A graduate programme in law leading to the Master of Laws degree is offered to well-qualified candidates by the Faculty of Law of the university. The programme is primarily intended for prospective law teachers and professional specialists. The programme may consist of either a combination of class work, seminars and a thesis, or a combination of class work and seminars involving several substantial written papers. Students may enroll in the one-year, full-time programme, or in the two-year, part-time programme.
Applicants who plan to take the degree on the basis of class work, seminars and a thesis are required to submit outlines of their proposed thesis topic at the time of the application. Thesis topics may concentrate on any area of law in which faculty supervisors and library resources will support substantial research work. The law faculty's academic plan recognizes the law school's particular research capacity in the areas of public law and feminist legal scholarship. A particular interest has been developed in marine and environmental law which has been designated as a field of special emphasis in the Faculty of Law. The Sir James Dunn Law Library collection for the Marine and Environmental Law Programme is now one of the best in North America. In addition, graduate work is being done under the aegis of the Health Law Institute which is a joint initiative of the Faculties of Law, Medicine, Health Professions and Dentistry. Moreover, the Faculty of Law is home to the Law andTechnology Institute. In recent years, thesis supervision has been provided in the following fields, among others: international law, administrative law, labour law, constitutional law, commercial law, tax law, tort law, criminal law and criminology, family law, health law, law of the sea, maritime law, and environmental law.
Admission requirements
Applicants for admission to the LLM programme should hold a first degree in law equivalent to the Dalhousie LLB, passed with at least a B average (or Upper Second Class Honours). The ability to conduct independent research and to work easily in the English language is a prerequisite for admission. Candidates from outside Canada whose native language is other than English will be required to pass an English language proficiency test.
Residency requirements
The degree may be taken on the basis of either one academic year (September 1 to August 31) of full-time residence at Dalhousie, or two academic years of part-time residence at Dalhousie, after registration for the LLM degree. (It should be noted that the two-year residence requirement for part-time candidates differs from that required elsewhere in the calendar of the Faculty of Graduate Studies.)
Class requirements
The degree may be taken on the basis of either class work, seminars and a thesis, or class work and seminars only. Applicants are required to indicate at the time of formal application on which basis they would prefer to take the degree, but the Graduate Studies Committee of the Faculty of Law, at the time an offer of a place is made, will decide on which of the two alternative bases a place is offered. The availability of places for the thesis alternative is governed by the availability of adequate faculty supervision and library resources. All class work for the degree, whichever of the two alternative bases is decided upon, must be completed at an average of not less than B, with no grade below B-. Graduate students taking classes which are evaluated by a major paper must submit a paper of appropriate scholarly quality which will normally be between 40 and 50 pages in length (including text, and endnotes or footnotes).
All candidates for the degree are required to take a graduate seminar especially designed for our graduate students in law. This seminar, which is led by a senior teacher in the Faculty of Law, is given in the fall term (and early part of the spring term) and requires from the student a comprehensive class presentation based on a substantial written paper. Some students who have not had previous exposure to jurisprudence may be advised to take a graduate jurisprudence course.
If the degree is taken by course work, seminars and thesis, a candidate is required to (a) in addition to the graduate seminar, complete at least two additional one-term classes from the course and seminar offerings of the Faculty of Law (the choice of classes to be determined by the Law School's Graduate Studies Committee), and (b) present a well-researched substantial thesis of scholarly quality produced under the continuous supervision of a member or members of the law faculty.
Such a thesis would normally be 150-300 typescript pages in length (double-spaced). Six copies of the thesis must be submitted to the supervisor on or before the dates given in the Law School's Guidelines for Supervision and Evaluation of Graduate Students (normally August 10 to meet deadlines for fall convocation). The thesis requirements and regulations of the Faculty of Graduate Studies must be met. Theses are usually supervised by a two-person committee comprised of a supervisor and a reader or, in certain circumstances, two co-supervisors. Theses are examined by an examination committee comprised of the supervisory committee, an "arm's length" examiner and a chairperson, who is normally the Chair of the Graduate Studies Committee/Graduate Co-ordinator. A thesis may be graded as falling within one of the following categories: approved as submitted; approved upon specified corrections being made; failed, but with permission to submit a revised thesis; or failed outright.
