Study Canadian Law

After completing your degree at Bond, your next step is to obtain a Certificate of Qualification from the National Committee on Accreditation (the ‘NCA’) of the Federation of Law Societies of Canada. This Certificate will state that you have the education and training equivalent to that of a law graduate from an accredited Canadian law school.  

At the completion of your Bond program, you should submit an online application for a Certificate of Qualification and arrange for your transcripts to be submitted directly to the NCA. You may need to provide other supporting documents such as transcripts from any other universities you have attended.

Once they have processed your application, the NCA will require you to complete a minimum of five ‘assignments’ in Canadian law: Constitutional Law, Criminal Law, Administrative Law, Foundations of Canadian Law and Canadian Professional Responsibility. You may also be required to complete additional assignments. You can complete these assignments by either completing courses at a Canadian Law School, or undertaking self-study “Challenge Exams”. 

The Challenge Exams are by far the most popular option with Bond graduates. The NCA offers exam sessions in every month of the year, except December. (However, not all subjects are offered in each exam session.) Bond offers the first four of the Canadian Law assignments as elective subjects that will prepare you for the corresponding NCA exams. It does mean you will take exams for these classes twice – once at Bond and then again at the NCA. 

Bond offers a course that covers the fifth assignment (Canadian Professional Responsibility), but this is a seminar and not a graded class.  The seminar is complimentary for Bond students.

An applicant whose application is assessed by the NCA on or after 1 January 2022 will be required to complete a course in legal research and writing offered by a Canadian Common Law Program, approved by the NCA, or complete the NCA legal research and writing module with the Canadian Centre for Professional Legal Education. 

In addition, from 1 March 2026, applicants will be required to demonstrate competence in Indigenous Law and Peoples. This requirement can be satisfied by completing a module offered by the Canadian Centre for Professional Legal Education (CPLED) or through an NCA-approved course at a recognised Canadian law school.

Applicants will also be required to demonstrate language competence by completing a language competency screening test, in either French or English, before their qualifications are assessed by the NCA. 

You will next complete your Articles at a law firm which will continue for up to 12 months (depending on your Province). In most Provinces, you will register with the Law Society as an Articling Student which your law firm will participate in and sign off on the number of hours you complete. Depending on your Province, you may be required to take the Barrister & Solicitor exams, which are open book, all day exams. Some Provinces have Bar Admissions Programs with examinations and skills assessments embedded into them. Once the required number of hours of Articling is completed and any bar admissions program or bar exams are completed, you will pay your licensing fee and be admitted to the Bar (with a ceremony) and can then practice law.

There is a new option that is similar to Australia where you can enrol at Toronto Metropolitan University to complete a Professional Legal Training (PLT) program combined with an internship at a law firm, after which you can be admitted to the Bar. This program is called the LPP – Law Practice Program.