Given the importance of bilingualism and the advantages of knowing both Canadian legal systems, The University of Western Ontario and L'Université Laval have agreed to offer students the opportunity to obtain both the common law and civil law degrees after a combined four years of study at both institutions.
The objective of the program is to offer Western and Laval students the possibility of obtaining a law degree from the institution in the other legal system. This will allow the students not only the opportunity of developing their skills in the other official language and their knowledge of the other legal system, but it will also allow them to have access to both the Law Society of Upper Canada and the Barreau du Québec.
Description
To be eligible for the program students must (i) have completed either an JD (Western) or an LLB (Laval) while standing in the top 50% of their year (based on the aggregate of their grades from all years), (ii) have participated in the Laval/Western Law Exchange Program during their law program and (iii) have demonstrated the ability to learn law in the other language.
The enrolment of any students in this program will not affect the number of students admissible into the first year of law at Western.
The student is registered at the institution he or she is attending during the fourth year.
For Laval students at Western
Students must complete the following courses:
• Contracts (5 credits)
• Torts (5 credits)
• Property (5 credits)
• Civil Procedure (4 credits)
Students must also complete or have completed, either at Laval or Western, the following courses or their equivalent, as approved by the Associate Dean (Academic) at Western:
• Corporate Law
• Legal Ethics and Professionalism
and three of the following five courses:
• Income Taxation
• Evidence
• Administrative Law
• Public International Law
• Trusts
Students must select other courses from the range of courses offered at Western to total 29 - 31 credits for fourth year.
Students cannot select Western courses that are considered equivalent to courses they have already taken at Laval, except with the approval of the Associate Dean (Academic). A list of equivalents is available from the Office of the Associate Dean (Academic).
Students must satisfy Western's essay requirement.
For Western Students at Laval
Students must complete the following courses:
• Obligations conventionelles (DRT-11385)
• Droit des biens (DRT-11390)
• Droit des personnes (DRT-11391)
• Obligations extracontractuelles (DRT-11386)
• Droit Judiciaire I (DRT-11389)
• Execution and extinction des obligations (DRT-11399)
• Droit de l'entreprise (DRT-11410)
• Droit du travail fondamental (DRT-11401) (unless a Laval equivalent has been or is taken)
Students must also complete one course in each of the three blocks (critical, methodology and international). Foundations of Canadian Law and Legal Ethics and Professionalism collectively satisfy the requirement of the critical block and Legal Research, Writing and Advocacy satisfies the methodological component.
The following optional courses are suggested:
• Sûretés réelles et publicité des droits (DRT-19489)
• Contrats de vente, de louage et d'entreprise ou de service (DRT-11415)
• Droit de la famille (DRT-15009)
• Droit judiciaire II (DRT-11402)
Students must select other courses from the optional curriculum to complete a total of 45 credits at Laval, including the 15 credits completed during their Laval Exchange term. The optional courses selected cannot be equivalent to the ones completed at Western. A list of equivalents is available from the Office of the Associate Dean (Academic).
Evaluation
Western students at Laval must follow the regular schedules and methods of examination of that Faculty. They may write examinations and papers in English.
Laval students at Western must follow the regular schedules and methods of examination of that Faculty. A student whose first language is not English may be given extra time to write examinations, and the length of the extra time will be determined by the Associate Dean (Academic).
FACULTIES 