Introduction

Can my degree be comparable to a JD degree in Canada?

Do I need an LLM for practising in Canada? Or a J.D.?

I am a first-generation lawyer in my country, but I want to live and practice in Canada.

I want to relocate to Canada because I have heard the country is very welcoming of immigrants.

If these questions or thoughts come to your mind, we are going to tell you how you can clear NCA exams in Canada by just sitting in your house.

We are an international ed-tech company that is going to train students to take the Canadian NCA exams. It is not even that difficult. One of our own former employees passed the NCA exams while working full-time at SkillArbitrage.

We will ensure that you get the skills needed to first take and pass the NCA exams. 

Things to know before you fill your application form and pay the application fee

• How to fulfil the eligibility requirements to take the NCA exams;
• How to manage time between the exam preparation and your work commitments;
• How to write analytical answers using the Issue Rule Analysis Conclusion (IRAC) method;
• Get the right printed notes to attempt the open book examinations; and
• Ability to write answers well in English.

What does it take to get called to the Canadian Bar:

Canada follows a common law system in majority of its provinces except for the province of Quebec where a civil legal system is followed for all adjudicatory pruposes. A lawyer licensed to practice law in a non-Canadian jurisdiction or a law graduate from a non-Canadian law school can get licensed to practice law in a Canadian common law province by completing the first step of the process: Clearing the National Committee of Accreditation (NCA) process. 

A candidate must apply to the Federation of Law Societies of Canada (FLSC) and fill the application form costing 500 CAD plus taxes.

A candidate has to submit the application form, with law school transcripts, and a certificate of good standing from the bar council.

The NCA takes about 2 months to assess a candidate's application.

After NCA completes the assessment, the candidate takes the NCA recommended examinations by himself/herself or studies them at a university.

On successfully passing the NCA exams, the candidate is required to take Barrister and Solicitor examinations. These are the official bar examinations held in different provinces of Canada. 

Most candidates are required to undertake a year of articling with a lawyer licensed in Canada or to do the Lawyer’s Practice Program in Canada after clearing their Bar examinations. 

Finally, the candidate gets a call from the provincial law society to get their law licence.

SkillArbitrage shall be providing training to those who wish to clear the first step of this journey i.e. clearing the NCA examinations.

About the NCA exams

NCA assesses each candidate according to their education, legal work experience, and law license. For example, a foreign lawyer who has scored more than 50% in her law school, would have to demonstrate proficiency in 6 core Canadian law subjects as of January 2022. These 6 core subjects are:

• Foundations of Canadian Law;
• Canadian Constitutional Law;
• Canadian Administrative Law;
• Canadian Criminal Law; 
• Canadian Professional Responsibility; and 
• Legal Research and Writing

SkillArbitrage aims to teach five of the six subjects i.e. Foundations of Canadian Law, Canadian Constitutional Law, Canadian Administrative Law, Canadian Criminal Law and Canadian Professional Responsibility. All of these courses will be taught by a practising Barrister/Solicitor who has taken NCA exams enroute to his/her journey to the Canadian Bar.  

These subjects could vary depending on the NCA’s assessment of the candidate. Some candidates are asked to take Business Organizations, Commercial Law, Evidence, Torts, Contracts, Property Law, Family Law, Civil Procedure, Taxation, and Trusts, in addition to these 5-6 core subjects.

Each of these courses can be studied at one of the Canadian Law Schools as well.

