JD Degree Requirements

2024-2025 Academic Year Notice:

The juris doctor (JD) degree is conferred upon students who have satisfactorily completed:

• three years in full-time residence or six years in half-time residence, or the equivalent, and
• a minimum of fifty-six credits in addition to the hours of credit allocated to required first year courses.

A JD will not be conferred upon any student who has not been in residence for two full-time academic years or four half-time academic years.

In addition to actively engaged attendance and participation in their course work, to be eligible for the JD degree, all candidates must fulfill the following requirements:

NOTE:  Where a course is designated as eligible under more than one of the Degree Requirements (Perspectives, ICT, Legal Process, Oral Advocacy, or Ethics and Professionalism requirements) a student may satisfy any one (but not more than one) of those requirements by taking the course. For instance, a course listed as both an ICT and a Perspectives course may be taken in fulfilment of either the ICT or the Perspectives requirement, but not both.  One-credit intensive courses cannot satisfy any other degree requirement.  

Credit Requirements

3 year J.D. Program

• Take a minimum of 13 and a maximum of 16 credits each term.  Students enrolled in a January Intensive course can take 17 Winter term credits.  The Intersession credit will be counted toward the Winter term credit count.
• Take a minimum of 28 and a maximum of 32 credits each year.  (The yearly credit count can be 33 credits if one of them is an January Intensive credit.)
• Graduate level courses taken in other divisions of the University are included in course credit limits.  A half-year course is the equivalent of 2 law school credits.
  Note: In extreme circumstances, with permission from the Assistant Dean, Academic, students may take 17 credits in a term.

Half-Time J.D. Program

• Take a minimum of 6 and a maximum of 8 credits each term.  Students enrolled in a January Intensive course can take 9 Winter term credits. 
• Take a minimum of 14 and a maximum of 16 credits each year.
• Take minimum of 28 and a maximum of 33 credits each program year.

Administrative Law

All students must complete a course on Canadian Administrative Law in order to graduate.  Because Administrative Law is a prerequisite for many upper year courses, the Faculty recommends taking this course as early in the program as possible.

Back to TopEthics and Professionalism Requirement

In either second or third year, students graduating during or after 2015 must take at least one course of study that covers ethics and professionalism. An Ethics and Professionalism course of study is concerned with the ethical dimensions of the practice of law in Canada.

Students may fulfil this requirement either by completing a qualifying term-length legal ethics seminar (LAW362H – Legal Ethics or The Legal Profession; or LAW525H – Ethics in the Business Setting) or by completing a two-credit upper-year intensive course (LAW287H – Legal Ethics and Lawyer Regulation).

• Half-Time Program students must satisfy the Ethics and Professionalism requirement in either part of second or third year.
• Combined Program students must satisfy the Ethics and Professionalism requirement during one of the combined years at the law school.
• Exchange Program students must satisfy the Ethics and Professionalism requirement at the law school.

Oral Advocacy Program

The successful completion of a moot, typically held in the second term, is an academic requirement of the Faculty of Law. This requirement must be fulfilled while in residence at this Faculty either by a Competitive Moot or the Upper-Year Moot.
 
Students in the 3-year J.D. program or three-year combined programs may fulfill this requirement in either second or third year.
Students in four-year combined programs may fulfill this requirement in either the third or fourth year of their program.  Students in the Half-Time Program may fulfill this requirement in either the second half of second year or the second half of third year. Students are limited to one competitive moot. 

a) Competitive Moots

• See Courses on the main Faculty of Law website for list of Competitive Moots.
• DO NOT select a Competitive Moot on the Course Selection Program.
• Try-outs take place in September; watch Headnotes and the listserv for details.
• The Moot will be added to student's program once participation is confirmed following the try-outs. Students will then have an opportunity to adjust their credits.

b) Upper Year Moot

• Students must select the Upper Year Moot as part of their course selection.
• Preparation for the Upper Year Moot begins in the first term: see Courses - Moot - Upper Year for details and important deadlines.
• Students work in groups of four and are assigned their moot topic and moot date by lottery. 
• Students will be expected to work to develop the factum and oral argument, culminating in a moot before a three person panel. 
• Students will receive one ungraded credit upon successful completion of both the factum and the oral argument in the mooting program.

Legal Process Requirement

Students must take at least one course dedicated to the study of legal procedures for a minimum of two credits. A Legal Process course studies legal procedures designed to resolve disputes and resolve problems.  Courses that meet this requirement include Civil Procedure, Criminal Procedure, and Alternative Dispute Resolution.   See the relevant web page for a list of Legal Process courses. They are also indicated in the course descriptions on the main Faculty of Law website. All students must fulfill this requirement while at the U of T Faculty of Law.

• Half-time Program students must satisfy the Legal Process course requirement in either part of second or third year.
• Combined Program students must satisfy the Legal Process requirement during one of the combined years at the law school.

