University of Toronto Faculty of Law

Introduction

The Faculty of Law is one of the oldest professional faculties at the University of Toronto, with a long and illustrious history. The law school took on its modern form under the leadership of Cecil Wright in 1949, building on the foundations of the law school established at the University of Toronto in 1887.

Today, it is one of the world’s great law schools, a dynamic academic and social community with 57 full-time faculty members and 25 distinguished short-term visiting professors from the world’s leading law schools, as well as 500 JD and graduate students.

The Faculty’s rich academic programs are supplemented by its many legal clinics and public interest programs, and its close links to the Faculty’s more than 6,000 alumni, who enjoy rewarding careers in every sector of Canadian society and remain involved in many aspects of life at the law school.

Housed in two beautiful, historic buildings and a state-of-the-art facility, the Faculty features modern amenities, including the renowned, high-technology Bora Laskin Law Library.

Located in the heart of downtown Toronto, Canada’s largest city, the law school is near a wide variety of attractions, including the Royal Ontario Museum, which is next door.

Why U of T?

• Our Faculty is internationally recognized for academic excellence.
• Our students are exposed to some of the world’s finest doctrinal and theoretical scholars in public and private law.
• Our students are sought after by prominent law firms, nationally and internationally, governmental and nongovernmental organizations, and leading graduate law schools.
• Our law school distributes over $2 million in financial aid each year.
• Our graduating classes typically enjoy the highest rates of employment of all Ontario law schools.
• Linkages with other U of T faculties, other universities, and leading members of the bar and bench provide a diverse interdisciplinary approach to teaching and research.
• Our law school has a strong and unwavering commitment to public service and leadership through numerous programs and activities.
• Our student body is comprised of extraordinary individuals representing a myriad of backgrounds, interests, and accomplishments.
• We are located in downtown Toronto—the heart of one of the world’s most multicultural and interesting cities.

Law School Enrollment

Physical Facilities

Housed in two historic buildings—Flavelle House and Falconer Hall—and the new Jackman Law Building, the law school is located on the St. George campus of the University of Toronto, close to the heart of the city.

Both the Flavelle House and Falconer Hall were private homes in the early 1900s, and offer students an architecturally inspiring environment for their studies. In recent years, major renovations have equipped the historic houses with leading-edge technology. Students enjoy Internet connections for laptops and Internet-based conferencing technology that allows interaction with guest lecturers, legal experts, faculty, and other students and schools around the world.

The Jackman Law Building provides a new, state-of-the-art facility to house the Faculty of Law. The new building features classrooms, offices, study spaces, and the Bora Laskin Library, which provides a comfortable, modern environment where students can access rich legal resources and related materials. The library currently offers more than 265,000 volumes and strives to support law studies with the highest quality legal resources, services, and training. Its collection includes legal materials from the major common law countries and more than 700 scholarly periodicals from around the world, as well as subscriptions to leading law CD-ROMs and online systems such as Quicklaw, Westlaw, and LexisNexis.

Housing

There is a variety of accommodations available both on and off campus for students coming to Toronto independently or with their families. Housing options include the university residences, independent residences, student-family housing, and off-campus housing.

Demand for residence is very high and law students are advised to apply for residence as soon as possible.

Graduate House

Visit the Graduate House website for all information about the residence, including its exact location, types of accommodation, amenities, fees, and the application process.

Priority for rooms in the Graduate House is given to first-year students from outside southern Ontario whose opportunities to locate suitable housing in Toronto prior to September were limited. Within this priority, preference is given to students who have shown financial need.

University of Toronto Student Housing Services

Please visit University of Toronto’s Housing Services for information such as

• the undergraduate residences on campus that accept applications from law students (be advised that space in residence cannot be assured, as priority is given to undergraduate students);
• the university’s family housing apartments;
• independent residences located near the law school; and
• other off-campus housing options, including summer and temporary housing.

The Housing Service now includes a registry of off-campus housing.

LLM Programs/Areas of Specialization

• Our graduate program consistently produces superb scholars with a remarkable breadth of interests. Their graduate studies at the University of Toronto enable them to find rich and intellectually stimulating careers in teaching, research, policy, and practice around the world.
• Excellent opportunities for interdisciplinary scholarship, including research centres in innovation law and health law, as well as many collaborative programs.

