How to become a lawyer in Canada?

Can you become a lawyer in Canada if you are a lawyer from another country?

• Answer:

  YES you can if you are a foreign lawyer and hell bent to wear the lawyer's gown in Canada. First you have to apply for assessment of your foreign legal credentials to the National Accreditation Committee (NCA) based at Ottawa. You will be informed of requirements of courses/credits before you can be given an equivalence certificate equating you wth a Canadian law graduate. You will be informed if you need to meet these requirements at a Canadian Law School or through Challenge exams held by NCA or an option to do it by either of the two. Of course this will depend on their assessment. If you are from a Common Law system and have worked for years as a lawyer you will be asked for lesser requirements to meet than say if you are from a non common law legal system in which case you may have to almost go through the entire Law School Programme. After you meet NCA requirements, you get an equivalence certificate saying you are as good as a Canadian LL B. This certificate enables you to sit in any provincial Bar society exam. It depends on that Law Society again based on their assessment if you are and to what extent required to do the internship. Having done the internship and passing bar you are licensed to practice law by the law society of the province. For detailed information visit NCA section at the site of Federation of Law societies of Canada (FLSC) at : http:/www.flsc.ca/en/foreignLawyers/foreignLawyers.asp Sajjad Hotiiana: The writer was a foreign lawyer and is now licensed as Barrister and Solicitor in Ontario e-mail : [email protected]