Osgoode Professional Development

Part-Time Professional LLM in Canadian Common Law

Who is the Specialization for?

• Graduates of law degree programs from outside Canada OR graduates with a civil law degree from a Canadian university who wish to become licensed to practice in a Canadian common law jurisdiction / who want a solid grounding in Canadian common law for comparative law purposes
• Applicants are required to have at least 2 years of professional work experience

Note: Canadian Common Law is available on both a full-time and part-time basis.

Part-time studies are geared to applicants who wish to continue working full-time and have the legal status to do so or to those who are looking to complete online courses.

If you are looking to study in person or on a full-time basis, consider our full-time option.

Discover your unique path to succeed in the Canadian legal market, June 3

Course Requirements

The Professional LLM in Canadian Common Law requires the completion of 36 credits. The program is designed to be completed in two years (six active terms) through a combination of core courses, related electives, and up to 6 credits of outside electives. Students also have the option to engage in a research component.

What You Can Expect

The program is designed to be completed in two years (six active terms) by completing 6 credits (one to two courses) per term.

Courses in the Canadian Common Law specialization are scheduled in a variety of ways, primarily as daytime intensive courses or weekly evening courses. Courses may be held at our downtown Toronto location or on the York University Keele campus. The majority of courses in the Canadian Common Law specialization require in-person attendance, however, part-time Canadian Common Law students also have access to online problem-based learning courses.

In your first term of admission, you may be assigned a course as a condition of your admission. Admission condition courses count towards your degree requirements. Students with the following profiles usually have required introductory courses:

• Internationally-trained lawyers: GNRL 6209 – Canadian Graduate Legal Research & Writing (Online) (3 Credits)

Your remaining course selections should be driven by your own interests, goals, and strengths. Generally, students in the Professional LLM in Canadian Common Law will want to prioritize courses that satisfy their NCA requirements. For students from civil law jurisdictions, this usually means taking as many of the five mandatory and three core NCA subjects as possible.

Core Courses

Core courses are frequently offered twice a year and include some of the following:

• CCLW 6842 – Canadian Administrative Law (6 Credits) – Fall, Winter, and Summer terms
• CCLW 6841 – Constitutional Law (6 Credits) – Fall and Winter terms
• CCLW 6843 – Canadian Criminal Law (6 Credits) – Fall, Winter, and Summer terms
• CCLW 6844 – Canadian Professional Responsibility (3 Credits) – Fall, Winter, and Summer terms
• CCLW 6850 – Canadian Tort Law (6 Credits) – Fall and Winter terms

Elective Courses

You must complete at least 18 credits of Canadian Common Law core courses. Remaining credits may be drawn from elective courses in International Business Law or unrelated specializations, so long as you have any required prerequisite knowledge for those courses. To see course offerings for upcoming terms, review the Course Planning information below.

Optional Research Requirement

The optional research component can be fulfilled through one of the following three options. Most students elect to fulfil the requirement through option 3:

1. A Major Research Paper (70 pages, 6 Credits)
2. An Independent Significant Research Paper (30 pages, 3 Credits)
3. A Significant Research Paper (30 pages) was completed as the means of assessment for one of the courses within the specialization.

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