Please note that these Guidelines (including deadline dates, exam schedules and fees) are subject to change without notice.

This page was last updated: January 8, 2010

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. Mandate
2. Method of Evaluation
3. Evaluation Guidelines
4. Professional Legal Experience
5. Challenge Exams
6. Relationship Between Certificate of Qualification and Admission to Bar
7. Status of Certificate of Qualification
8. Application Form
9. Processing Applications
10. Admission into Law School

A. Mandate

The National Committee on Accreditation ("NCA") is a standing Committee of the Federation of Law Societies of Canada and is made up of representatives from the Council of Canadian Law Deans, members of the practising bar, and members involved with the administration of provincial law societies.

The NCA evaluates the legal training and professional experience of persons with foreign or non-common law legal credentials (including Québec) who wish to be admitted to a common law bar in Canada. Upon completion of its review, the NCA issues a recommendation describing the scope and extent of any further legal education that in its opinion the applicant needs to complete to equal the standard of those who have earned a Canadian LL.B. degree. Most law societies and law schools in Canada use the NCA's recommendations in setting their requirements for call to the bar (See Section G below.)

The Certificate of Qualification does not duplicate the LL.B. degree. Applications who wish to obtain an LL.B. degree should apply to a law school (see: Section J, Part 3). The NCA evaluates all applicants, whether Canadians with foreign legal education, foreign nationals with foreign legal education and Quebec civil law degrees, on their academic and professional profile.

The National Committee on Accreditation does not evaluate credentials for lawyers who want to apply to and become members of the Barreau du Québec or the Chambre des notaires du Québec, which have their own evaluation procedures.

The NCA evaluates all applicants, whether Canadians with foreign legal education and foreign nationals with foreign legal education on their academic and professional profile.

The NCA applies a uniform standard on a national basis so that applicants with foreign law qualifications can apply to the Committee regardless of the common law province in which they wish to practise in Canada. Thus, applicants do not need to satisfy disparate entrance standards to practise law in Canada.

B. Method of Evaluation

1. Method
The nature of the Committee's mandate is captured in the words used in the Certificate of Qualification. The Certificate states as follows:

"Having passed the prescribed course of studies required by the National Committee, it is hereby certified that the National Committee on Accreditation considers (name of applicant) to have education and training equivalent to a graduate of an approved Canadian law school."

Thus, the Committee certifies that an applicant has:

• an understanding and knowledge of Canadian law, and
• knowledge equivalent to that of a graduate of a Canadian common law LL.B. program.

"Equivalence to an approved Canadian LL.B. degree" serves as the Committee's benchmark when it evaluates applicants with foreign legal education or training. The Certificate of Qualification does not, however, duplicate the LL.B. degree, which varies between law schools. NCA applicants may be asked to challenge examinations in subjects that all law schools may not require for the LL.B. degree.

The NCA bases its recommendation on the applicant's legal background, both academic and professional. It takes into account the source country of legal education (common law, non-common law, "hybrid"), subject matter studied, academic marks and standing, nature of the degree granting institution, professional qualifications and length and nature of professional legal experience.

The NCA reviews each applicant's file individually. Upon completion of its review, the NCA issues a recommendation that the applicant:

1. pass examinations in specified areas of Canadian law;
2. take further education at a Canadian law school with a specified program of studies; or
3. complete a Canadian LL.B. program.

The NCA issues a Certificate of Qualification upon successful completion of the requirements set out in Options 1 and 2 above. Applicants receive a law degree upon completion of Option 3.

Applicants may be asked to attend a Canadian law school for further studies. Applicants with superior qualifications, call to the Bar by way of bar admission examinations and experience in common law may be permitted to write challenge examinations in specified legal subjects.

Applicants are advised that the Committee is not bound by any law school or law society deadline dates.

2. Prescribed Subjects
The NCA expects applicants to proceed to a bar admission program. Substantive law is not generally taught in Canadian bar admission programs. Rather, the emphasis in most Bar courses is on practical skills and procedure. Thus, applicants are expected to have sufficient knowledge of Canadian substantive law and procedure before they enter the program.

NCA recommendations focus on the core common law subjects in which applicants must demonstrate competence, including:

• Contracts;
• Torts;
• Property;
• Foundations of Canadian Law;
• Canadian Criminal Law and Procedure;
• Evidence;
• Principles of Canadian Administrative Law;
• Canadian Constitutional Law (with Aboriginal/Charter component);
• Corporate Law (Business Associations); and
• Professional Responsibility.

Where appropriate, based on the unique set of factors in each applicant file (ie. distance education degree, poor academic performance, hybrid jurisdiction, etc.), an applicant may be asked to demonstrate competence in several other common law subjects, including:

• Civil Procedure;
• Remedies;
• Commercial Law;
• Family;
• Taxation; and
• Trusts.

