Posted: August 2026 First Year Courses JD Academic Programs
2026-2027
CONSTITUTIONAL LAW (SECTIONS): CONSTITUTIONAL LAW (LAW106H1F) Yasmin Dawood
Fall Session: 5 credits This course provides an introduction to the law of the Canadian constitution. It examines the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, federalism, Aboriginal law, the structure of the Canadian constitution, interpretive principles, and the role of judicial review. Evaluation: Will be by a limited open book, final 3-hour examination during the scheduled examination period in December (worth 90%), and a 10% participation score. CONSTITUTIONAL LAW (LAW106H1S) Richard Stacey Winter Session: 5 credits This course provides an introduction to the law of the Canadian constitution. It examines the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, federalism, and Indigenous rights. The course introduces the concept of constitutionalism and explores the nature of Canadian constitutionalism specifically. We ask what constitutions mean and what they are meant to achieve. We look at how the Canadian Constitution is structured and, in turn, how it structures public power in Canada. We consider the role of judicial review and the relationship between courts and legislatures, with respect to the distribution of legislative authority, constitutional rights and freedoms, and Indigenous rights. We will examine selected federal and provincial powers, Indigenous rights, and Charter rights in more detail. Evaluation: This course will be evaluated through a 3-hour, limited open-book final exam worth 100% of the grade. There will be a word limit to the final exam. CONSTITUTIONAL LAW (SMALL GROUPS): CONSTITUTIONAL LAW A (LAW136Y1Y) Anna Su Both Terms: 6 credits This course provides an introduction to the law of the Canadian constitution. It examines the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, federalism, and Aboriginal rights. The course considers the structure of the Canadian constitution, the role of judicial review, and general principles of interpretation with regard to the distribution of legislative authority, constitutional rights and freedoms, and Aboriginal rights. Selected federal and provincial powers, Aboriginal rights, and rights guaranteed by the Charter will be examined. Evaluation: Written assignments (85%) and class participation 15% (10% participation in class and 5% attendance). Note that one of the written assignments will have both a written and oral component. CONSTITUTIONAL LAW B (LAW137Y1Y) Ian Lee Both Terms: 6 credits This course provides an introduction to the law of the Canadian Constitution. It examines the federal structure of government, the relationship between Indigenous peoples and the Canadian State, and the constitutional protection of individual rights and freedoms. Substantive content includes the Constitution’s history and text; methods of constitutional interpretation, analysis and argument; and an examination of selected federal and provincial powers, Aboriginal rights and rights guaranteed under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Evaluation: Writing assignments (60%), closed-book final exam (30%), participation (10%). CONSTITUTIONAL LAW C (LAW138Y1Y) Ian Lee
Both Terms: 6 credits This course provides an introduction to the law of the Canadian Constitution. It examines the federal structure of government, the relationship between Indigenous peoples and the Canadian State, and the constitutional protection of individual rights and freedoms. Substantive content includes the Constitution’s history and text; methods of constitutional interpretation, analysis and argument; and an examination of selected federal and provincial powers, Aboriginal rights and rights guaranteed under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Evaluation: Writing assignments (60%), closed-book final exam (30%), participation (10%). CONTRACT LAW (SECTIONS): CONTRACT LAW (LAW101H1S- 0101) Sabine Tsuruda
Winter Session: 5 credits Contract law enforces agreement, but not all agreements are contracts. What kinds of agreements does contract law enforce? What must individuals do to form and perform a contract? What are the legal consequences of breaching a contractual obligation? This course introduces students to the main legal rules and principles that bear on answering these questions about the scope and operation of contract law. Evaluation: Limited open book exam 3-hour exam (70%); Contract negotiation (20%: based on Negotiated terms (5%) graded on a credit/no credit basis, and a Group memorandum (15%) of 2000 words maximum; letter graded); and Participation (10%). CONTRACT LAW (LAW101H1S- 0102) Sabine Tsuruda