Intersession Intensive Course Requirement

In January of either second or third year, students must take at least one Intersession intensive course.  Intensive courses are taught by distinguished visiting faculty.  See the list of past and current intensive courses.  Intensive course descriptions may be found in the course descriptions on the main Faculty of Law website.  The credit(s) earned in the intensive session may be counted toward the Winter term credit count.  All students must fulfill this requirement at the Faculty of Law.

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International / Comparative / Transnational Course

In either second or third year, students must take at least one International, Comparative, or Transnational Law (ICT) course for a minimum of two credits. An ICT course is concerned with global themes and requires students to examine law from a non-Canadian perspective. ICT courses contain a significant international, comparative or transnational component. See the relevant web page for a list of ICT courses. They are also indicated in the course descriptions on the main Faculty of Law website. All students must fulfill this requirement while at the U of T Faculty of Law with the exception of exchange students.* 

• Half-time Program students must satisfy the ICT course requirement in either part of second or third year.
• Combined Program students must satisfy the ICT requirement during one of the combined years at the law school.
• *Exchange Program students may satisfy the requirement by taking an ICT course worth at least 3 credits during a law school approved international exchange.
• Directed Research may fulfill the ICT requirement on application to the Directed Research Committee.

Back to TopPerspective Course Requirement

In either second or third year, students must take at least one perspective course worth a minimum of two credits. A Perspective course is concerned with the nature, sources, and purposes of legal regulation in general rather than with the study of legal doctrine in a particular area. See the relevant web page for a list of Perspective courses. They are also indicated in the course descriptions on the main Faculty of Law website. Directed Research may also be undertaken as a perspective course on application to the Directed Research Committee.

• Half-Time Program students must satisfy the Perspective course requirement in either part of second or third year.
• Combined Program students must satisfy the Perspective course requirement during one of the combined years at the law school.
• Exchange Program students must satisfy the Perspective course requirement at the law school. 
• Directed Research may fulfill the Perspective requirement on application to the Directed Research Committee.

Curricular and Program Delivery--Core Competencies

At U of T Law, we are dedicated to teaching a distinctive way of thinking about the world, equipping our immensely bright and diverse students to understand complex social challenges in the context of a free and democratic society.   

We believe that legal education is a project of collaborative pedagogy, of thinking and learning together. Through critical dialogue, reflection, and engagement in the classroom and community, students are elevated by their teachers and peers to become outstanding lawyers and leaders.  The JD program requires full-time residency in Toronto, which offers students the chance to learn from one another and take advantage of the academic resources of our research university.

Our extraordinary levels of classroom and community engagement in the J.D. Program are supported by our policy on mandatory attendance  [https://handbook.law.utoronto.ca/guidelines-and-procedures/attendance]. Discussion amongst students and professors is critical to developing the ability to understand, explain, and challenge doctrinal knowledge. Most importantly, in class, students are prompted to respond to direct challenges to their own understanding. In preparing students for a profession focused on advocacy and on the adversarial context of competing for specific outcomes, students must observe and participate in exchanges based on a changing landscape of facts and ideas.

As the practice of law is a regulated profession, the Faculty of Law’s curriculum and learning objectives are designed to be consistent with or to exceed the requirements set out by the Federation of Law Societies of Canada. The Faculty also requires students to meet a set of particular graduation requirements [link], which are also implemented as part of its role in training members of a regulated profession.  Because of the vast array of course subjects, teaching styles, and class formats that are on offer at the Faculty, not every course will involve each of these requirements.  Nonetheless, our expectation is that all students in the JD program will benefit from multiple and repeated opportunities to practice and develop these skills.  The JD program requires full-time residency in Toronto, which offers students the chance to learn from one another and take advantage of the academic resources of our research university.

Our pedagogy and programs are designed to enable each student to achieve the following learning objectives and competencies:

1.     Knowledge and understanding of substantive and procedural law;

2.     Aptitude for legal research, analysis, and reasoning;

3.     Aptitude for academic research;

4.     Proficiency in the use of critical thinking and written and oral advocacy skills, including through persuasive writing, oral presentations, problem-solving, and real-time debate;

5.     Ability to engage respectfully with others, consider diverse perspectives, and collaborate effectively;

6.     Knowledge and understanding of the ethical and professional responsibilities required of members of the legal sector.

Students are required to demonstrate these learning objectives and competencies across a range of courses covering different areas of law and using a range of pedagogical techniques. Students in the J.D. Program are required to:

•        read and engage with a range of sources;
•        express their ideas in writing;
•        conduct legal and academic research;
•        engage in problem solving during class, through a question-and-answer format;
•        actively and respectfully listen to, and participate in dialogue with students, faculty, and other members of the community;
•        attend classes and participate in in-person class activities;
•        interact with classmates with different perspectives;
•        present their ideas orally;
•        take timed evaluations; and
•        submit work to meet deadlines and requirements.

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