COURSE CURRICULUM

The Juris Doctor (JD) program at the University of Victoria Faculty of Law is structured as a professional, full-time or part-time degree with a clearly defined first-year foundation followed by flexible upper-year study. In the first year, all students complete a set of compulsory core courses that establish the legal foundations needed for advanced study. These include LAW104 Law, Legislation and Policy, LAW106 The Legal Process, and LAW110 Legal Research and Writing. Full-time students must enrol in the complete first-year package, while part-time students must take at least 7 units in their first year and complete the remaining required courses in their second year of study. In the second and third years, students move into more individualized programs of study that must be approved by the Dean or their delegate. These upper-year programs allow students to select from a wide range of courses while meeting credit and workload requirements. Full-time students typically complete between 14.5 and 16.5 units per academic year, while part-time students complete between 6.0 and 14.0 units, with limits per term to ensure balanced workloads. To graduate, students must complete at least 29.0 units across their second and third years, ensuring sufficient depth and breadth of legal education. This structure supports both rigorous foundational training and flexible specialization in advanced legal study.