Please visit the NCA Examination page on our web site to view the syllabi for the above subjects.

3. Nature of Recommendations
The NCA may require applicants to complete successfully a stipulated number of "credit hours" of law studies at a Canadian common law school or write examinations in specific subjects. The number of hours stipulated depends upon the applicant's individual background of legal education and professional experience.

Typically, the credit hour system translates into the following approximate periods of time to be spent in a Canadian law school:

• 30 credit hours = 1 academic year (2 semesters);
• 45 credit hours = 1.5 academic years (3 semesters);
• 60 credit hours = 2 academic years (4 semesters).

If a law school does not use the credit hour system, it can translate credit hours by substituting one full academic year for every 30 credit hours. The applicant is required to obtain an unconditional pass for every credit hour of his or her program of studies and also satisfy any overall grade point average (GPA) requirements at the law school.

4. Appeals (For previously assessed applications)
Applicants should ensure that they file all relevant documents with their application. An applicant may appeal his/her initial decision to an Appeal Panel for re-evaluation of academic and professional credentials. The appeal application should set out the basis of the application and the grounds for the appeal. The Appeal Panel evaluates the file based on the applicant’s written evidence and issues a recommendation as it considers appropriate in the circumstances. The Appeal Panel can increase or decrease the requirements of the initial recommendation. The fee for a review is $325 (GST included), provided that the initial recommendation has not expired. All fees are payable to the Federation of Law Societies of Canada (personal cheques are currently not accepted).

An NCA Appeal Panel generally meets four times a year. These meetings are not for new applications for evaluation of legal credentials. The appeal deadline dates are:

APPEAL DEADLINES (FOR PREVIOUSLY ASSESSED APPLICATIONS)

• January 30
• April 30
• July 30
• October 30

C. Evaluation Guidelines
The Committee is authorized to issue a Certificate of Qualification to any candidate who has attained education and training equivalent to graduates from a Canadian LL.B. program.

The Committee directs applicants with foreign legal credentials into the appropriate level of legal education in Canada so that they may proceed to admission into a Canadian common law bar on the same basis as domestic law graduates.

Each application is evaluated on an individual basis taking into account the particular circumstances of that individual's educational and professional background.

Factors to be taken into account include: age of degree, academic standing in all years of the LL.B. program, the content of courses, subject matter studied, relevant graduate legal education, law teaching experience and the quality of undergraduate education or training. First, Second, Third and Pass Class standings are grade classifications/rankings. However, some institutions use alphabetic or numeric grading systems.

1. Common Law Systems
In considering applications from candidates with common law backgrounds, the NCA takes into account the following criteria:

• Nature of the academic institution attended and, where available, its accreditation by national law associations (e.g., ABA or AALS approval);
• Length of academic law program;
• Subject matter studied (e.g., law or mixed law/social sciences/humanities; if law, the contents, depth and relevance to Canadian law and circumstances);
• Undergraduate pre-law education;
• Academic performance, grades, and class standing obtained (e.g., top 25 percent of class, bottom 25 percent of class, first class, second class, acceptance in home jurisdiction of standing achieved, etc.);
• Language of instruction in academic law program;
• Admission to law society or bar by written examination in home jurisdiction;
• Professional legal experience, if any, including
• length of such experience (e.g., 1-3 years, 3-5 years, over 5 years) and
• nature and quality of professional practice.

The Committee looks at an applicant's entire academic standing, professional legal training and experience in the jurisdiction of bar call to determine the credit to be given.

The NCA generally recommends that graduates who hold LL.B degrees from countries that have a “pure” - that is, not hybrid – common law system have the option to write challenge examinations for a Certificate of Qualification in the following circumstances:
   1. The applicant has an undergraduate degree and a law degree from an approved law school recognized by the governing bodies of the national law societies or bar equivalent in the country of origin.
   2. The approved law degree is a three (3) year degree of approximately 90 credit hours and is comparable to a law degree from a Canadian common l aw school.
   3. The applicant obtains the LL.B degree with at least Second Class (Division) standing in all three years of his or her academic program.
The number of challenge examinations depends upon the subjects studied in the law program, the quality of the institution and the applicant’s academic performance in the program.
These are our general guidelines. The NCA evaluates each file individually.

(a) Common Law Systems: including, Australia, Bangladesh, England, Hong Kong, India, Ireland, New Zealand, Nigeria, Pakistan, Singapore, U.S.A., Wales, West Indies, etc.

