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Information /FOR APPLICANTS WITH FOREIGN LAW DEGREES OR LAW DEGREES IN THE CIVIL CODE / 845 Cambie Street
Vancouver, B.C.
Canada V6B 4Z9
Telephone: (604) 669-2533
Toll-free in B.C. 1-800-903-5300
Facsimile: (604) 687-0135
TTY: (604) 443-5700
E-mail:
Web site: www.lawsociety.bc.ca
GENERAL
Applicants who have obtained a law degree in a country other than Canada or a law degree in the Civil Code must first obtain either a Canadian LL.B. degree or a Certificate of Qualification issued by the National Committee on Accreditation (NCA). With either of these qualifications, applicants may then apply to enroll in the Law Society Admission Program (LSAP) which consists of 9 months of articles and the 10-week full-time Professional Legal Training Course. Upon successful completion of LSAP, applicants may then be called and admitted in British Columbia.
PROCEDURE
If you wish to apply for a Certificate of Qualification, please contact the NCA at the address below for an application and information package. Upon review of your completed application, the NCA will advise you whether you must either complete further study at a Canadian common law school or pass certain examinations set by the NCA. It is your responsibility to arrange for completion of the NCA's requirements. If you are required to undertake further study at a Canadian university, this does not guarantee admission; you must then apply to one or more Canadian universities and meet their individual entrance requirements.
Please note that the Law Society has no contact with the NCA on individual applications and will not overrule a decision of the NCA or waive the requirements for a Certificate of Qualification in lieu of a Canadian LL.B.
The address of the NCA is:
National Committee on Accreditation
Faculty of Law, Common Law Section
57 Louis Pasteur
University of Ottawa
Ottawa, ON K1N 6N5
Phone: (613) 562-5204
Fax: (613) 562-5722
E-Mail:
Application package is available on the Internet:
http://www.flsc.ca
REDUCTION OF ARTICLES
Foreign qualified lawyers with practice experience in common law jurisdictions outside of Canada may be granted a reduction in the regular 9-month articling term.
If eligible, you may receive up to one month reduction for each full year of practice experience in a common law jurisdiction, to a maximum of 5 months reduction (minimum articling period to be completed is 4 months).
To apply for a reduction, you must submit the following with your completed application for enrolment in LSAP:
1. a written request for a reduction of the articling term setting out the proposed articling period;
2. written confirmation that your principal has agreed to the reduction;
3. original and 6-months current Certificate of Good Standing forwarded directly from your issuing Law Society; and
4. original letters from employers, colleagues, or judges verifying your precise periods of legal employment and detailing in full, with specific examples, the type of practice experience obtained.
IMMIGRATION
If you are not resident in Canada, please consult the Canadian immigration authorities at an Embassy or High Commission office in your area with regard to immigration requirements.
FOR MORE INFORMATION
If you have any questions regarding LSAP, please write or call:
The Member Information Group
Law Society of British Columbia
700 - 845 Cambie Street
Vancouver BC V6B 4Z9
Phone: (604) 669-2533
In B.C. 1-800-903-5300
Fax: (604) 687-0135
THE INFORMATION CONTAINED IN THIS CIRCULAR IS BASED ON THE RULES AS THEY EXIST AT THIS TIME. AN APPLICANT WILL HAVE TO COMPLY WITH THE RULES IN EFFECT AT THE TIME THE APPLICANT MAKES FORMAL APPLICATION AND WITH ANY CHANGES IN THE RULES REGARDING ADMISSION IN THE LAW SOCIETY ADMISSION PROGRAM.
Revised: January 7, 2004
BINDER/NCA
Information /LAW SOCIETY ADMISSION PROGRAM / 845 Cambie Street
Vancouver, B.C.
Canada V6B 4Z9
Telephone: (604) 669-2533
Toll-free in B.C. 1-800-903-5300
Facsimile: (604) 687-0135
TTY: (604) 443-5700
E-mail:
Web site: www.lawsociety.bc.ca
COMPONENTS
In order to be called to the British Columbia Bar, applicants are required to complete a 12-month training program. The program, called the Law Society Admission Program (LSAP), consists of three components:
a) 9 months of articles;
b) 10-weeks full-time attendance at the Professional Legal Training Course ("PLTC"); and
c) two Qualification Examinations based on the PLTC Practice Material and course work.
