Common Law Degree or Civil Law Degree: Which Canadian Law Path Fits Your Career Plans

Where the two systems came from

Common law in the rest of Canada traces back to English law inherited through British colonization, built case by case as judges rule on new disputes and later cases follow that precedent. Quebec's civil law traces back to French civil law, carried over from the Custom of Paris and later codified more formally in the Code civil du Quebec, which sets out rules in structured articles that courts apply and interpret rather than building the rules from case law alone.

Two legal systems, one country

Canada runs two private law systems side by side. Every province and territory outside Quebec bases contracts, property and civil liability on common law, built from judicial precedent the way England's legal system developed. Quebec bases those same areas of private law on the Code civil du Quebec, a codified civil law system rooted in the French legal tradition. Criminal law sits outside this split entirely, since Parliament controls it federally under the Criminal Code, so every province, including Quebec, applies the same common law based criminal process.

What a common law degree gets you

A common law JD, sometimes still listed as an LLB at older calendars, prepares you to write the bar admission exams in any common law province, from Ontario's licensing process through the Law Society of Ontario to equivalent bodies in British Columbia, Alberta and the Atlantic provinces. Common law schools sit in every province outside Quebec, plus the University of Ottawa's common law section and bijural schools that teach both systems.

What a civil law degree gets you

A civil law degree, awarded as a Baccalaureat en droit civil (LLL) or Bachelor of Civil Law (BCL) depending on the school, prepares you for Quebec's licensing paths: the Barreau du Quebec for lawyers or the Chambre des notaires du Quebec for the notary profession, a distinct legal role Quebec maintains that does not exist the same way in common law provinces. Civil law programs run at McGill, Universite Laval, Universite de Montreal, Universite de Sherbrooke, UQAM and the University of Ottawa's civil law section.

Schools that teach both systems together

McGill's combined BCL/JD program and the University of Ottawa's programs let you study common law, civil law and, at McGill, Indigenous legal traditions within one integrated course of study rather than two separate degrees. Graduates leave with dual credentials that open licensing paths in both systems, though each licensing body still runs its own admission process on top of the degree itself. The University of Ottawa's bijural program also lets common law students add a civil law LLL, and civil law students add a common law JD, within an extended course of study, mirroring McGill's integrated approach on a smaller scale.

Moving between systems after graduation

A degree from one system does not automatically qualify you to write bar exams in the other. The National Committee on Accreditation , run by the Federation of Law Societies of Canada, assesses civil law graduates and internationally trained lawyers who want to qualify for a common law jurisdiction, and often adds required courses or exams before you article and write the bar. Quebec runs its own reverse process for common law graduates who want to practice civil law through the province's bar school and licensing bodies.

Degree paths side by side

The notary profession exists only in Quebec's system

Civil law jurisdictions maintain a distinct notary profession, and Quebec is the only Canadian province with a parallel notary licensing path through the Chambre des notaires du Quebec, alongside the lawyer path through the Barreau du Quebec. Common law provinces do not run an equivalent professional stream, so the notary option only exists if you go the civil law route.

Career paths that value both systems

Federal government legal work, including drafting bilingual and bijural legislation at the Department of Justice, actively values lawyers trained in both systems, since federal statutes apply across common law and civil law jurisdictions at once. National law firms with offices in Montreal alongside common law provinces also look for lawyers who move between the two systems for corporate and commercial work that touches both.

Choosing based on where you plan to practice

Base your choice on where you expect to build a career rather than which system sounds more interesting in the abstract. If you plan to stay in Quebec long term, a civil law degree keeps your path direct. If you plan to practice anywhere else in Canada, or expect to move provinces during your career, a common law degree keeps more doors open without an extra accreditation step. A combined bijural degree costs more time in school but removes that tradeoff entirely if you commit to the longer program.

Questions to ask before you decide

• Which province do you expect to practice in after graduation.

• Do you want the notary path, only available through Quebec's civil law system.

• Are you comfortable studying primarily in French, since most civil law programs outside McGill teach in French.

• Does a bijural program's longer timeline fit your plans better than a single-system degree.