Global Professional Law

Program Overview

The Faculty of Law draws upon a rich array of intellectual resources and offers an unparalleled learning opportunity for students seeking graduate degrees in law. More than 55 full-time faculty members and approximately 20 distinguished visiting scholars from around the world enable the Faculty to offer a wide range of courses and serve a broad spectrum of research interests. The graduate program is small, attracting law students to the master’s and doctoral programs from across Canada and around the world. Competitive scholarships are offered to strong candidates.

The Global Professional Master of Laws (GPLLM) degree program is designed for lawyers, business executives, and government professionals. It is completed through an intensive 12-month delivery model with classes offered in the evenings and on weekends.

Quick Facts

Global Professional Master of Laws

Program Description

The Global Professional Master of Laws (GPLLM) program is an executive graduate degree in law designed for (1) executives who wish to become more conversant in the substance and methodology of law; and (2) internationally trained lawyers who wish to become licensed to practise law in Canada. Courses are offered on alternating weekends: Friday evenings and all-day Saturday.

The program may be completed in one year (three sessions with a F/W/S registration sequence) or through an extended full-time option that allows students to complete the program requirements over two years (six sessions with a F/W/S/F/W/S registration sequence).

The GPLLM offers the following concentrations:

• Business Law
• Canadian Law in a Global Context
• Innovation, Law and Technology

Concentration: Business Law

Minimum Admission Requirements

• Applicants are admitted under the General Regulations of the School of Graduate Studies. Applicants must also satisfy the Faculty of Law's additional admission requirements stated below.

• Applicants must have completed a Juris Doctor (JD), Bachelor of Laws (LLB), or a bachelor's degree (in law or another discipline) from a recognized university, with a minimum mid-B average or equivalent in their final year of study.

• Applicants must demonstrate a minimum of five years of full-time work experience.

• Applicants whose primary language is not English and who obtained their admitting degree (JD or LLB or undergraduate degree in any other discipline) from a university where the language of instruction and examination was not English must show evidence of English proficiency by submitting English-language test scores. Several English-language testing services are acceptable. The Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) and International English Language Testing System (IELTS) are the most common tests:

  • TOEFL with the following minimum scores:

    • Paper-based TOEFL: minimum overall score of 600, and 5 on the Test of Written English (TWE)

    • Internet-based TOEFL: minimum overall score of 100/120, and 24/30 on each section.

  • IELTS, Academic module: overall score of 7.5 with at least 7.0 in each component.

  • The Certificate of Proficiency in English (COPE): overall score of 86 with at least 22 in both the listening and reading components, 40 in the writing component, and 7 in the speaking component (Test of Oral Proficiency).

  • The University of Toronto Academic English preparation course: overall grade of A in Level 60.

  • Canadian Academic English Language (CAEL) Online: overall score of 70 with at least 70 in each component.

• No conditional offers of admission will be given based on successful completion of an English-language test.

Program Requirements

• Coursework: 30 credits (7.5 full-course equivalents [FCEs]), as follows:

  • One required 3-credit course (equivalent to 0.75 FCE) as follows:

    • LAW4001H Law and Business in a Global Economy

  • 12 credits (equivalent to 3.0 FCEs) consisting of four courses within this concentration worth 3 credits each (0.75 FCE total) from this list:

    • LAW4002H Comparative Corporate Governance

    • LAW4003H Securities Regulation and Corporate Finance

    • LAW4004H Mergers and Acquisitions

    • LAW4005H Canadian and Cross-Border Issues in Corporate Tax

    • LAW4006H International Dispute Resolution

    • LAW4011H Law and Policy of Public Private Partnerships

    • LAW4012H Intellectual Property Law

    • LAW4013H Economic and Social Regulation and Competition Law

    • LAW4014H International Insolvency Law

    • LAW4015H Organization of Transactional Legal Practice

    • LAW4018H Foundations of Legal Theory

    • LAW4019H Anti-Corruption Law: International, Domestic, and Practical Perspectives