The costs associated with the Law School Courses (full year enrollment) are:

• Application fees – About $150.00, plus taxes
• Tuition fees – $35,000 to $56,000 (some schools charge additional fees on top of tuition)

Minimum cost – $35,450.00 (for a full year’s enrolment)

The Law School does not award a degree or diploma certificate on completion either. It just sends a report to NCA stating the requirement has been fulfilled. Taking the exams works out to be cheaper. The costs associated with the NCA process are:

• Assessment fee – Effective March 1, 2024, the fee will be $400 CDN plus applicable taxes
• Assessment appeal fee – $285.00 plus taxes (will not apply unless you appeal your assessment result)
• Exam fee – The fee for registration for each NCA exam is $475 CDN plus applicable taxes
• Exam appeal fee – $250.00 per exam, plus taxes (will not apply unless you appeal your exam result)
• Cancellation fees – Effective March 1st, 2023 the fee to cancel an NCA exam is $100 per exam plus taxes (will not be a factor unless you cancel an exam)

Minimum cost: Approximately $3000.00, plus taxes

Each of these exams is an essay-based exam and occasionally have a multiple-choice part or true and false component as well. Ever since the pandemic, they have been administered online through the remote proctor system. They are open book- exams wherein the candidates can refer to their paper notes. Electronic notes are not permitted. The online exams are 3 hours in duration. 

Some candidates who cannot demonstrate legal proficiency, are even asked to study JD/LLM from Canada or another common law jurisdiction. This usually happens if the candidate has scored less than 50% aggregate marks in her law school on graduation or has not been licensed in a foreign jurisdiction.

Once a candidate passes all these exams (50% is the passing criteria); NCA issues a Certificate of Qualification. With this certificate, a candidate can apply for admission to one of the 9 provinces in Canada or territories. The province of Quebec has its own requirements to get a lawyer’s license. It also has a French language requirement criteria.

Things to learn before the NCA exam

How to read foreign laws;

How to read foreign judgements;

How to write essay type answers in the IRAC method;

How to take an open book exam;

Time management; and

Fast typing because all of the essay type answers are typed out on a computer. A candidate must be able to type 1,000 to 4,000 words in 3 hours while also referring to the written notes, analysing the question requirements, making an answer structure, and finally typing out the answer.

Who should take these exams (NCA and others)?

Lawyers who have migrated to Canada;

Law graduates who are doing an LLM from Canada; and

Lawyers whose law firm or company has sponsred their work visa in Canada.

You do not have to be a Canadian citizen or permanent resident to take the exams since they are online.

Format of the Examination

The Licensing Examinations are administered in an open-book format. Candidates are permitted to bring print materials (including study materials, notes, and textbooks) prepared to assist them in the writing of a Licensing Examination into the Testing Area..

All items on each Licensing Examination are in a multiple-choice format. Candidates must choose the best answer from the four possible options provided. Each item has only one best answer, and candidates will receive credit only when they have selected the best answer. 

The items on each Licensing Examination assess the following three levels of cognitive ability:

Knowledge/Comprehension: the ability to recall facts, policies, procedures, and standards (e.g., citing the appropriate Rule in the Rules of Professional Conduct or Paralegal Rules of Conduct, as applicable);

Application: the ability to apply knowledge/comprehension in a straightforward applied situation (e.g., recognizing the appropriate procedure to employ when faced with a routine situation); and

Critical Thinking: the ability to apply knowledge/comprehension in complex applied situations, requiring analytical problem-solving in addition to knowledge/comprehension and application (e.g., selecting and prioritising appropriate courses of action when faced with complex situations, or recognizing the relative importance of conflicting pieces of information and arriving at a conclusion requiring sound judgement).

Each Licensing Examination will include items in both independent multiple-choice and case-based multiple-choice format. Independent multiple-choice items are independent of each other. Case-based multiple-choice items are preceded by a case scenario that will also apply to other items; however, each item within the series of items preceded by that case scenario is derived directly from that case scenario and is independent of all the others. In other words, determining the correct answer to item #3 in a series of case-based items is not dependent on answering either of items #1 or #2 correctly.

There are no “all of the above” or “none of the above” multiple-choice options in Licensing Examination items.

For each sitting of each Licensing Examination, multiple different versions of the Licensing Examination may be developed and set. Each candidate who is registered for that sitting is randomly assigned a version of that Licensing Examination. Each version of the Licensing Examination complies with the blueprint parameters.