The University of Toronto Faculty of Law offers the following law degrees:

• Juris Doctor (JD)
• Combined-degree programs—JD/MA or JD/PhD
• Master of Laws (LLM)
• Master of Studies in Law (MSL)
• Global Professional Master of Laws (GPLLM)
• Doctor of Juridical Sciences (SJD)

Coursework-Intensive LLM

The coursework-intensive format is aimed at law students who wish to specialize in a specific area of law (particularly in one of the Law Faculty’s several strengths), to develop an understanding of North American legal processes and laws, or to explore the common law at an advanced level.

Graduates of the coursework-intensive LLM have pursued further graduate legal education (through a doctoral program), entered directly into a university position, or resumed practice with private firms, government agencies, and nongovernmental organizations.

The coursework-intensive LLM is usually undertaken on a full-time basis, from September to August. In exceptional cases, with the permission of the associate dean, students may apply to complete the program on a part-time basis.

Students can customize an area of focus in the coursework-intensive LLM through their course selections and thesis topic. In the past, students have studied in areas like constitutional law, international law, law and economics, and legal theory.

Requirements

Students must

• remain in residence in Toronto for two academic terms (September to April) and
• complete 28 credit hours of coursework, including the mandatory LLM seminar.

Curriculum

Graduate students choose their other courses from the wide variety available in the JD program, which are posted online in the summer. Graduate students are expected to choose upper-level and seminar courses. Only in exceptional cases will students be permitted to select basic courses or courses from the first-year JD program. NCA courses are not included in the LLM curriculum, so please consider the GPLLM program if you are looking to requalify.

Thesis-Intensive LLM

The thesis-intensive LLM offers law graduates the opportunity to demonstrate advanced legal scholarship through the writing of a dissertation of significant length. Graduates of the thesis-intensive LLM program often pursue further graduate legal studies (through a doctoral program) or seek positions in the academy or in policy development.

The full-time LLM is designed as a 12-month program commencing in September, involving a course of studies and a thesis which, combined, are valued at 24 credit hours. Students in the thesis-intensive LLM program can design a program in almost any area of law and legal theory that will meet that student’s interests and needs.

All thesis-intensive LLM candidates participate in the graduate seminar, Alternative Approaches to Legal Scholarship, as well as the LLM seminar with other graduate students. Those seminars are designed to expose students to various approaches to legal scholarship, including law and philosophy, law and economics, feminism and the law, legal history, law and society, analytical jurisprudence, and critical legal theory.

Requirements

Students must

• remain in residence in Toronto for two academic terms (September to April);
• complete 8–20 credit hours of coursework, including the mandatory graduate seminar, Alternative Approaches to Legal Scholarship, and the LLM seminar; and
• write a 4–16-credit thesis (approximately 15,000–45,000 words) under the supervision of a graduate faculty member.

Curriculum

Graduate students choose their other courses from those available in the JD program, which are posted online in the summer. Graduate students are expected to choose upper-year courses and seminars. Only in exceptional cases will students be permitted to select basic courses or courses from the first-year JD program. NCA courses are not included in the LLM curriculum, so please consider the GPLLM program if you’re looking to requalify.

Global Professional Master of Laws

The Global Professional Master of Laws (GPLLM) is a 12-month executive-style master of laws offered during evenings and weekends and taught by a winning combination of leading legal experts and renowned full-time faculty. The GPLLM combines the best of U of T’s reputation for academic excellence with the pragmatic real-world expertise that is the gold standard in today’s competitive business environment.

What is the GPLLM?

The GPLLM provides an intensive experience like no other. Focused on Canadian business law from a global perspective, the Global Professional Master of Laws (GPLLM) challenges lawyers, business leaders, professionals of all sorts, and policymakers to think differently about the legal issues and framework with which they deal. Students examine the impact of globalization on laws, legal institutions, and markets from a broad, multidisciplinary, and comparative legal perspective. Through examples, case studies, debates, and deconstruction of actual business deals, you’ll gain hands-on practical knowledge, and a robust understanding of the constructs of Canadian business law—and emerge a valued leader for your organization.

Equipped with a GPLLM, graduates add immediate value to their clients, businesses, organizations, and agencies. The program prepares its participants to dissect and ask the right questions when dealing with complex global legal issues and transactions. In collaboration with local and foreign counsel, auditors, and other parties, they are able to effectively identify the issues and challenges arising from the globalized business environment.

