About the Program
- Becoming a Certified Specialist gives you recognition as a leader in your field. The right combination of experience and education provides you with an opportunity to distinguish yourself.
About the Program
The Certified Specialist program will help lawyers acquire the requisite skills and knowledge to qualify for certification as a specialist in a given practice area. To that end each specialty now has:
- learning criteria setting out required procedural and substantive
knowledge and skills at the essential, intermediate and advanced levels
of activity;
- a wide range of programs accredited on the basis of the learning
criteria. Program providers, whose individual programs have been
accredited will have the right to advertise that fact in the materials;
and
- detailed experience requirements for certification used to assess a lawyer's eligibility for certification.
The learning criteria, accredited programs and standards for certification are grouped by Areas of Specialization.
Qualifications for Certification
You may submit an application for certification when you have:
- practised for a minimum of seven years prior to the date of the application.
- had substantial involvement in the specialty area during five of
the seven years, i.e.,
- mastery of substantive law, practices and procedures, and
- concentration of practice in the specialty area;
- complied with the professional development requirements; and
- complied with the professional standards requirements.
Areas of Specialization
- Bankruptcy and Insolvency Law
- Citizenship and Immigration Law
(Immigration/ Refugee Protection) - Civil Litigation
- Construction Law
- Corporate and Commercial Law
- Criminal Law
- Environmental Law
- Estates and Trusts Law
- Family Law
- Health Law
- Intellectual Property Law
(Trademark/Patent/Copyright) - Labour Law
- Municipal Law
- Real Estate Law
- Workplace Safety and Insurance Law
To review the Standards for Certification, Learning Criteria and Accredited CLE Programs for each of these areas of specialization, go to Application Materials.
2010 Accredited CLE Programs (pdf)
2009 Accredited CLE Programs (pdf)
2008 Accredited CLE Programs (pdf)
2007 Accredited CLE Programs (pdf)
2006 Accredited CLE Programs (pdf)
2005 Accredited CLE Programs (pdf)
- The one time application fee, due with the application package, is
$400.00 (plus GST).
- The annual fee is $375.00 (plus GST) due on January 31 of each
year.
- The annual fee for each additional certificate is $125.00 (plus GST).
Renewal of Certification
Certification is renewed on an annual basis simply by filling a Certification Annual Report (pdf) attesting to compliance with
continued substantial involvement and professional development
requirements.
Commitment to Equity
The Certified Specialist Program encourages participation from all
qualified applicants, without discriminating on the basis of race,
creed, age, language, nationality, place of origin, ethnic origin,
Aboriginal status, disability, gender, sexual orientation, political
affiliation or socio-economic status.
Ethical Standards
Certified Specialists must notify the Certified Specialist Board
whenever they fail to meet the minimum standards of their area of
specialty at any time during the course of their certification. The
Board retains the power to revoke the specialist status where warranted.