Winter Session: 5 credits Contract law enforces agreement, but not all agreements are contracts. What kinds of agreements does contract law enforce? What must individuals do to form and perform a contract? What are the legal consequences of breaching a contractual obligation? This course introduces students to the main legal rules and principles that bear on answering these questions about the scope and operation of contract law. Evaluation: Limited open book exam 3-hour exam (70%); Contract negotiation (20%: based on Negotiated terms (5%) graded on a credit/no credit basis, and a Group memorandum (15%) of 2000 words maximum; letter graded); and Participation (10%). CONTRACT LAW (LAW101H1S- 0103) Angela Fernandez Winter Session: 5 credits This course examines the enforcement of promises and agreements. The matters considered include the requirements of enforceability, remedies for breach, the effect of contracts on third parties, the effect of writing, and excuses for non-performance. These excuses include unfairness, unexpected circumstances, and public policy. Evaluation: Will be evaluated by a December test (potentially 20% of the final examination grade if it is to the students' advantage), and a 3-hour limited open-book final examination (100%, subject to the December test component if counting the December test is to the students advantage). CONTRACT LAW (SMALL GROUPS): CONTRACT LAW A (LAW120Y1Y) Catherine Valcke Both Terms: 6 credits This course aims to introduce students to common law reasoning involving contracts. Various judicial rules concerning the enforcement of promises and agreements will be examined, which will serve to hone our understanding of those rules and to develop our ability to use them in legal argument. The matters considered comprise the requirements for enforceability, remedies for breach, the effect of contracts on third parties, the effect of writing, and excuses for non-performance, the latter of which include unfairness, unexpected circumstances, and public policy. The emphasis will not be on the content of those rules so much as on the method deployed to extract them from cases, to apply them in new cases, and to track their evolution over time. Evaluation: 20% participation (in class discussion and attendance) and 80% written assignments (in-class and outside of class). CONTRACT LAW B (LAW121Y1Y) Catherine Valcke Both Terms: 6 credits This course aims to introduce students to common law reasoning involving contracts. Various judicial rules concerning the enforcement of promises and agreements will be examined, which will serve to hone our understanding of those rules and to develop our ability to use them in legal argument. The matters considered comprise the requirements for enforceability, remedies for breach, the effect of contracts on third parties, the effect of writing, and excuses for non-performance, the latter of which include unfairness, unexpected circumstances, and public policy. The emphasis will not be on the content of those rules so much as on the method deployed to extract them from cases, to apply them in new cases, and to track their evolution over time. Evaluation: 20% participation (in class discussion and attendance) and 80% written assignments (in-class and outside of class). CRIMINAL LAW (SECTIONS): CRIMINAL LAW (LAW102H1F) Malcolm Thorburn Fall Session: 5 credits This course examines the basic concepts of criminal law with particular emphasis on the elements of culpability and the conditions of excuse and justification. It seeks to understand the general part of the criminal law from the point of view of various perspectives on the aims and justification of punishment. Right-based and utilitarian theories of punishment are discussed and their implications for doctrine examined. The intersection of criminal law and the Charter forms another central theme of the course as does the distinction between criminal and public welfare offences. The aim is to understand the penal law as an integrated whole composed of several diverse but interconnected parts. Evaluation: Students will be evaluated by a 3-hour closed book final examination (100%). CRIMINAL LAW (LAW102H1S) Hamish Stewart
Winter Session: 5 credits This course examines the basic concepts of the criminal law through sustained attention to several core criminal offenses, notably the varieties of homicide and sexual assault. Along the way, we will also spend significant time considering inchoate crimes, accessorial liability, and defenses of excuse and justification. Themes of the course include the impact of the Charter on the substantive criminal law and the scope of criminalization in a liberal society. Evaluation: Students will be evaluated by a limited open book, 3-hour final examination (4.000-word limit) (100%). CRIMINAL LAW (SMALL GROUPS): CRIMINAL LAW A (LAW124Y1Y) Alan Brudner
Both Terms: 6 credits This course examines the central concepts of criminal law—the presumption of innocence, culpable act, culpable mind, outcome responsibility, justification, and excuse--as shaped by the interaction between statute, common law, and the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Evaluation: Written assignments (90%). Participation (10%). CRIMINAL LAW B (LAW125Y1Y) Markus Dubber This course examines the basic concepts of criminal law. Evaluation: Three written assignments (90%) and class participation (10%).