If the degree is taken by class work and seminars without thesis, in addition to the graduate seminar, candidates are required to take at least an additional five one-term classes from the advanced class work and seminar offerings of the Law Faculty considered to be suitable as graduate classes and seminars by the Law Graduate Studies Committee. Of those five classes, at least three must be designated as "major paper courses" by the Faculty of Law, or be approved by the Graduate Studies Committee as having a substantial written component. At the discretion of the Graduate Studies Committee of the Faculty of Law, a candidate may be required to submit to an oral examination by the committee or its nominees in the field of the thesis or that of any written paper presented by the candidate. The Graduate Studies Committee of the Faculty of Law may recommend the substitution of not more than two seminars or graduate level classes in a discipline other than law, which may be highly relevant to the candidate's thesis topic or area of specialization, provided that any such substituted course or seminar has, in the opinion of the Committee and the Dean of Graduate Studies, equivalence to the law classes being substituted.
Before deciding on the course work and seminars, or course work, seminars and thesis option, candidates who are contemplating future doctoral studies should note that some doctoral programs may require the completion of a Master of Laws degree which includes a thesis.
General
The Graduate Studies Committee of the Faculty of Law may at any time require any candidate for the degree to show cause, in such manner as it may determine, why such candidate should be permitted to continue his or her candidacy.
It should be noted that candidates taking the degree on a part-time basis are not eligible for graduate scholarships.
A student is required to comply with the directions of the supervisor and the decisions of the Graduate Studies Committee of the Faculty of Law, as well as the rules and regulations of the Faculty of Graduate Studies.
A full description of programmes available in the Law School which may be of relevance to graduate students can be found in the general Law School Calendar and in its course selection materials.
An advanced graduate programme in law leading to the JSD (Juris Scientiae Doctor) degree is offered to a very limited number of highly qualified candidates by the Faculty of Law of the university. Applicants who meet the admission requirements are invited to submit a detailed outline of their proposed thesis and of their research plans. Topics will be limited to those areas of law for which faculty and library resources will support original research work. It is expected that such resources will normally be available in seven subject areas:
Admissions requirements
Applicants for admission to the JSD programme must have demonstrated superior academic ability during their previous legal education. Normally it will be necessary to have (I) attained at least the equivalent of a Dalhousie A- average grade at the LLB level and (ii) completed successfully a Master's degree in law. Preference will be given to applicants with established credentials in published scholarship of a professional calibre. The ability to conduct independent research and work easily in the English language is a prerequisite for admission. Foreign candidates are required to pass the TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language) to the satisfaction of the Graduate Studies Committee of the Faculty of Law prior to admission. Applicants seeking JSD funding from Dalhousie University should ensure that their completed applications are received by the University no later than January 1 of the year in which they intend to commence their studies.
Residency requirements
Applicants must be prepared to spend at least one full academic year (12 months) in continuous residence at Dalhousie after registration for the JSD program. The Graduate Studies Committee of the Law School reserves the right in certain cases to require the completion of a second year of residency. It is to be noted, however, that consistent with other doctoral programs at Dalhousie University, JSD candidates must pay fees at the full-time rate for two years regardless of whether they have been required to spend a second year in residence at Dalhousie.
Course Requirements
Candidates entering the JSD program as of 2004 must complete the following requirements:
Candidates for the JSD degree may be required by the Graduate Studies Committee of the Faculty of Law, on the recommendation of their thesis committee, to carry out advanced course work in the area of their thesis, or in a cognate area of a more general field of law, or in a discipline other than law, which is deemed to be highly relevant to their thesis topic. All requirements must be completed with no grade level below B–. A student who fails to meet these requirements is automatically dropped from the programme, but may apply for readmission immediately.