Faculty

Top legal minds from the U of T Faculty of Law teach alongside adjunct faculty who are leading experts from Canadian and global law firms, businesses, and institutions. Dean Edward Iacobucci and an additional 8–10 of our full-time faculty teach in the program, including Professors Michael Trebilcock, Ben Alarie, Anita Anand, Tony Duggan, Mohammed Fadel, and David Schneiderman. Adjunct and international faculty from other universities and the business world are listed on our website.

Curriculum

All students take Law and Business in a Global Economy, which is a mandatory foundational course.

Students must choose one course from each of the following groups (which are offered through a combination of evening classes and weekend modules):

Selection 1

1. Comparative Corporate Governance
2. Canadian Administrative Law
3. Anti-Corruption Law: International, Domestic, and Practical Perspectives

Selection 2

1. Securities Regulation and Corporate Finance
2. Canadian Constitutional Law

Selection 3

1. Mergers and Acquisitions
2. Canadian Criminal Law
3. Canadian and Cross-Border Issues in Corporate Tax
4. Commercial Arbitration and Dispute Resolution

GPLLM students must also choose three seminar courses from the following options (each of which is offered as two-day weekend intensives):

1. Law and Policy of Public-Private Partnerships
2. Intellectual Property Law
3. Economic and Social Regulation & Competition Law
4. Corporate Social Responsibility, Ethics, and the Law
5. International Insolvency Law

Finally, students may choose one course from each grouping below (which are offered as three-day weekend courses):

Selection 1

1. Canadian and Cross-Border Issues in Corporate Tax
2. Foundations of Canadian Law

Selection 2

1. International Dispute Resolution
2. Professional Responsibility

Additional elective courses will be offered in future years.

What You’ll Take—and Take Away

• A Master of Laws degree from Canada’s top law school and one of the world’s great law schools.
• A unique, dynamic learning environment led by leading legal experts.
• Professionals from different backgrounds, industries, experiences, and perspectives.
• An extensive alumni network—for life.
• An ability to distinguish yourself professionally.
• A unique combination of legal and business expertise that will change the way you think and enable you to develop your leadership skills.
• Analytical reasoning and insights that will boost your credibility and understanding, and put you a step ahead of your colleagues.
• A once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that you can fit into your life and work.

Student Services and Organizations

Students manage a remarkable range of organizations and activities at the Faculty of Law. Students also benefit from numerous services provided by the Faculty and the university. Organizations and activities include:

• Aboriginal Law Students’ Association
• The Advocates’ Circle
• Artists’ Legal Advice Services (ALAS)
• Black Law Students’ Association
• Christian Law Students’ Association
• Criminal Law Students’ Association
• East Asian Law Students Association
• Environmental Law Club
• HELMUT
• Health Law Club
• International Law Society
• Intramural Sports
• In Vino Veritas
• JD/MBA Students’ Association
• Jewish Law Students’ Association
• Law Ball
• Law Follies
• Law Games
• The LIFT Project
• Mandate for Public Interest Law
• Muslim Law Students’ Association
• Out in Law
• Senators Club
• South Asian Law Students’ Association
• Sports and Entertainment Law Society
• Technology and Intellectual Property Club
• Ultra Vires
• Women and the Law

Graduate Law Students Association

The Graduate Law Students Association (GLSA) represents all students enrolled in the Graduate Programme at the University of Toronto Faculty of Law. The object of the GLSA is to assist graduate students in their dealings with the Faculty and to obtain representation for students on various committees and organizations that pertain to the graduate law programme. The GLSA strives to encourage and facilitate cooperation and understanding among students and faculty in order to improve the research activities and educational experiences of all graduate law students at the University of Toronto.

Other Programs of Special Interest

• Capital Markets Institute
• Centre for Innovation Law and Policy
• Distinguished Visiting Professors Program
• Health Law and Policy Group
• International Human Rights Program
• Law in Action Within Schools (LAWS)
• Pro Bono Students Canada
• Workshops: Feminism and the Law; Diversity; Legal Theory; Constitutional Roundtable; Health Law and Society; Law and Economics; and Globalization, Law, and Justice