Each Licensing Examination is 4 hours and 30 minutes in length and comprises 160 multiple-choice items. The Licensing Examination will be broken into sections, by area of law. Candidates should ensure that they answer all items in each section.

What is unique about this course

Testimonials

Nishant Goyal (NCA Qualified): I would take this opportunity to thank the entire team of SkillArbitrage for admitting me as a student in their endeavour to build a class of students having dual licence to practise law, both in India and Canada. The journey of preparing and appearing for the exams has been overwhelming, but the constant support of the entire SkillArbitrage team was the biggest motivation all along. The team was supportive, cooperative and fully committed towards the needs of the students right from the very start. I would also take this opportunity to thank the mentors. I could pass all my exams in the first go, that too in a short span of six months, only with the cooperation and team effort of all the mentors and members. I believe the SkillArbitrage team has done a commendable job and I wish them good luck for the coming batches of NCA students. 

Saswati Soumya (April’ 23 Batch):  I am writing to express my appreciation for the exceptional hand holding, mentorship and expert support that I have received from the SkillArbitrage team. This has played a pivotal role in my professional growth. Ms. Krusha Bhatt and Ms. Megha Sharma's seamless guidance throughout the NCA journey shows a deep understanding of the subject matter and an unwavering dedication to ensure my success. The live mock exams and feedback sessions for the Professional Responsibility paper exhibited an impressive ability to break down intricate concepts into manageable components, allowing me to grasp and apply them effectively. Their patience and willingness to address my questions and concerns, no matter how trivial they might have seemed, spoke volumes about their commitment to my NCA journey. 

Vidita Saini (April’ 23 Batch): It was an amazing experience with the NCA team. All the members in the team gave their best to help out in every situation and  solve all the queries related to exams. By far I have appeared for Canadian Constitutional Law and Professional Responsibility and experts helped in thorough understanding of both the subjects. I am satisfied with the services that I received from SkillArbitrage with respect to the NCA test prep course. I thank the whole team for their support and guidance!

Simardeep Kaur Puri (October’ 22  Batch): SkillArbitrage has provided me with all the help I needed to clear my NCA exams in my first attempt. The mentors and experts are really good at their role during concept as well as exam preparation sessions. It is great to have them by my side during my NCA  journey and I will be grateful for having them for my BAR examination as well.

Vidya Purthran (October’ 22 batch): From exceptional lecturers to incredible team support, SkillArbitrage has truly exceeded my expectations in every way. NCA course subjects were taught by experienced professionals who were not only subject matter experts but also exceptional educators.  Their expertise and passion for their respective fields shone through in every lecture, making complex legal concepts easily understandable and highly engaging. The dedication and enthusiasm of the lecturers truly made a significant difference in my learning experience, and I feel privileged to have had the opportunity to learn from them. Consistent assignment trackers by the team were also commendable. Assignments helped me to practise answer writing and the grading system in the portal also kept me motivated. SkillArbitrage has truly exceeded my expectations as an online learning platform.

What is unique about this course?

There are a few things that make the NCA Test Prep Course from SkillArbitrage unique.

• The course is designed by a team of experts who have extensive experience in the legal field. They know what it takes to succeed on the NCA exam, and they have created a course that will help students achieve their goals.
• The course covers all of the material that is tested on the NCA exam. This includes both common law and civil law, as well as Canadian specific content.
• The course is interactive, which means that students are actively engaged in the learning process. They are not just listening to lectures, they are also participating in discussions, completing exercises, and taking practice exams.
• The course is affordable, which means that it is accessible to a wide range of students.

If you are serious about passing the NCA exam, then the NCA Test Prep Course from SkillArbitrage is the best option for you. It is designed by experts, it is comprehensive, it is interactive, and it is affordable.

Areas in which we will help you to develop knowledge and skills

• Trends analysis of Past Year Paper
• Answer Writing Skills
• Time Management
• How to approach the essay based questions

What SkillArbitrage NCA Experts and Team Say

Megha Sharma (Course Anchor and Expert) - SkillArbitrage NCA Course is structured to enable a student to become NCA Qualified within 8-10 months. All concept sessions and exam preparation sessions are well-structured and scheduled in advance. 

