Canadian Law Programs (LLB or JD)

Bond University is Australia's largest Law School for Canadian Juris Doctor (JD) and Bachelor of Laws (LLB) students. We have trained over 2,000 Canadian lawyers during the past 20 years.

 

Program Highlights

• The Juris Doctor (JD) is completed in 2 years.
• The Bachelor of Laws (LLB) is completed in 2 years and 8 months.
• You can commence in January, May or September.
• No LSAT is required.
• The Bond LLB and JD are both accepted in Canada for admission to the Bar.
• Bond was recently ranked as a 'Top 20 Best Small Universities' by Times Higher Education.
• Bond is Australia's #1 rated university.
• Australia is the worlds #1 English speaking country for education.
• Study International rates Bond as the Worlds Best Beachside University.
• Bond's Law Students are repeat world champions (see Awards).
• The staff to student ratio at Bond is 1:10 (one of the worlds lowest).
• Canada Student Loans (eg. OSAP, StudentAid BC, Alberta Student Aid) can be used at Bond.
• Over 100 Canadians graduate with a JD or LLB from Bond each year.

 

 A Law Student from Toronto Shares Her Experience

Bachelor of Laws (LLB) vs Juris Doctor (JD)

The Bachelor of Laws (LLB) and the Juris Doctor (JD) are both professionally recognised law degrees in Canada.

• The Bachelor of Laws (LLB) is an undergraduate program and is available to any high school graduate or undergraduate transfer student (ie. you don't have a Bachelors degree).
• The Juris Doctor (JD) is a graduate level program for those with (or will have) a Bachelors degree.
• Both the LLB and JD include the exact same law classes so there is no difference to the law training undertaken. The LLB includes 8 additional classes not required for the JD and these 8 classes are general education requirements (ie. non law classes). This is why the LLB program is 8 months longer than the JD.

 

Canadian Law Classes

The Bond Faculty of Law presently offers four Canadian law subjects: Foundations of Canadian Law, Canadian Criminal Law, Canadian Constitutional Law and Canadian Administrative Law.

In addition, students can take part in an extracurricular workshop each semester on Canadian Professional Responsibility which aims to assist Canadian students with their preparation for the NCA exams in Canada (see more on the NCA process below).

 

Canadian Law Professors

The Bond Law School employs Canadian lawyers/professors to teach the Canadian law classes at Bond. Currently fulfilling that role is Assistant Professor Lisa Bonin.  Prior to joining Bond, she practiced as a litigator at a leading national law firm in Toronto.  In addition to being licensed in Ontario, Lisa is admitted as a solicitor in the Australian states of New South Wales and Queensland.  Lisa holds an LLB from Osgoode Hall Law School, a BA from the University of Toronto and is now completing her Doctor of Legal Science (SJD).

 

From time to time, we also host distinguished Canadian legal professionals and academics to guest lecture and co-teach in our Canadian course offerings.

 

Visiting Canadian Judges and Lawyers

The Faculty of Law has been fortunate to host many notable Canadian Judges and Lawyers.  Our most recent visitors to campus have been Peter Gall QC, Partner of Gall, Legge, Grant & Munroe LLP and the Honourable Wally Oppal QC, Canadian Lawyer, former Judge and former Attorney-General of British Columbia. Delivering these exclusive networking opportunities is just one example of how Bond Law strives to supplement our students educational experience.

 

Canadian Law Students Association

There is a very active Canadian Law Students Association on campus that organizes many academic events (eg. Canadian Law Mooting contests, NCA seminars) and social events (eg. Canada Day, Halloween, Thanksgiving) for Canadian law students at Bond.

 

Legal Skills Training

An integrated skills and professionalism program is embedded in a Bond Law degree and focuses on core legal skills essential to the practice of law.  These include legal research and analysis, legal writing and drafting, negotiation, and oral communication and presentation.

 

Legal Skills Centre with Fully Operational Court

The Legal Skills Centre is a landmark industry training facility and is the first of its kind to integrate the full complement of legal-based training facilities. With purpose-built suites designed for mediation, dispute resolution, Professional Legal Training (PLT) as well as video conferencing and more, law students will find everything required for training, on site.

 

The centrepiece is the full-scale court comprising an ultra-contemporary courtroom setting equipped with evidence management systems, video conferencing facilities and video streaming that replicates the very latest technology used in the High Court of Australia.

 

Described by the Honourable Justice Kirby as “the finest moot court in any Australian institution,” this showcase facility will ensure all Bond Law graduates are fully conversant with the emerging technologies and systems used in today’s most sophisticated courtrooms.

 

With the newer ‘paperless courtrooms’ being introduced, evidence can be presented in a range of electronic formats and displayed on a series of large plasma screens set around the room. Bond University ensures that processes and facilities replicate actual courtrooms.

 

An additional medium-sized moot court and two smaller moot courts are available for practice, preparation and presentations. These facilities are also equipped with the latest courtroom and teaching technologies to support students throughout their studies.