INDIGENOUS PEOPLES AND THE LAW (SECTIONS): INDIGENOUS PEOPLES AND THE LAW (LAW108H1F) (0101) (0102) Hadley Friedland, Ian Lee, Kent Roach, Douglas Sanderson, Richard Stacey, and Anna Su Fall Session: 4 credits This course examines Indigenous peoples’ laws and their relationship with the Canadian state. In the process, it explores the development of Canadian case law relative to Indigenous peoples and its simultaneous preservation and dispossession of their rights. The course aims to situate Indigenous legal traditions in the Canadian legal system, illustrating not only the intersection of Indigenous and Canadian law but also the role that Indigenous legal traditions have played in shaping the Canadian legal system. A primary learning objective in the course, which weaves together the expertise of several faculty members, is to gain an understanding of how Indigenous ways of knowing, arranging relationships and ordering communities run through a great deal of Canadian law. The course begins with an overview of Indigenous governance, treaties, questions of self-government and Indigenous Legal traditions. It then considers how the Canadian Constitution has sought to engage, integrate, or assimilate Indigenous legal orderings, both under section 35 of the 1982 Constitution Act and the federal distributions of legislative competence under the 1867 Constitution Act. Building on these foundations, the course then delves into specific areas of Canadian law that raise Indigenous issues in distinctive ways. We explore how administrative law and public has made it possible, or restricted, the ability of Indigenous peoples to govern themselves. We consider the experience of Indigenous peoples in the criminal justice system and the development of Indigenous systems of criminal law. We consider Indigenous relationships to land and resources, and how those relationships have been translated into Aboriginal title and intersect with aspects of property law in the Canadian common-law system. Along the way, the course examines aspects of legal pluralism and assesses a variety of normative and political justifications for Aboriginal rights. It considers the many ways in which Indigenous peoples own laws continue to exist as resources for decision-making in contemporary circumstances. Evaluation: 3 hour, limited open book exam: 100 per cent of final mark, LEGAL METHODS (AUGUST 18 – AUGUST 29, 2025) LEGAL METHODS AA (LAW111H1F) (0101) Anthony Niblett Summer Session: 2 credits One of the central goals of our JD program is to train students to “think like lawyers.” The Legal Methods intensive course is designed to introduce students to the foundational information and reasoning needed to make the most of the JD program from the outset. The course will provide general background information on the foundations of the Canadian legal system, such as the important legal institutions, the distinction between private and public law, the sources of law, and the relationship between core first year courses. The course will emphasize legal analytical methods and techniques used by law students. The course provides an introduction to analyzing and briefing cases, teaching students to identify key elements of a case and how to use precedents. The course also introduces students to statutory interpretation, the interaction between courts and the legislature, and an introduction on to how to prepare for and write law school exams. Evaluation: This class is evaluated on a credit/no credit basis. To receive credit for the course, a student must attend all classes and satisfactorily complete two assignments: (1) a take-home briefing exercise; and (2) an in-class legal writing exercise. LEGAL METHODS BB (LAW111H1F) (0102) Martha Shaffer Summer Session: 2 credits One of the central goals of our JD program is to train students to “think like lawyers.” The Legal Methods intensive course is designed to introduce students to the foundational information and reasoning needed to make the most of the JD program from the outset. The course will provide general background information on the foundations of the Canadian legal system, such as the important legal institutions, the distinction between private and public law, the sources of law, and the relationship between core first year courses. The course will emphasize legal analytical methods and techniques used by law students. The course provides an introduction to analyzing and briefing cases, teaching students to identify key elements of a case and how to use precedents. The course also introduces students to statutory interpretation, the interaction between courts and the legislature, and an introduction on to how to prepare for and write law school exams. Evaluation: This class is evaluated on a credit/no credit basis. To receive credit for the course, a student must attend all classes and satisfactorily complete two assignments: (1) a take-home briefing exercise; and (2) an in-class legal writing exercise. LEGAL METHODS CC (LAW111H1F) (0103) Simon Stern
Summer Session: 2 credits One of the central goals of our JD program is to train students to “think like lawyers.” The Legal Methods intensive course is designed to introduce students to the foundational information and reasoning needed to make the most of the JD program from the outset.