Nikita Arora (Course Counsellor) - We cater all their queries right from the beginning, i.e., from their NCA assessment to becoming NCA qualified. We try to make their journey as structured and well-planned as possible.

Emmanuel Blaise Dsouza (Course Evaluator) -   As a part of your NCA journey, the SkillArbitrage program requires its students to submit weekly assignments to help them get comfortable with the IRAC Method of writing answers in understanding the application of concepts better and this process aids the NCA team to understand the issues faced by the students individually and how to overcome them. 

Dinchhen Wangdi Sherpa (NCA Performance Coach) - Regular counselling and performance coaching combined together to create a powerful support system that aids individuals in achieving their goals. My role is to help students employ actionable strategies and goal-oriented techniques helping them clear their exams.

Ajay Singh Praveen (Concept Expert) - Teaching at SkillArbitrage is an invigorating experience that transcends traditional education. Engaging with a diverse cohort of students from around the length and breadth of India, within a virtual framework cultivates practical legal skills and lively discourse. Through interactive webinars, collaborative projects, and personalized mentorship, educators foster a tight-knit community that encourages hands-on learning. The focus on bridging theory and practice empowers students to excel in NCA exams which is the first step towards their Canadian dream. This innovative approach not only shapes aspiring legal professionals but also offers educators an avenue for continuous growth, creating a mutually enriching exchange that resonates far beyond the virtual classroom.

Krusha Bhatt (Concept Expert) - NCA coaching offered by SkillArbitrage is one the first kind in India wherein assimilation of NCA subjects is taken up online. An amazingly designed course keeping in mind both the theoretical and practical aspects required to sit for these examinations.

Kunal Sinha (Content Expert) - The content is easy to grasp and very well-structured. All topics are broken down into simple, easy-to-understand lessons. Course provides an in-depth look into the Canadian legal system, which is incredibly useful for students new to the Canadian legal landscape. The course material is well-researched and informative and aids in understanding the fundamental concepts of the Canadian legal system in a short span of time.

Syllabus for NCA exams

All the syllabus has been taken from the official NCA website. 

​Syllabus for Canadian Administrative Law

1. Setting the stage:
    - Procedural fairness
    - Substantive review
    - Judicial review

2. Sources of procedural obligations

  (i) Procedural obligation triggers
      - Knight’s three-prong test and legitimate expectation
      - legislative decisions and emergencies
      - Procedural obligation triggers 
      - Charter and Bill of Rights
      - Constitutional duty to consult and accommodate aboriginal persons

3. Content of procedural obligations 
     - Right to be heard
     - Unbiased and independent decision-maker
     - Issues arising from institutional decision-making

4. Backdrop to the standard of review analysis
5. Vavilov test for the standard of review selection and application
6. Venue and basic procedure for judicial review
7. Remedies

Syllabus for Canadian Constitutional Law Exam

1. Sources and Nature of the Constitution 
2. Amending Procedures 
3. Federalism 
4. Judicial Review and Principles of Interpretation
5. Property and Civil Rights 
6. Trade and Commerce
7. Peace, Order, and Good Government 
8. Criminal Law 
9. Ancillary Powers 
10. Paramountcy 
11. Interjurisdictional Immunity
12. Introduction
13. Aboriginal Rights
14. Aboriginal Title
15. Treaty Rights 
16. Duty to Consult
17. Interpreting the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms 
18. Application of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms 
19. Override of Rights
20. Freedom of Conscience and Religion 
21. Freedom of Expression 
22. Life, Liberty and Security of the Person 
23. Equality Rights 
24. Limitation of Rights 
25. Remedies