The NCA & Bar Admissions Process in Canada

To practice law in Canada, you need to be admitted to the Bar in your province. A Bond University law degree is eligible for admission to the Bar, but before you can be admitted, here are the steps to complete:

 

Step One - Certificate of Qualification from the NCA    ** remote learning now allowed **

Your first 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. Bond University will submit your transcripts directly to the NCA at the completion of your program and you will submit an online application and provide some other supporting documents (including transcripts from any other colleges or universities attended).

 

The NCA will require you to sit for a minimum of five Challenge Exams in Canadian law. Current JD and LLB graduates have been prescribed five exams only, but future graduates may be prescribed more.  The five exams are Constitutional Law, Criminal Law, Administrative Law, Foundations of Canadian Law and Canadian Professional Conduct. The exams are offered four times a year – January, April, August and October and cost $1,500 each.

 

Bond University offers four of the Canadian Law classes (Constitutional Law, Criminal Law, Administrative Law, Foundations of Canadian Law) so you will take exams for these classes twice – once at Bond and then again at the NCA. The fifth class (Canadian Professional Conduct) is also provided by Bond, but it's a seminar and not a graded class.

 

For LLB students who apply transfer credits from a vocational college/institute and therefore don't complete the entire program at Bond, you will be prescribed eight exams (subject to NCA assessment) which will be conducted over two exam periods that are 3 months apart. Transfer credits to the LLB from Canadian universites do not increase the number of exams.

 

Step Two - Articles & Bar Admission

You will next complete your Articles at a law firm which will continue for ten months. In ON and BC, 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. At any time during the Articling Period you are eligible to take the Barrister & Solicitor exam which is an open book, all day exam. Once the required number of hours of Articling is completed and the exam has been taken, you will pay your licensing fee of approx. $2,000 and be admitted to the Bar (with a ceremony) and can then practice law.

There is also a new option that is similar to Australia where you can enroll at Ryerson 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.

In AB and SK, there is no set period for Articling, rather, you will complete an online program called the Articling Module. Once the modules are all complete (which includes exams), then you will receive your license to practice law (ie. be admitted to the Bar).

 

Fees and Expenses

All fees and expenses can be viewed in detail and converted to Canadian dollars at our Fees & Expenses page. All amounts are Australian dollars so will be 3-5% less in Canadian dollars at the current exchange rate. Here is a summary of your expected "all-in" costs:

 

Juris Doctor (JD)

Tuition:          $122,500 ($20,417 per semester for 6 semesters)

Living:               $60,000

Total Cost:     $179,280

 

Bachelor of Laws (LLB)

Tuition:        $160,320 ($20,040 per semester for 8 semesters)

Living:             $80,000

Total Cost:    $240,320

 

There are several options for sending funds to Australia from Canada which you can view at our Payments page. We recommend GlobalPay for the best exchange rate, fastest arrival and most secure payment method (by credit card or local transfer to a Canadian bank account).

 

Scholarships and Financing Options

Scholarships

For Juris Doctor students who are not Australian citizens, there isn't much on offer in terms of scholarship support. For LLB students, there is the International Student Excellence Scholarship which provides 25% and 50% awards. Details are on the scholarships page.

 

Financing Options

Canadian students can use Canada Student Loans and provincial loans (eg. OSAP, BC Student Aid, Alberta Student Aid) to cover some costs ($15,000-$25,000 per year depending on the province), but the majority of the required funds will need to come from private sources or a bank loan.

Most of the Canadian banks (eg. TD, RBC, Scotia) provide an $80,000 - $100,000 line of credit (unsecured) to law students. As from 2017, the banks require a local Canadian co-signor (guarantor) for most loan applications. Bond is an officially approved educational institution in Canada and Bond's institution code is VPAH. This should be quoted on your Canada Student Loan applications. For more details, see our Canadian Financial Aid page.

 

Entry Requirements

The minimum cumulative grade for entry to the LLB or JD program is 70% (B average, 2.7/4.0, 3.0/4.33). No LSAT is required. If you don't meet this requirement, you may still be considered for admission to the program if other elements of your application are strong (eg. resume, references, grade improvement in your final 2 years etc). We also offer short pathway programs (1 or 2 semesters) to help you qualify for the LLB or JD.

 

Acceptance Rate

Admission to the LLB and JD programs are grade based and not quota based. Therefore, for those who meet the minimum entry requirements, the acceptance rate is high. For the past 10 years,  almost every student who applied with the help of our North American office was accepted to Bond Law (some via a pathway program). It's therefore advisable to use the free admissions services provided by our North American based staff.

 

Law Program Information Seminars in Canada

The North American based office for Bond conducts two seminars throughout Canada each year - one in June and the other in November. We conduct these seminars in Toronto, Edmonton, Calgary and Vancouver. If you would like to receive an invitation to these seminars, please complete the short form on our Contact Us page (if not previously completed).

 

The Law School Dean Discusses the Career of Law