The course will provide general background information on the foundations of the Canadian legal system, such as the important legal institutions, the distinction between private and public law, the sources of law, and the relationship between core first year courses.
The course will emphasize legal analytical methods and techniques used by law students. The course provides an introduction to analyzing and briefing cases, teaching students to identify key elements of a case and how to use precedents. The course also introduces students to statutory interpretation, the interaction between courts and the legislature, and an introduction on to how to prepare for and write law school exams. Evaluation: This class is evaluated on a credit/no credit basis. To receive credit for the course, a student must attend all classes and satisfactorily complete two assignments: (1) a take-home briefing exercise; and (2) an in-class legal writing exercise. LEGAL RESEARCH & WRITING (WINTER TERM)
LEGAL RESEARCH & WRITING (LAW149H1S) (0101) TBC
Winter Session: 2 credits Legal research and writing introduces students to the way lawyers read, write, analyze and frame legal arguments. Students learn research and writing skills by engaging in numerous in-class exercises and preparing as assignments various legal documents including a legal memorandum and a factum. To maximize the pedagogical benefit to students, active engagement and participation in class is encouraged. Evaluation: Written assignments (90%) and class participation (10%). LEGAL RESEARCH & WRITING (LAW149H1S) (0102) TBC
Winter Session: 2 credits Legal research and writing introduces students to the way lawyers read, write, analyze and frame legal arguments. Students learn research and writing skills by engaging in numerous in-class exercises and preparing as assignments various legal documents including a legal memorandum and a factum. To maximize the pedagogical benefit to students, active engagement and participation in class is encouraged. Evaluation: Written assignments (90%) and class participation (10%). LEGAL RESEARCH & WRITING (LAW149H1S) (0103) TBC
Winter Session: 2 credits Legal research and writing introduces students to the way lawyers read, write, analyze and frame legal arguments. Students learn research and writing skills by engaging in numerous in-class exercises and preparing as assignments various legal documents including a legal memorandum and a factum. To maximize the pedagogical benefit to students, active engagement and participation in class is encouraged. Evaluation: Written assignments (90%) and class participation (10%). LEGAL RESEARCH & WRITING (LAW149H1S) (0104) TBC
Winter Session: 2 credits Legal research and writing introduces students to the way lawyers read, write, analyze and frame legal arguments. Students learn research and writing skills by engaging in numerous in-class exercises and preparing as assignments various legal documents including a legal memorandum and a factum. To maximize the pedagogical benefit to students, active engagement and participation in class is encouraged. Evaluation: Written assignments (90%) and class participation (10%). LEGAL RESEARCH & WRITING (LAW149H1S) (0105) TBC
Winter Session: 2 credits Legal research and writing introduces students to the way lawyers read, write, analyze and frame legal arguments. Students learn research and writing skills by engaging in numerous in-class exercises and preparing as assignments various legal documents including a legal memorandum and a factum. To maximize the pedagogical benefit to students, active engagement and participation in class is encouraged. Evaluation: Written assignments (90%) and class participation (10%). LEGAL RESEARCH & WRITING (LAW149H1S) (0106) TBC
Winter Session: 2 credits Legal research and writing introduces students to the way lawyers read, write, analyze and frame legal arguments. Students learn research and writing skills by engaging in numerous in-class exercises and preparing as assignments various legal documents including a legal memorandum and a factum. To maximize the pedagogical benefit to students, active engagement and participation in class is encouraged. Evaluation: Written assignments (90%) and class participation (10%). LEGAL RESEARCH & WRITING (LAW149H1S) (0107) TBC
Winter Session: 2 credits Legal research and writing introduces students to the way lawyers read, write, analyze and frame legal arguments. Students learn research and writing skills by engaging in numerous in-class exercises and preparing as assignments various legal documents including a legal memorandum and a factum. To maximize the pedagogical benefit to students, active engagement and participation in class is encouraged. Evaluation: Written assignments (90%) and class participation (10%). LEGAL RESEARCH & WRITING (LAW149H1S) (0108) TBC
