UM Faculty of Law to launch micro-diploma programs for internationally-trained lawyers in 2025
Public and Private law options to improve access to justice
Starting in the fall of 2025, the University of Manitoba’s Faculty of law will offer two new micro-diplomas to allow internationally trained lawyers (ITLs) to become licensed to practice law in Manitoba. Consultations started in 2023 to identify what systemic barriers to legal education these individuals faced, and what remedial measures would improve access to legal education and, in turn, access to justice in Manitoba. The consultations resulted in the launch of the micro-diplomas – one in Canadian Public Law and one in Canadian Private Law.
A GROWING DEMOGRAPHIC
The impetus for the consultations came from a recognition that there are many ITLs in Manitoba struggling to become licensed to practise law in the province. During the consultations, Jason Gisser, President, Manitoba Bar Association (MBA), noted that “ITLs, including new Canadians and Canadians returning from studying abroad, are a growing demographic of the legal profession in Manitoba.”
Leah Kosokowsky, Chief Executive Officer, Law Society of Manitoba (LSM), reflected that the LSM has also noticed that the “number of ITLs seeking to pursue their legal career in Manitoba has increased tremendously over the last decade.”
Their rate of success in completing the steps to licensing, however, is “significantly and disproportionately lower for ITLs as compared to Canadian common law graduates,” said Kosokowsky.
LICENSING NOT EASY
Tamra Alexander, who led the consultations on behalf of the Faculty of Law, explained that an ITL’s path to licensing in Manitoba is not an easy one. First, ITLs must submit their international credentials to the Federation of Law Societies’ National Committee on Accreditation (NCA) for assessment. The NCA will send the applicant an “NCA Assessment Report” which identifies the subject areas in which the ITL must demonstrate competency before a Certificate of Qualification (CQ) will be issued. The applicant may choose to take NCA exams and/or courses at an accredited law school to satisfy the NCA’s requirements. Only after an ITL obtains their CQ may they register with the relevant provincial law society to complete the licensing process, which generally involves completing a bar admission program and a period of articles before becoming licensed.
Alexander explained that consultations with currently licensed ITLs, those pursuing or contemplating the licensing process and members of the MBA’s new Internationally Trained Lawyers Section, provided insight into the difficulties that ITLs face and that impact their success. Under the current processes available for obtaining a CQ, ITLs indicated that they struggled to get access to courses and organize the progression of their studies. They also had difficulty making connections within the profession, gaining practical experience and obtaining articles. Kosokowsky confirmed that “[c]urrently, ITLs are at a competitive disadvantage in the securing of articling positions.”
THE MICRO-DIPLOMA SOLUTION
As both Kosokowsky and Deborah Wolfe, Executive Director, National Committee on Accreditation and Law School Programs, highlighted, there are currently no law school programs providing support to ITLs between Ontario and Alberta. The micro-diplomas fill this void and are responsive to the policy objective of The Fair Registration Practices in Regulated Professions Act to improve processes in the recognition of the qualifications of skilled professionals educated outside of Manitoba so that they may practice their professions in Manitoba.
The two micro-diplomas were created with the aim of providing: i) better opportunities for ITLs to integrate into the legal community; ii) a higher quality of learning; iii) opportunities for peer support; and iv) access to legal resources and other supports at the Faculty of Law, including access to career services to assist with securing articles. Alexander stated that “program design was key. The Faculty recognized that the programs must be structured in a way that is responsive to the unique needs of ITLs, supports choice and allows ITLs to bundle learning into manageable segments.”
The micro-diploma in Canadian Public Law is structured to enable ITLs with common law training to demonstrate competency in key courses required by the NCA for a CQ. The micro-diploma in Canadian Private Law is structured to enable ITLs with civil law training to demonstrate competency in additional key courses required for a CQ if the ITL is not common-law trained. Both micro-diplomas are designed to permit some flexibility, and modularizing the learning into two micro-diplomas allows ITLs to choose the program or programs that best respond to their needs.
CANADIAN CONTEXT
Importantly, the micro-diplomas will also expose ITLs to Indigenous history, culture and legal traditions and examine what it means to provide culturally competent legal services in the Canadian context through the mandatory Preparation for the Study of Law in Canada course. This course, in conjunction with elements in the core program courses, will be designed to respond to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s Call to Action 28 and a number of the Calls for Justice from the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls’ Final Report.
Alexander stated that the Faculty of Law will draw on its relationships with the NCA, LSM and MBA to enhance ITLs’ experiences. Both the LSM and the MBA have a long history of partnering with the Faculty of Law to provide professional and educational opportunities. Both have agreed to provide support to the programs. The MBA, in particular, has committed to supporting ITLs at the Faculty of Law through the MBA’s new Internationally Trained Lawyers Section. Gisser emphasized that this reflects the MBA’s ongoing commitment “to building inclusion within the legal profession, including supporting ITLs to become productive members of the Manitoba Legal Community.”
IMPROVING ACCESS TO JUSTICE
Kosokowsky emphasized the value of receiving in-person training on the fundamentals of Canadian law and its process, being exposed to the cultural aspects of practice in the province, establishing relationships with fellow students, faculty and members of the profession, and having access to the Faculty of Law’s career services. Kosokowsky sees the new micro-diplomas as a means of improving access to justice in the province, “a component of which is having a diverse legal profession to provide culturally appropriate service to Manitoba’s diverse community.”
The MBA’s Gisser predicted the micro-diplomas will “ensure ITLs have a strong start to their legal careers in Manitoba by providing them with the requisite legal training to meet the NCA competencies necessary for qualification and by providing them with the support and mentorship they need to feel included and engaged in the Manitoba legal community.”
Dr. Richard Jochelson, Dean of Law, described the new micro-diplomas as “a critical step towards making the legal profession more accessible, not only for ITLs but also for the diverse immigrant communities they serve. They align with the province’s commitment to fair registration practices and create a clear pathway for ITLs, fostering connections within the legal profession, and ultimately, strengthening our pursuit of justice in Manitoba.”
Jochelson emphasized that “Addressing the challenges faced by ITLs by proposing these new micro-diplomas is a reflection of our commitment to the principles of justice, inclusivity, and diversity.”
Applications for the micro-diploma in Canadian Public Law and the micro-diploma in Canadian Private Law will open in the fall of 2024.
Learn more about the Internationally Trained Lawyers Program at the UM Faculty of Law.