    • LAW4032H Intellectual Property and Strategy

    • LAW4036H Applied Contract Law

    • LAW4053H Law and Regulation of Banks and Financial Institutions

    • LAW4057H Cannabis Law and Regulation

    • LAW4058H Competition Law

    • LAW4059H Digital Trade

    • LAW4061H Issues in Tax Law and Policy (Credit/No Credit)

    • LAW4062H Bankruptcy and Insolvency Law

  • 15 credits (equivalent to 3.75 FCEs) consisting of five courses worth 3 credits each (0.75 FCE total) from any concentration. Not all courses will necessarily be available every year. The program reserves the discretion to decline student requests to complete certain electives based on course enrolment or otherwise.

Full-Time Program Length

3 sessions full-time (typical registration sequence: F/W/S)

Extended Full-Time Program Length

6 sessions full-time (typical registration sequence: F/W/S/F/W/S)

Time Limit

3 years full-time

Concentration: Canadian Law in a Global Context

Minimum Admission Requirements

• Applicants are admitted under the General Regulations of the School of Graduate Studies. Applicants must also satisfy the Faculty of Law's additional admission requirements stated below.

• Applicants must have completed a Juris Doctor (JD), Bachelor of Laws (LLB), or a bachelor's degree (in law or another discipline) from a recognized university, with a minimum mid-B average or equivalent in their final year of study

• Applicants must demonstrate at least five years of full-time work experience. However, applicants without five years of full-time work experience may be eligible for admission. If admitted, they will only be eligible to enrol in courses within the Canadian Law in a Global Context concentration.

• Applicants whose primary language is not English and who obtained their admitting degree (JD or LLB or undergraduate degree in any other discipline) from a university where the language of instruction and examination was not English must show evidence of English proficiency by submitting English-language test scores. Several English-language testing services are acceptable. The Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) and International English Language Testing System (IELTS) are the most common tests:

  • TOEFL with the following minimum scores:

    • Paper-based TOEFL: overall minimum score of 600, and 5 on the Test of Written English (TWE)

    • Internet-based TOEFL: overall minimum score of 100/120, and 24/30 on each section.

  • IELTS, Academic module: overall score of 7.5 with at least 7.0 in each component.

  • The Certificate of Proficiency in English (COPE): overall score of 86 with at least 22 in both the listening and reading components, 40 in the writing component, and 7 in the speaking component (Test of Oral Proficiency).

  • The University of Toronto Academic English preparation course: overall grade of A in Level 60.

  • Canadian Academic English Language (CAEL) Online: overall score of 70 with at least 70 in each component.

• No conditional offers of admission will be given based on successful completion of an English-language test.

Program Requirements

• Coursework: 30 credits (7.5 full-course equivalents [FCEs]), as follows:

  • One required 3-credit course (equivalent to 0.75 FCE) as follows:

    • LAW4010H Foundations of Canadian Law

  • 12 credits (equivalent to 3.0 FCEs) consisting of four seminar courses within this concentration worth 3 credits each (0.75 FCE total) from this list:

    • LAW4007H Canadian Administrative Law

    • LAW4008H Canadian Constitutional Law

    • LAW4009H Canadian Criminal Law

    • LAW4017H Professional Responsibility

    • LAW4020H Property Law

    • LAW4021H Tort Law

    • LAW4022H Contract Law

    • LAW4023H Business Organizations

    • LAW4024H Applied Legal Research and Writing

    • LAW4051H Evidence Law

    • LAW4060H Advanced Criminal Law: Financial Crimes in a Global Context (Credit/No Credit)

    • LAW4064H Negotiation

    • LAW4065H The Emergence of LegalTech

  • 15 credits (3.75 FCEs) consisting of five courses worth 3 credits each (0.75 FCE) from any concentration. Not all elective courses will necessarily be available every year. The program reserves the discretion to decline student requests to complete certain electives based on course enrolment or otherwise.