A directed reading course is normally of a one-on-one nature with the faculty member in question, but possibly involving more than one faculty member. The area of the field must be quite broad, such as ‘modern legal theory’ or ‘international legal relations’ or ‘equality theory’, to give a few examples. The syllabus will be developed jointly by the student and the faculty member. The faculty member(s) and the student meet together once every two weeks for one term. The student then writes a paper which provides a comprehensive and critical appreciation of the field. The paper at the end of the reading course will ideally allow the student not only to reflect on some of the major issues in the field, but also begin to consider where his or her own ideas fit within that landscape. The purpose of the paper is not so much a test of knowledge acquired as an opportunity to engage critically with the field.
The area exam is a rather more self-directed exercise. It does not involve regular meetings between the faculty and the student, though episodic meetings are encouraged. The student and the faculty member (who may or may not be the supervisor) agree on a syllabus, and the student goes off and reads the contents. The purpose of the area exam is to ensure mastery of a certain body of knowledge; it may be a body of theory but it may also be a body of law or a combination of the two. The evaluation may be by paper or by take-home exam.
The purpose of the thesis defence proposal is to evaluate whether the proposal discloses a feasible doctoral project. The main concerns are the definition of the issues to be addressed, the theoretical perspectives, the methodology, and a detailed outline of the structure of the thesis.
The reference to “other course work� is meant principally to cover the graduate seminar, which will be required of any J.S.D. student who has not taken a similar course previously. It is possible that other courses in law or in other faculties may also be required.
Preliminary examination requirements
Each candidate will also be required to pass a preliminary examination normally at the end of their first year of residence, and not less than one year before submitting the thesis. The preliminary examination may be oral, written, or both, at the discretion of the Graduate Studies Committee, and will cover the subjects relevant to the general area of the candidate's research. Failure to pass this examination may result in dismissal. However, the student may be permitted to repeat the examination within the subsequent 12 (twelve) months. (For greater detail see the Dalhousie Law School "Guidelines for Preliminary Examinations - JSD Candidates").
Special skill examination requirements
A candidate may, at the discretion of the thesis committee, be required to pass a special examination designed to demonstrate the examinee's proficiency in a foreign language, statistical method, computer analysis, or other skill deemed to be important for successful completion of the candidate's thesis in the chosen area.
Thesis requirements
The primary requirement for the JSD degree is the completion of a substantial thesis which should not only display original scholarship of high standard, but also represent a significant and professional contribution to the literature of the chosen subject. In applying for admission, an applicant is required to satisfy the Graduate Studies Committee of the Faculty of Law that the suggested topic is suitable for development as a doctoral thesis. Normally, a JSD thesis should be between 350 and 500 typescript pages in length (double-spaced). After an applicant has been accepted, a thesis committee consisting of a supervisor and two advisors will be appointed by the Graduate Studies Committee of the Faculty of Law. All candidates are required to comply with the decisions of their thesis committees. In normal circumstances, the completed JSD thesis must be submitted to the Graduate Studies Committee of the Faculty of Law within six years of the date of original registration in the program. Submission of the thesis must follow the rules and regulations laid down by the Faculty of Graduate Studies.
Thesis defence requirements
Each JSD candidate is required to defend the completed thesis in an oral examination. This defence shall be conducted in accordance with the Faculty of Graduate Studies Regulations for Oral Examination of a Doctoral Candidate.
Teaching activities
The Graduate Studies Committee of the Faculty of Law may give permission to a JSD candidate to engage in teaching activities during the period of residency, if such activities are deemed to fall within the field of the candidate's thesis topic. Under no circumstances shall any JSD candidate be permitted to spend more than six hours per week in teaching activities and related preparations.
This customized programme allows student to take graduate classes across the Faculty of Graduate Studies and work with faculty members in existing PhD disciplines and in other areas. Click here for more details!