Paralegal Studies

Paralegal is a licensed profession in Ontario for clients who are looking for access to cost-effective legal services. Our Paralegal Studies Diploma program prepares you for a career in this expanding field. Paralegals in Ontario now have their own scope of practice and, within these permitted areas, provide an affordable option for legal services. Paralegals may act independently in the representation of clients. Paralegals may represent clients in small claims matters; landlord/tenant matters; matters before many provincial agencies, boards, and tribunals, such as the Landlord Tenant Board and the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board. They may also appear on summary conviction procedures for criminal offences.

Anderson College’s Paralegal Studies program provides you the skills law firms look for. Simply fill out the form to take your first step on this new path.

WHAT TO EXPECT

The program is 48 weeks, including 120 hours* of practicum with on-the-job training, and offsite with potential employers. Our Paralegal Studies program is accredited by the Law Society of Ontario. The objective of the Paralegal Diploma program is to provide our students with the required substantive law training to successfully enter the Law Society of Ontario’s paralegal licensing process. Students will learn constitutional and administrative law, client interviewing, legal research, evidence, small claims court, provincial offenses, legal writing, dispute resolution and mediation, legal computer applications, tribunals, immigration law and landlord and tenant law. All law courses are taught by lawyers or licensed paralegals.

The following paralegal courses will help you establish a legal services business of your own: ethics and professional responsibility, practice management, operating a small business and legal accounting. In addition, you will learn how to effectively use Microsoft Word, Microsoft Excel and Bookkeeping.

The structure of our Paralegal Studies program includes traditional lecture and seminar courses, as well as field trips to local courts and tribunals. There are also a number of mock hearings and presentations throughout the program. Practicum placement will ensure you graduate with exposure to the profession, and the requisite hours to qualify for the licensing process.

To provide legal services in Ontario a person must be licensed by the Law Society of Ontario.

And to obtain a license, a person must graduate from a program accredited by the Law Society of Ontario, pass a licensing examination and be of good character.