Syllabus for Canadian Criminal Law Exam

1. General Overview and preliminary matters
2. The Power to Create Criminal Offences and Rules of Criminal Procedure
3. The Procedural Classification of Offences
4. Interpreting Criminal Provisions
5. The Actus Reus
6. Subjective Mens Rea
7. Objective Mens Rea and True Crimes
8. Regulatory Offences
9. Aiding and Abetting
10. Counselling 
11. Attempts
12. Corporate and Association Liability
13. Mental Disorder
14. Automatism and Involuntary Acts “Negativing” the Actus Reus
15. Simple Intoxication and Specific Intent Crimes
16. Extreme Intoxication and General Intent Crimes
17. Defence of the Person
18. Necessity
19. Duress
20. Provocation
21. Entrapment
22. Error of Law
23. The Adversarial Process
24. Police Powers 
25. Securing Jurisdiction over the Accused and Interim Release 
26. Disclosure and Production 
27. Preliminary Inquiries
28. The Jury Trial
29. Pre-Trial Motions
30. Trial Within a Reasonable Time Applications 
31. General Principles of Sentencing
32. Appeals of Final Decisions and Judicial Review of Interim Decisions

Syllabus for Foundations in Canadian Law

1. Basic theories of Law
2. Indigenous Peoples and the Law
3. Sources of Canadian Law
4. Fundamental Principles of the Canadian Legal System
5. Parliament and its components
6. Functions of the Parliament
7. The Executive and its functions
8. The Courts and the Judiciary
9. Statutory Interpretation
10. Constraints on Legislative and Administrative Action
 
Syllabus for Canadian Professional Responsibility Exam

1. The Legal Profession: Lawyers in Society and a Society of Lawyers
2. Professions and Professionalism: The Profession of Law and Law as a Profession
3. Regulation of Lawyers and Regulation of the Legal Profession
4. Ethics, Lawyering and Professional Regulation
5. The Lawyer-Client Relationship
6. The Preservation of Client’s Confidences
7. Conflicts of Interest
8. The Adversary System and Lawyers as Advocates
9. Some Specific Practice Areas:
     - Ethics and Dispute Resolution: Counselling and Negotiation
     - Ethics and the Practice of Criminal Law
     - Lawyers in Organisational Setting: Corporate Counsel
     - Government Lawyers

10. Access to Justice

Sample questions for NCA exams

This question has been taken from the NCA sample Criminal Law Exam available on the NCA website

QUESTION TWO - 10 MARKS (18 minutes suggested time) 

Assume that Bosny was committed to stand trial and that the trial is now being held.   All of the evidence that was led at the preliminary inquiry has been presented at the trial.  In addition, evidence has been presented to the effect that Mr. Bosny admitted to having been home shortly before Mrs. Bosny’s death, and that the two had been arguing near the pool. Mr. Bosny admitted that he struck out at Mrs. Bosny, hitting her near the temple.  She seemed dazed but said she was O.K. so he left for work.   A  friend of Mrs. Bosny testified that was on the telephone with Mrs. Bosny around 8:50 in the morning, and that Mrs. Bosny sounded confused. Mrs. Bosny told her either that Bosny “was hitting her” or “had hit her,” the friend could not be clear. During the conversation, Mrs. Bosny stopped responding.  The friend ultimately hung up and called the police. A defence pathologist testified that Mrs. Bosny was not strangled, but had in fact asphyxiated. She showed that Mrs. Bosny had none of the classic indicators of strangulation, and offered the opinion that Mrs. Bosny, who was already oxygen-deprived from having fallen into the pool, suffocated due to improper resuscitation techniques.  The tracheal tube is a sharp plastic device that is literally forced into the throat, and the tube that was used, which the defence pathologist reviewed, had collapsed and had human tissue on it.   This accounted both for her neck injuries and asphyxiation. What verdict is likely to render on all of the evidence, explaining your answer fully. 

NOTE: SkillArbitrage is not affiliated to the Federation of Law Societies of Canada or any provincial law society in Canada. Anything taught by our instructors or employees does not constitute legal advice or solicitation under the laws of Canada.