The Law Society Admission Program is supervised by the Credentials Committee of the Law Society. The Continuing Legal Education Society administers the 10-week PLTC and the Qualification Examinations.
ELIGIBILITY FOR ENROLMENT IN LSAP
To be eligible for enrolment as an articled student in British Columbia, an applicant must provide:
a) proof of graduation from a common law faculty of a Canadian university; or
b) a Certificate of Qualification issued by the National Committee on Accreditation (“NCA”).
ENROLMENT IN THE LAW SOCIETY ADMISSION PROGRAM
Students must submit their applications and fees for enrolment in the LSAP to the Law Society at least 30 days before the student's enrolment start date.
Students must also submit a separate application form for registration in PLTC to the Continuing Legal Education Society (300 - 845 Cambie Street, Vancouver, B.C., V6B 5T2).
Application forms for enrolment in LSAP, including the PLTC registration form, are available from the Law Society.
DOCUMENTS REQUIRED FOR ENROLMENT AS AN ARTICLED STUDENT
The following documents must be completed and filed with the Law Society 30 days prior to the official commencement date of LSAP:
a) Application for Enrolment (Form 1);
b) Photograph (to be attached to application);
c) Articles Agreement (Form 3);
d) Official transcript sent directly from the university showing the actual granting of the LL.B. degree and grades, or NCA Certificate of Qualification if legal qualifications acquired outside Canada; and
e) Enrolment fee (cheques payable and sent to the Law Society) of $2,675.00.
An official transcript may be submitted at a later date only if you have recently graduated from law school and the university has not yet processed the granting of your LL.B. in time for the 30-day deadline. In this case, you must provide a letter from the Dean confirming that all requirements have been met. The official transcript must also be submitted as soon as it is available.
No student will be enrolled retroactively for failing to provide all documents, save in very exceptional circumstances as directed by the Credentials Committee. The onus is entirely on the student to ensure that all documentation is complete and filed with the Law Society office 30 days prior to the commencement date of articles. This is not the responsibility of the proposed principal. Applications for retroactive status must be accompanied by a written submission to the Committee setting out reasons for the late documentation.
FEES
The current fee for enrolment in the Law Society Admission Program (LSAP), including PLTC, is $2,500.00 + 7% G.S.T. (TOTAL $2,675.00). This fee is subject to change. The enrolment fee is payable to the Law Society and must be received at least 30 days prior to the enrolment start date
PLTC ENROLMENT OPTIONS
There are three PLTC sessions each year. In consultation with their principals, students are required to choose when they will attend PLTC and when they will do the articling portion of the program. Please see the PLTC Application for Registration for the recognized PLTC options and the relevant PLTC application deadlines.
As you will note in the PLTC registration information, you must have the written consent of your principal before you apply for a particular option. There is no guarantee that a student will be admitted to the first choice of a PLTC session. Applications filed by the deadlines noted will be considered first.
PROFESSIONAL LEGAL TRAINING COURSE
To qualify for registration in a PLTC session a student must:
a) have entered into and filed an Articles Agreement;
b) be enrolled by the Law Society as an articled student;
c) have obtained the principal's written consent to register in that session; and
d) submit a completed PLTC application form.
If you have completed a Bar Admission Course in another Canadian jurisdiction, you may apply to the Credentials Committee to be exempted from all or a portion of PLTC. Please refer to the circular entitled Reductions in the Articling Term available from the Law Society. For additional information about PLTC, refer to the PLTC information circular.
QUALIFICATION EXAMINATIONS
The Law Society requires that all students write and pass two Qualification Examinations during the last week of PLTC. The Examinations are based on PLTC work and the Practice Material. The Practice Material is available shortly before each session of PLTC.
CLERKSHIPS AND REDUCTIONS OF ARTICLES
The regular 9-month articling term can be reduced by the completion of:
- a clerkship at the Supreme Court of Canada, BC Court of Appeal or Supreme Court, Federal Court of Canada, or the Tax Court of Canada;
- a clerkship at a superior court in another Canadian jurisdiction;
- articles in another Canadian jurisdiction; or
4. practice experience in a common law jurisdiction outside Canada
Applicants may be eligible for a maximum reduction of 5 months in the 9-month articling term, resulting in a minimum articling period of four months.