Note: Canadian Law in a Global Context students without the minimum five years of full-time work experience may only select electives from within their concentration.

Full-Time Program Length

3 sessions full-time (typical registration sequence: F/W/S)

Extended Full-Time Program Length

6 sessions full-time (typical registration sequence: F/W/S/F/W/S)

Time Limit

3 years full-time

Concentration: Innovation, Law and Technology

Minimum Admission Requirements

• Applicants are admitted under the General Regulations of the School of Graduate Studies. Applicants must also satisfy the Faculty of Law's additional admission requirements stated below.

• Applicants must have completed a Juris Doctor (JD), Bachelor of Laws (LLB), or a bachelor's degree (in law or another discipline) from a recognized university, with a minimum mid-B average or equivalent in their final year of study.

• Applicants must demonstrate a minimum of five years of full-time work experience.

• Applicants should demonstrate an interest in technology and entrepreneurship in their application materials.

• Applicants whose primary language is not English and who obtained their admitting degree (JD or LLB or undergraduate degree in any other discipline) from a university where the language of instruction and examination was not English must show evidence of English proficiency by submitting English-language test scores. Several English-language testing services are acceptable. The Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) and International English Language Testing System (IELTS) are the most common tests:

  • TOEFL with the following minimum scores:

    • Paper-based TOEFL: minimum overall score of 600, and 5 on the Test of Written English (TWE)

    • Internet-based TOEFL: minimum overall score of 100/120, and 24/30 on each section.

  • IELTS, Academic module: overall score of 7.5 with at least 7.0 in each component.

  • The Certificate of Proficiency in English (COPE): overall score of 86 with at least 22 in both the listening and reading components, 40 in the writing component, and 7 in the speaking component (Test of Oral Proficiency).

  • The University of Toronto Academic English preparation course: overall grade of A in Level 60.

  • Canadian Academic English Language (CAEL) Online: overall score of 70 with at least 70 in each component.

• No conditional offers of admission will be given based on successful completion of an English-language test.

Program Requirements

• Coursework: 30 credits (7.5 full-course equivalents [FCEs]), as follows:

  • One required 3-credit course (equivalent to 0.75 FCE) as follows:

    • LAW4026H Introduction to Law and Technology

  • 12 credits (equivalent to 3.0 FCEs) consisting of four courses within this concentration worth 3 credits each (0.75 FCE total) from this list:

    • LAW4012H Intellectual Property Law

    • LAW4027H Legal Technology and Informatics

    • LAW4028H Blockchain, Digital Assets, and the Law

    • LAW4029H Computational Law

    • LAW4030H Financing Technological Innovation

    • LAW4031H Cybersecurity and Data Protection in a Global Information Economy

    • LAW4032H Intellectual Property and Strategy

    • LAW4033H Design Thinking

    • LAW4034H Launching Technology Ventures

    • LAW4035H The Internet of Things

    • LAW4036H Applied Contract Law

    • LAW4046H Privacy and Data Governance

    • LAW4047H The Legal Challenges of Digital Environments

    • LAW4048H Health, Innovation, and the Law

    • LAW4052H Law of Software Development and Commercialization

    • LAW4055H Disruptive Innovations and Legal Infrastructure

    • LAW4063H Regulation of Artificial Intelligence: A Legal and Practical Study

  • 15 credits (equivalent to 3.75 FCEs) consisting of five courses worth 3 credits each (0.75 FCE total) from any concentration. Not all elective courses will necessarily be available every year. The program reserves the discretion to decline student requests to complete certain electives based on course enrolment or otherwise.

Full-Time Program Length

3 sessions full-time (typical registration sequence: F/W/S)

Extended Full-Time Program Length

6 sessions full-time (typical registration sequence: F/W/S/F/W/S)

Time Limit

3 years full-time