LL.M. General

Why Choose This Program?

Few Canadian faculties give a single jurist simultaneous access to common law and civil law, in both of the country's official languages. This is the hallmark of the University of Ottawa's general LL.M.: a genuinely bijural and bilingual education, pursued in the heart of the national capital, steps from the institutions that shape Canadian law.

Its second strength lies in the freedom it leaves you. With no imposed concentration, you study in the legal field of your choice and decide the form your master's will take: a set of courses to broaden your expertise, a research paper or a thesis to explore a question in depth through research, or the recognition of a clerkship already completed. To each their own path, according to their professional project and the time available to them.

Whichever route you choose, you emerge with the profile of a jurist at ease in two systems and two languages, a sought-after asset on the Canadian and international market, and, for the research options, direct preparation for doctoral studies.

Program Options and Structure

The general LL.M. comes in four options, depending on whether you wish to emphasize breadth of coursework, explore a question in depth through research, or have a clerkship experience recognized. All take place on the University of Ottawa campus and include the seminar Contemporary Issues in Law (DCL 5535) as well as methodological training.

Course option (without concentration)

A path of 21 units of coursework, with no research paper or thesis.

Required courses: Comparative Law (DCL 5508); Applied Learning: Seminar of Legal Presentations (DCL 5511); Contemporary Issues in Law (DCL 5535)
Methodology (3 units, one to choose): Legal Research Methodology (DCL 5501) or Legal Research and Writing Methodology (DCL 5722)
Optional courses (9 units): 3 units in a legal theory course and 6 units of optional graduate-level law courses (DCL)

Research paper option (without concentration)

A path combining coursework and research.

Required courses: Legal Research Methodology (DCL 5501); Contemporary Issues in Law (DCL 5535)
Optional courses (9 units): 3 units in a legal theory course and 6 units of optional graduate-level law courses (DCL)
Research paper: a research paper of 50 to 60 pages (MRP 6999), written under the supervision of a faculty member

Thesis option (without concentration)

The most research-intensive path.

Required courses: Legal Research Methodology (DCL 5501); Contemporary Issues in Law (DCL 5535)
Optional courses (3 units): a legal theory course
Thesis: a master's thesis of 100 to 130 pages (THM 7999), defended before a jury

Duration: 2 years, full-time only.

Law clerk stream

A variant of the research paper option, designed for jurists who have completed, are completing, or are about to complete a clerkship in a Canadian court. The work carried out with one or more judges grants an equivalence of two optional courses (six units, DCL 7022). for the details.

For the current list and course details, consult the official program requirements in the University of Ottawa catalogue.

Admission Requirements

To be eligible, you must hold an undergraduate degree in law (LL.B., LL.L. or equivalent), obtained with a minimum average of 70% (B). Particular attention is given to your experience in a legal setting, your previous research work, and your letters of recommendation.

Applications are submitted online through the Ontario Universities' Application Centre (OUAC). Deadlines vary by profile; consult the official deadlines before preparing your file.

For applicants trained abroad

The LL.M. is an academic degree that enriches your professional profile and opens the way to research; on its own, it does not authorize the practice of law in Canada. Admission to the bar or to the Chamber of Notaries falls to the provincial regulatory bodies and involves a separate accreditation process. If practising in Canada is your main goal, it is worth checking with the relevant regulator before applying.

Steps specific to the law clerk stream

If you are applying to the law clerk stream, the steps to follow vary with the timing of your clerkship.

If you have recently completed a clerkship (within the past five years), mention it in the letter of intent accompanying your file, specifying that you wish to obtain the six equivalence units. After acceptance to the program, submit a description of the work performed as well as a letter from the judge or judges who supervised you, attesting to the quality of the work and specifying the exact dates of the clerkship.

If you are currently completing a clerkship, first confirm with your court that it allows its law clerks to enroll in the LL.M. alongside the clerkship, as some courts do not permit it. Then mention your clerkship in your letter of intent. At the end of the clerkship, submit the description of the work and the judge's attestation; the six-unit equivalence is then granted.

If you plan to complete the clerkship alongside the master's, first inquire with the prospective court about the possibility of combining the two commitments. After acceptance to the LL.M., you will be enrolled in course DCL 7022 corresponding to the six clerkship units. At the end of the clerkship, you submit the description of the work and the judge's attestation.

Tuition Fees

Tuition fees vary according to your status (Canadian or international student) and your enrolment (full-time or part-time).
For current amounts, visit the University of Ottawa's tuition fees page, select your academic year, then choose "Regular student."
Graduate studies funding resources are also available, and you can ask the Faculty of Law about scholarships offered specifically to master's students.

University Fees

Funding and financing

Financials

What You Can Do With Your Studies

The general LL.M. opens onto a range of paths, in both the public and private sectors. Depending on the option chosen and your project, the degree leads notably to:

legal counsel in a firm, in-house, or in the public service
public policy specialist in a ministry or regulatory body
jurist in an international organization or NGO
expert in a specialized area of law
manager or analyst in a field requiring solid legal literacy

For those who have followed the research paper or thesis option, the degree further opens the way to legal research, to doctoral studies (for which the thesis or research paper is the most direct preparation) and, after a doctorate, to university teaching.

For graduates of the law clerk stream, court experience is moreover a recognized asset in litigation and appellate practice and opens the way to a clerkship at a higher level, notably at the Court of Appeal or the Supreme Court of Canada.

Program Overview