For information regarding clerkships and reductions in the articling period, please refer to the circular entitled Reductions in the Articling Term, available from the Law Society.
OBTAINING AN ARTICLING POSITION
The onus of obtaining an articling position is entirely upon the student. Please contact the following sources for further assistance:
a) Articling Committee at the Faculty of Law, U.B.C., 1822 East Mall, Vancouver, B.C., V6T 1Y1, (604) 822-5257, Fax: (604) 822-8108, website: www.law.ubc.ca or email: . This group publishes an Articling Handbook which contains the law firms that usually hire articling students and other information relevant to articling in BC. If you send a cheque for $25 to the Articling Committee care of the law school you will be sent a copy. Current articling positions are listed on the Career Development notice board at the UBC law school and are available to everyone;
b) Articling Committee at the Faculty of Law, University of Victoria, P.O. Box 2400, Victoria, B.C., V8W 3H7 (250) 721-8150, Fax: (250) 721-6390, direct contact person is the Career Development Officer at (250) 472-4719; email:
c) Canadian Bar Association publishes a Membership and Services Directory, which lists details of all law firms and practitioners, and provides information on law-related organizations and services in British Columbia; the website address is: www.bccba.org and an email request can be sent to:
QUALIFICATIONS TO ACT AS PRINCIPAL
To be eligible to act as principal, the proposed principal must have been and continue to be a practising member in:
a) British Columbia for not less than 4 years; or
b) another Province or Territory of Canada where at least 3 of the last 4 years of practice have been in British Columbia; or
c) the Yukon Territories for the last 4 years and, for not less than 3 years, has been a member of the Law Society of British Columbia;
immediately preceding the date of commencement of articles.
PART-TIME ARTICLES
You may apply to complete some or all of your articles on a part-time basis by submitting to the Law Society not less than two months before the enrolment start date:
a) the enrolment application and enrolment fees; and
b) a letter from you and your prospective principal setting out:
i) your principal’s express approval of the part-time arrangements;
ii) the type of experience to be provided to you;
iii) the hours per day you will work in the office of your principal; and
iv) the length of your proposed articling term.
Your proposed articling term must be a continuous period that will give you work experience equivalent to the regular 9-month articling period, and your articles must be completed within two years of the articling start date.
The part-time equivalent of the articling period must be calculated on the following basis:
a) 8 hours of scheduled work equals one day of articles; and
b) no credit will be given for more than 8 hours per day.
Any request to alter the above requirements must first be approved by the Credentials Committee at one of its regular monthly meetings.
CHARACTER AND FITNESS
The privilege of practising law in British Columbia is exclusive to members of the Law Society of British Columbia and, for the protection of the public and the profession, the Legal Profession Act, S.B.C. 1998, c. 9 imposes a statutory obligation on the Benchers to be satisfied that each applicant for enrolment as an articled student is of good character and fit to become a barrister and solicitor of the Supreme Court. The onus is placed on the applicant to satisfy the Benchers in this regard.
You are advised to answer all questions fairly and fully and to disclose to the Society anything which you consider might adversely affect your application so that it can be considered at an early date. The fullest details possible, and supporting documentation, should be given.
When considering past criminal charges or convictions, the Credentials Committee assesses these factors:
a) applicant's age at the time of the conduct in question;
b) recency of the conduct;
c) reliability of the information;
d) seriousness of the conduct;
e) factors underlying the conduct;
f) cumulative effect of conduct or information;
g) evidence of rehabilitation;
h) applicant's positive social contributions since the conduct;
i) applicant's candor in the admissions process; and
j) materiality of any omissions or representations.
If you have any questions or concerns regarding disclosures under this section, please contact the Credentials Legal Assistant at the Law Society.
VACATION DURING ARTICLES
An articling student must work full-time in the office of a principal for a continuous period of not less than 9 months, except for law clerks who article for a shortened period of time. A principal may give a student up to 10 working days as vacation during the articling portion of the program. Any vacation time will not be calculated in the 9-month period.
If you are required to take more than 10 working days off from your articles for holidays or sick time, you must apply for a leave of absence under Rule 2-41.