In respect of candidates from common law countries who:

1. Have education equivalent to 2 years of post secondary education at a Canadian university; and
2. have graduated from an accredited law school with a full-time three (3) year law degree with English as the medium of instruction;

The NCA requires that the candidate have competency in (demonstrated by appropriate documentation), or to successfully complete a law school course in, or pass an NCA examination in, the following subjects (the “Core Competencies”):
1. Contracts;
2. Torts;
3. Property;
4. Foundations of Canadian Law;
5. Canadian Criminal Law and Procedure;
6. Evidence;
7. Principles of Canadian Administrative Law;
8. Canadian Constitutional Law (with Aboriginal component);
9. Corporate Law; and
10. Professional Responsibility.

Professional qualifications and experience will be factors taken into account when determining competency and post secondary education experience. In addition, the nature of the academic institution attended, academic performance, grades and class standing obtained will be factors taken into consideration when determining competency in the above subjects.

In respect of candidates who have graduated from a distance learning program at an accredited law school: As the Canadian standard for law school is three year, in class, graduates of distance learning programs will normally be required to successfully complete six NCA examinations and eight one semester courses at a Canadian law school. Each candidate’s specific recommendation will depend on his/her individual qualifications.

Applicants should be aware that the examples below are only illustrative and they may not be applicable to your application, which is evaluated on its own merits. They should also be aware that the Committee looks at actual grades in individual subjects in addition to overall class of degree.

2. Hybrid Jurisdictions
Applicants from jurisdictions that have mixed legal systems with a common law component are considered on criteria similar to those applied to applicants with a common law background. In addition, however, the Committee takes into account the extent of the common law component in the applicant's particular program.

(a) Scotland, South Africa, Israel, Philippines, etc.
Applicants from hybrid jurisdictions such as Scotland, South Africa, Israel, Philippines, etc. are usually asked to study 45-60 credit hours in a Canadian common law faculty if they have obtained at least Second Division standing in a 3 year honours law program following upon an undergraduate degree. In appropriate circumstances, the applicant may be asked to write 10 or 11 prescribed examinations. The Committee takes into account admission by examination into the Law Society or call to the Bar and post qualification practical experience in the jurisdiction where the applicant has qualified. The Committee also considers relevant graduate legal education, law teaching experience and the curriculum or subjects studied as part of the law degree program.

Example: An applicant with an Upper Division Second Class degree (or better) from a 3 year honours law program (following upon an undergraduate degree) will usually be asked to complete 45 additional credit hours in a Canadian common law faculty; with a Lower Division Second Class degree, 60 credit hours (or equivalent prescribed examinations).

Applicants with Third Class (or lower) standing do not, in the absence of substantial experience, obtain any advanced standing.

Applicants who have graduated from a 2 year law degree are usually asked to do more than those who have graduated from 3 year law degrees.

Example: An applicant with an Upper Division Second Class degree from a 3 years honours law program with several years of legal practice will usually be asked to pass 5 to 8 examinations.

Example: An applicant with a Lower Division Second Class degree with professional legal experience will usually be asked to complete successfully 30 to 45 credit hours or pass equivalent three hour challenge examinations in specified legal subjects.

The Committee also gives credit for qualifications where the applicant has been admitted directly as a Solicitor or Barrister without a law degree. For example, a directly admitted solicitor with several years of experience would usually be asked to complete 30 additional credit hours or pass eight three hour challenge examinations in specified legal subjects.

3. Other Legal Systems
Applicants from legal systems that don't have a substantial common law component are considered on a case-by-case basis. Professional legal experience subsequent to the applicant's formal legal education may be considered in these cases. Applicants who have no common law exposure (academic or professional) are, in the absence of relevant professional legal experience, unlikely to be recommended for any advanced standing in an approved Canadian law school.

Applicants who graduate from a law school in the Province of Québec are evaluated by the Committee according to their particular educational background and relevant professional experience.

Québec graduates receive full credit for successfully completed courses in federal law.

Applicants who have not been admitted to the Bar of Québec are asked to complete the entire spectrum of common law courses through attendance for one year (approximately 32 credit hours) at a common law faculty in Canada.

Applicants who graduate with a "pure" civilian degree and are admitted to the Barreau du Québec are usually asked to write examinations in some or all of the following subjects:

• Contracts
• Civil Procedure
• Trusts/Equity
• Torts
• Real Property
• Commercial Law
• Family Law

Applicants who have substantial (10 years) professional experience in common law areas of practice are considered on a case-by-case basis and evaluated upon the basis of their education, areas of practice and legal experience. Applicants are expected to file an Affidavit of Experience and submit samples of their work (with appropriate deletions) to the NCA.

Graduates from civil law programs that also have some common law component typically receive credit for the common law portion of their studies. For example, a graduate with a civil law degree who has successfully completed common law Contracts, Torts or Real Property would receive credit for those subjects and be asked to complete a reduced common law program.