Winter Session: 2 credits Legal research and writing introduces students to the way lawyers read, write, analyze and frame legal arguments. Students learn research and writing skills by engaging in numerous in-class exercises and preparing as assignments various legal documents including a legal memorandum and a factum. To maximize the pedagogical benefit to students, active engagement and participation in class is encouraged. Evaluation: Written assignments (90%) and class participation (10%). PROPERTY LAW (SECTIONS): PROPERTY LAW (LAW103H1F) Jim Phillips Fall Session 5 credits This course introduces students to the basic concepts needed for understanding the common law of property. We begin by asking what lawyers mean by the word 'property', and by looking at why and how the common law conceives of some things as property. We then examine the links between possession and ownership, and at how interests in land are arranged (estates in land, concurrent ownership, servitudes). There are also sections on de facto expropriation, aboriginal title, and landlord-tenant relations. Evaluation: Will be evaluated through a three-hour final exam, divided into two parts. Part 1 will be a one-hour closed book ‘test’ on basic concepts. Part 2 will be a limited open book exam consisting of a problem question or questions. PROPERTY LAW (LAW103HS) Larissa Katz
Second term: 5 credits We regularly invoke the idea of property to defend or contest entitlements in society. We might say, for instance, “that’s my parking spot” or “I own this taxi license” or “nature belongs to everyone.” Social and moral norms about property sometimes overlap and sometimes diverge from legal norms and distinctively legal modes of reasoning about property problems. In this course, our focus is on property law and how it shapes legal entitlements to use and control resources. Property law is often described as the law of things: it is a system of rights, accompanied by duties, privileges and powers, in respect of specific things in the world, tangible (like land or goods) and intangible (like your bank account). A system of property rights authorizes private use and control of different parts of our usable environment. This course will examine the central features of this system of property and will take up such fundamental questions as: what are the essential features of a property right in law? What does and does not count as a ‘thing,’ i.e., an object of a property right, for the purposes of property law? How do we legally acquire, transfer, or divest ourselves of property rights? How does the law resolve inconsistent claims of right to the same thing? What tools does the law make available to us to share control and use of things with others? Does property law build social responsibility into property rights? By the end of the course, you will be able to: • Understand the key features of property rights; • Understand how property law relates to adjacent areas of law (e.g., contract law, tort law, equity, bankruptcy law, and administrative or regulatory law); • Identify property problems as they arise in cases and novel fact patterns as well as the legal or equitable tools for resolving them; • Critically analyze the extent to which property is a tool for achieving social aims; • Deploy core lawyering skills, e.g., interpreting case law; spotting legal problems; identifying legal authorities relevant to resolving those problems; identifying and resolving ambiguities, complexities, and gaps in a body of law; developing and evaluating the strength of arguments for and against a legal position. Evaluation: Property law will be evaluated through a 3-hour limited open-book final examination worth 90% final exam and 10% class participation. PROPERTY LAW (SMALL GROUPS): PROPERTY LAW A (LAW128Y1Y) Lisa Austin
