa that offers JD and LLM degrees. Queen’s University issues JD and MBA with Graduate Diploma in Business, LLM, and Ph.D. degrees. It is also worth mentioning Dalhousie University that offers Bachelor of Arts in Law, Justice and Society, LLM, and Ph.D. degrees.

When you decide to study Law in Canada, you can choose from over 240 programs that combine every aspect of law and its related subjects. The law degrees, offered by Canadian schools, cover specializations, such as Canadian Constitutional Law, Contracts, Criminal Law and Procedure, Indigenous Legal Traditions, Property Laws, Torts, Administrative Law, Jurisprudence and Critical Perspectives, Environmental Law in Practice, Forest Law, Business Organizations, Ethics and Professionalism, Equitable Remedies, Intellectual Property, Cyberspace Law, Civil Law, Social and Legal Studies, Justice and Society.

Tuition Fees of Study Law programs in Canada

It takes from three to four years to obtain an undergraduate law degree. Additionally, you need to research the tuition fees if you want to study Law in Canada. For example, the JD and MBA degree at Queen’s University costs 9,695 CAD per year, the Juris Doctor (Dual Degree) at the University of Alberta costs 10,823 CAD per year, the Bachelor of Law at the University of Montreal costs 24,215 CAD per year, the JD and MBA degree at the University of British Columbia costs 31,223 CAD per year, the BCL and JD degrees at McGill University cost 42,392 CAD per year.

If you are going to study Law in Canada at the master’s level, the programs take from one to two years. Considering the tuition fees, the MA in Social and Legal Studies at the University of Waterloo costs 7,040 CAD per year, the LLM at the University of Alberta costs 9,250 CAD per year, the LLM at McGill University costs 9,378 CAD per year, the LLM at Queen’s University costs 9,695 CAD per year, and the LLM at the University of Montreal costs 27,515 CAD per year.

Achieving a Ph.D. degree after studying Law in Canada is highly appreciated in the world. However, the doctoral study programs last from three to four years. For instance, the Ph.D. degree at Dalhousie University costs 6,659 CAD per year, the Ph.D. at the University of Alberta costs 7,000 CAD per year, the Ph.D. at Queen’s University costs 9,695 CAD per year, the Ph.D. degree at the University of Montreal costs 24,700 CAD per year, and the Ph.D. at McGill University costs 52,680 CAD per year.

Admission Requirements for Study law in Canada

If you want to study Law in Canada, you need to complete at least a two-year undergraduate program since law schools do not admit international students with a high school diploma. As a rule, you can enroll in a course that is unrelated to the law.

To apply for a bachelor’s law degree, you need to meet several requirements:

1. You must have a high school diploma and an undergraduate degree.
2. You ought to pass the LSAT (Law School Admission Test) and get a score of at least 160.
3. Depending on the law school, you may need to submit a personal statement of 700-1000 words, a Letter of Recommendation, and a CV.

International students can proceed to study Law in Canada at a graduate level. To obtain a master’s degree, applicants have to meet the following requirements:

1. International students must have an undergraduate degree in Law and get 60-69% at bachelor’s level.
2. They should prepare the research proposal, a Letter of Recommendation, a CV, a personal statement of 700-1000 words, and a Statement of Purpose.

Many international students study Law in Canada to get a Ph.D. degree that gives them more job offers in the country. Hence, they ought to meet strict requirements:

1. International students must obtain an LLM degree.
2. Applicants ought to get a GPA (Grade Point Average) of at least 3.7 at their JD level.
3. International students are required to submit a comprehensive CV, two Letters of Recommendation, a two-page statement that describes their professional and educational goals, a thesis proposal of four pages, and a copy of a major thesis of at least 100 pages.

Regardless of the study level, international applicants must take the English Language Proficiency Test. If you pass IELTS, you ought to get a score of 7.0. If you take TOEFL iBT, you should get at least 100. If you decide to take the TOEFL PBT, you need to get 600. Remember, if you want to study Law in Canada, you also need to find out the specific requirements of your chosen school. Moreover, law schools in Canada are highly competitive, and international students must have high grades and prominent achievements to study Law in Canada.

Perspectives of the Future Employment after study law in Canada

Your study Law in Canada is completed when you are admitted to the Bar. Thus, you must have a law degree from a recognized school and complete an apprenticeship as an Articling Clerk under the supervision of a qualified member of the Bar in the province. Articling is a full-time job as a clerk in a court or a law firm that lasts from ten months to a year. Then, the provincial law society requires graduates to complete a Bar admission course or pass a set of bar admission exams. When you are accepted to the Bar, you can practice law in the country. If you aim to work in successful law firms, such as Borden Ladner Gervais LLP, Norton Rose Fulbright LLP, or Fasken LLP, you must study Law in Canada and obtain a Ph.D. degree. 

Speaking about the salaries in Canada, the law graduates earn from 52,558 CAD at the entry-level positions and near 414,231 CAD at senior-level positions per year. For instance, a legal consultant earns 145,000 CAD per year, a lawyer can earn from 238,000 CAD per year, a judge advocate earns 249,000 CAD per year, and an administrative law judge can earn from 322,000 CAD per year.

 

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