How to become a lawyer in Canada?

How to Become a Lawyer in Alberta for Internationally Trained Lawyers

If you have a law degree from outside Canada and you want to practice law in Alberta, you need to follow these steps:

Obtain a Certificate of Qualification from the National Committee on Accreditation (NCA) – The NCA is a committee of the Federation of Law Societies of Canada that evaluates the legal education and professional experience of internationally trained lawyers.

The NCA will assess your credentials and determine which additional requirements you need to meet to be qualified to practice law in Canada. These requirements may include passing the NCA exams, taking courses in specific areas of law at a Canadian law school, or completing a Canadian common law degree program. The NCA process can take several years and there are costs involved. For more information, visit the NCA website.

Apply for admission as a student-at-law at the Law Society of Alberta – Once you have met the NCA requirements, you need to request that your NCA Certificate of Qualification be sent to the Law Society of Alberta. Then, you need to apply online for student-at-law status. You will also need to find an active practising lawyer to article with for a twelve-month period. Student recruitment is subject to the Rules of the Law Society of Alberta. For more information, visit the Law Society of Alberta website. 

Complete the Practice Readiness Education Program (PREP) – PREP is the bar admission program in Alberta that is administered by the Canadian Centre for Professional Legal Education (CPLED). PREP is a 10-month online and in-person program that teaches you the skills and competencies required to practice law in Alberta. There is a tuition fee for PREP, and you may be eligible for a Law Society subsidy to cover a portion of the fee. You can enroll in PREP and complete the program before or after applying to the Law Society for admission as a student-at-law. For more information, visit the CPLED website.