Both Terms: 6 credits The purpose of the course is to introduce students to the concepts that lawyers use in dealing with competing interests in land, chattels and other forms of wealth. The concept of "property" is examined as are the concepts of possession and ownership, and the consequences flowing from these concepts. The doctrine of estates in land, takings, concurrent ownership, landlord-tenant relations, findings, future interests, covenants, easements, licenses, adverse possession, aboriginal title and intellectual property are among the other topics which may be covered. Evaluation: 85% written assignments (no test or exam), 10% contributions to class discussion and 5% attendance. PROPERTY LAW B (LAW129Y1Y) Lisa Austin Both Terms: 6 credits The purpose of the course is to introduce students to the concepts that lawyers use in dealing with competing interests in land, chattels and other forms of wealth. The concept of "property" is examined as are the concepts of possession and ownership, and the consequences flowing from these concepts. The doctrine of estates in land, takings, concurrent ownership, landlord-tenant relations, findings, future interests, covenants, easements, licenses, adverse possession, aboriginal title and intellectual property are among the other topics which may be covered. Evaluation: 85% written assignments (no test or exam), 10% contributions to class discussion and 5% attendance. PROPERTY LAW C (LAW130Y1Y) Douglas Sanderson
Both Terms: 6 credits This course introduces students to the concepts lawyers use in dealing with competing interests in land, chattels and other forms of wealth. Property is a highly conceptual aspect of the law. The main purpose of this course is to get students comfortable with understanding property as a legal construct, and the consequences flowing from these constructs. The doctrine of estates in land, takings, concurrent ownership, landlord-tenant relations, equity, future interests, covenants, easements, licenses, adverse possession, and Aboriginal title are among the topics that may be covered. Evaluation: Each student will complete four writing assignments of 1500-1750 words in length. After at least two of the assignment due dates, each student will be invited to a one-on-one interview with the instructor lasting no more than fifteen minutes. The course Instructor will ask the student to speak to the details of their written submission. The purpose of the interview will be to assess the student’s knowledge of their own written work. The Instructor may inquire about why particular cases were utilized in the written work, or why some cases were not discussed. The Instructor may ask about the themes of the class but will focus on topics relating to the student’s written submission. Grading will be based solely on written work (90%) and class participation (10%). TORT LAW (SECTIONS): TORT LAW (LAW104H1F-0101) Mayo Moran Fall Session: 5 credits The law of torts deals with the sorts of disputes which arise when one person has caused injury or property loss to another. The largest part of the course will deal with the tort of negligence, but intentional torts, strict liability torts, and nuisance may also be discussed. Evaluation: Limited open book final exam (100%) TORT LAW (LAW104H1F-0102) Mayo Moran Fall Session: 5 credits The law of torts deals with the sorts of disputes which arise when one person has caused injury or property loss to another. The largest part of the course will deal with the tort of negligence, but intentional torts, strict liability torts, and nuisance may also be discussed. Evaluation: Limited open book final exam (100%) TORT LAW (LAW104H1F-0103) Anthony Niblett First term: 5 credits The law of torts deals with the sorts of disputes which arise when one person has caused injury or property loss to another. The largest part of the course will deal with the tort of negligence, but we shall also look at nuisance, defamation, as well as introducing strict liability and intentional torts. Different theoretical perspectives on tort law will be analyzed and consideration given to alternative methods of compensation. Evaluation: There are two modes of evaluation. (1) Limited open-book 3-hour final examination worth 70% of the grade; (2) Six short writing responses (maximum one page) throughout the semester, each worth 5% (for a total of 30%). TORT LAW (SMALL GROUPS): TORT LAW A (LAW132Y1Y) Abdi Aidid
Both terms: 6 credits The law of torts deals with the sorts of disputes which arise when one person has caused injury or property loss to another. The largest part of the course will deal with the tort of negligence, but intentional torts, strict liability torts, and nuisance may also be discussed. Evaluation: Written assignments (90%) and class participation (10%). TORT LAW B (LAW133Y1Y) Abdi Aidid
Both terms: 6 credits The law of torts deals with the sorts of disputes which arise when one person has caused injury or property loss to another. The largest part of the course will deal with the tort of negligence, but intentional torts, strict liability torts, and nuisance may also be discussed. Evaluation: Written assignments (90%) and class participation (10%). | 