Canada is a federal state with a divided legal system of Federal and Provincial laws, or national and local legal systems. Both systems usually operate in the same way, so there are more similarities than differences.
It also uses Common Law and Civil Code systems.
Common Law is the system of law used within 9 of the local Provinces, the national Federal State and the 3 Territories. The Civil Code system is used within the local Province of Quebec. The 3 Territories share similar legal system but derive local laws through federal Administration.
Other aspects of Canadian Law are described as Public Law, Private Law and Procedural Law.
•Public Law relates to public matters such as Taxation, Administration covering Planning & Zoning, Constitutional law and Criminal law.
•Private Law relates to private individuals and covers areas such as Contract Law, Law of Tort, Property & Land Law, Family Law, Corporate Law and Wills.
•Procedural Law deals with the process by which cases and claims progress through the Courts.
Paralegals offer a more cost effective way of handling some aspects of legal work. They are legal assistants who do not need to achieve the same level of competence as Barristers and Solicitors. They work under the supervision of barristers and solicitors although in the province of Ontario they can work unsupervised, as long as they are licensed and work within restricted areas of law.
Federal State law governs the Federal courts system and Provincial law governs the local provincial courts system. The Federal Supreme Court of Canada is the highest court, having jurisdiction over all federal and provincial courts. The Rt Hon Beverley McLachlin is the first woman to be appointed as Chief Justice of Canada, taking office from 7 January 2000 until 14 December 2017.
The one area where there is no division is the legal profession. Barristers and Solicitors work as a fused profession, although some may specialize in court work while others opt for non-contentious areas of law such as Conveyancing, Corporate Law and so on.
To become qualified as a Paralegal or Legal Assistant in Canadian Law, join us and study any of the many law modules offering both practical and theoretical tuition. If you reside and work in Ontario, our courses will qualify you as a
Legal Assistant or in
Business Law.