LL.B. – National Program
The Common Law Section’s National Program at uOttawa is designed to immerse graduates of Canadian civil law schools in the common law tradition. This 8-month program leads to an “LL.B. – National Program” degree.
Because of its unique heritage, Canada is constitutionally bijural and bilingual. The aim of the National Program has always been to produce “National Lawyers”, lawyers who understand and appreciate the full richness of Canada’s diverse legal traditions.
Who Should Enrol in the National Program?
- Persons who want to practice law in any Canadian or foreign common law jurisdiction. National Program graduates are qualified to practice law in any common law jurisdiction in Canada and the world.
- Persons who intend to practice law in Quebec with firms or organizations who deal with national and international matters.
- Persons wishing to work in the bijural and bilingual atmosphere of the federal government and related organizations.
- Persons wishing to work internationally where knowledge of both legal traditions is invaluable
Why the National Program at uOttawa?
The National Program at the uOttawa differs from other programs offering a common law education to civil law graduates in several important ways:
- Created in 1970, the National Program is one of Canada’s oldest and best regarded bijural and bilingual programs.
- While other common law schools simply place civil law graduates into their regular first year LL.B. classes, uOttawa’s National Program is a true stand alone program, offering a challenging and tailor-made curriculum to approximately 80 talented students every year.
- The National Program is offered by a full-service Canadian common law school. All National Program courses are taught by gifted professors who also teach in the main three-year common law program.
- An effort is made to replicate the classic first year common law experience in which common law methodology and content are typically implanted. However, the keystone courses of Contracts, Torts, and Property are designed exclusively for National Program students, to respect their prior knowledge in Canadian law and to allow for fruitful comparative law analysis.
- The uOttawa Common Law Section is one of Canada’s largest law schools offering one of the richest set of courses, in English and French, anywhere in the world. National Program students complete a minimum of 12 credits drawn from these offerings, and study alongside upper year common law students in these courses.