D. Professional Legal Experience
As noted above, the Committee takes into account an applicant's professional legal experience in a foreign jurisdiction. In evaluating professional foreign legal experience, the Committee looks at:

• the length of experience (for example, less than 1 year, between 1-3 years, between 3-5 years and over 5 years);
• the nature, extent and diversity of the applicant's practice; and
• relevance of the practice to Canadian legal practices and institutions.

E. Challenge Exams

For more information, please see our NCA Challenge Examinations section.

F. Relationship Between Certificate of Qualification and Admission to the Bar
It is important that applicants fully understand the relationship between a Certificate of Qualification and the process for admission as a lawyer in a Canadian common law jurisdiction. The rules and regulations for admission as a lawyer lie exclusively within the jurisdiction of provincial and territorial law societies and applicants should directly consult the society they wish to enter to determine the admission requirements.

The Certificate of Qualification is a preliminary step in the education and training program that is necessary for admission as a lawyer. The Certificate testifies that the applicant has education and training equivalent to graduates from an approved Canadian law school. Upon obtaining the Certificate of Qualification, the applicant may proceed to a bar admission and articling program on the same basis as a graduate from an approved Canadian law school.

The Committee's Certificate of Qualification does NOT abridge or shorten an applicant's period of articles or other bar admission requirements. Requests for any such abridgement or shortening of articles or program requirements should be submitted directly to the provincial law society in which the applicant seeks admission.

G. Status of Certificate of Qualification
The Certificate of Qualification entitles one to enter the Bar Admission Course in Ontario and is officially recognized by the Law Societies of Saskatchewan, British Columbia, Prince Edward Island. and Alberta as equivalent to graduation from an approved Canadian law school. Other law societies and law schools use the NCA's recommendation on a more informal basis.

H. Application Form
Please visit the Application page.

I. Processing Applications

The Committee processes applications in the sequence in which it receives them at the Committee's offices. Applicants should expect to wait at least three months from submission of complete and final transcripts and documentation for the evaluation decision. All applicants will receive confirmation of receipt of their materials by e-mail (or mail if e-mail unavailable) and be assigned a file number. The initial confirmation will advise what has been received on their behalf and, if applicable, what is outstanding. Since the Committee cannot confirm individual receipt of materials, a second confirmation e-mail will only be sent when all outstanding documents have been received and the file is considered complete. However, during the evaluation review process, additional information or documentation may be requested from the applicant.

The Committee retains an applicant's file for a maximum of five years after the initial date of the recommendation. However, applicants should be aware that the initial recommendations are time sensitive and expire within certain recommended periods of time. This information usually appears at the end of the recommendation letter. Applicants applying for re-assessments (expired recommendations) will be required to file a new application form, evaluation fee and resubmit all documentation and must comply with any new rules and policies currently in place. (REFER TO SECTION H ABOVE).

Applicants are advised that the Committee is not an approved education institution as required by the Ministry of Employment and Immigration and, therefore, does NOT provide official income tax receipts for the initial evaluation or examination fees.

J. Admission into Law School

1. Applicant's Responsibility
The NCA's recommendation does NOT automatically secure an applicant's admission into any Canadian law school. Applicants are responsible for securing their admission into a Canadian law faculty, if necessary, to satisfy the NCA's requirements.

Admission into Canadian law schools is extremely competitive, both for domestic and for foreign applicants. Applicants are encouraged to apply to several law schools across the country.

An NCA applicant must satisfy the admissions procedures and regulations of the law school into which he or she seeks admission. These procedures and regulations differ between schools and applicants should obtain a copy of the current rules and regulations directly from the school. Some faculties may require the applicant to write the Law School Admission Test ("LSAT").

2. Full-time/Part-time studies
The NCA requires applicants who are required to complete further studies to finish their academic requirements within a stipulated period.

NCA applicants may seek admission either as regular full-time students or, where the law school's regulations permit, as "special students" on a fee-for-course basis.

Applicants should clearly understand that they are responsible for securing their own admission into a Canadian law school and must satisfy the academic standards of the law school in which they are admitted.

3. Admission to Ontario Law Schools
Applicants applying for admission to Ontario law schools must do so through the Ontario Law School Application Service (OLSAS) a division of the Ontario Universities' Application Centre (OUAC). Deadline for admission to first-year studies is November 1 and for upper-year studies (transfer, Letter of Permission, advanced standing and NCA) May 1. You may contact the Centre at:

Additional information for applicants who want to practice in Ontario is here.

Please note that these Guidelines (including deadline dates, exam schedules and fees) are subject to change without notice.