Legal Links and Bridges (LL&B)

Legal Links & Bridges (LL&B) has been one of the most developed mentoring programs in the country since its launch in 1997.  The program pairs first-year law students with members of the legal community, providing students with the opportunity to connect with lawyers with similar legal and non-legal interests.

Student applications are sent to students by early September each year and the deadline to apply is in the fall. Students who are interested in applying after the deadline can pick up an application from the Legal Links and Bridges office at the Common Law Student Centre, FTX 237.  If you would like to obtain more information regarding this program, please contact the program coordinator.  

Coordinator
Legal Links & Bridges
University of Ottawa, Faculty of Law, Common Law Section
FTX 233D, 57 Louis Pasteur St.
Ottawa, ON K1N 6N5
Tel: 613-562-5800 x. 7415
Fax: 613-562-5875
[email protected]

Criminal Law Courthouse Mentorship Program

This informal mentorship opportunity was spearheaded by Justice David Paciocco. The program pairs students interested in Criminal law with a Justice, a Crown Attorney, or a Defence Lawyer at the 161 Elgin Street Courthouse. In addition to a wonderful networking opportunity, students can gain a better understanding of the practical aspects of these challenging and interesting professions. For more information, please contact the program coordinator.

Coordinator
Criminal Law Courthouse Mentorship Program 
University of Ottawa, Faculty of Law, Common Law Section
FTX 233, 57 Louis Pasteur St.
Ottawa, ON K1N 6N5
Tel: 613-562-5800 x. 7415
Fax: 613-562-5875
[email protected] 

The French Law Practice Program (LPP) offers Canadian law school graduates (J.D. or equivalent) a new pathway to accreditation and membership with the Law Society of Upper Canada.

The purpose of the LPP is to facilitate the transition between law school and legal practice. Designed by lawyers who are experts in their respective areas of law and known for their community involvement, our innovative curriculum will teach our candidates to think and act like lawyers.

The University of Ottawa LPP’s mission is to promote access to justice for Francophones by training highly qualified lawyers able to offer their legal services in French. As a result, our LPP is offered only in French. To complete the Law Practice Program in English, consult Ryerson University’s LPP, which is also an alternative route to the legal profession.

A fellowship  can be a source of funding for students who want to engage in work during the summer that might not otherwise be remunerated.  Some fellowships fund opportunities for students to work on social justice topics or with public interest organizations; others are available for students wanting to work with small law firms or sole practitioners.

Fellowships must be applied for well in advance of the summer and typically the selection process is quite competitive.  Fellowships are granted based on both the strength of the applicant and the quality of the project/work being proposed. 

Typically, applications will be due in late March each year and the selection of successful candidates will be complete in early April each year.  Detailed information about each fellowship opportunity will be published in The Summer Fellowship Handbook which will be available in the Source Document Library in late December as well as on Brightspace under “Bourse de stage | Fellowship” section which can be found on your home page. The purpose of this handbook is to assist students in the preparation of their Fellowship application.

Here is a list of the type of fellowships offered in past years. Keep in mind that the number of fellowships and type of fellowships available each year depends on the funding secured.  

• Public Interest Fellowship
• Feminist Public Interest Fellowship
• International Social Justice Fellowship
• Hennick Business Law Fellowship
• Hennick Entrepreneurial Law Fellowship
• Amatul Rahman Malik Justice Fellowship
• Bourse de stage fonds Nicole LaViolette
• Small Firm or Sole Practitioner Fellowship
• Directed Access to Justice Fellowship – Ticket Defence Program
• Directed Access to Justice Fellowship – A2J Lab & Avant Law
• Directed Access to Justice Fellowship – Jail Line/Prison Law
• Directed Fellowship – Law Commission of Ontario

Common Law students have the opportunity to pursue different Internships during their studies at the University of Ottawa. These internships provide students with the opportunity to gain practical experience and expose them to a variety of practice areas and work environments.

Internship Application Deadlines for the Academic Year 2024-2025

Please note that the internship requirements above are different; be sure to consult the course description in the Course Search Engine and the application process which are available in Virtual Campus (Brightspace).

The deadline to submit your application for the following internships are: 

• Summer term 2024: April 4 at 3:00 p.m.
• Fall term 2024: August 12 at 3:00 p.m.
• January term 2025: November 11 at 3:00 p.m.
• Winter term 2025: November 25 at 3:00 p.m.

Pro Bono Students Canada (PBSC) is a national network of law students, community organizations and lawyers all working together to solve traditionally unmet legal problems. PBSC encourages students and legal professionals to volunteer in their communities to provide valuable pro bono legal services and access to justice to underrepresented and disadvantaged individuals, groups, and organizations.  PBSC facilitates these efforts by matching volunteer law students with non-profit organizations, government agencies, legal clinics, lawyers working pro bono and other public interest groups to provide information in a legal context.  All student work is supervised by a volunteer lawyer. With a chapter in every law school in Canada, around 1500 PBSC law student volunteers provide about 120,000 hours of free legal services to various organizations each year.

uOttawa-Ecojustice Environmental Law Clinic

The uOttawa-Ecojustice Clinic fills a major gap in Canada’s environmental capacity, by providing a long-needed public interest environmental law organization in the nation’s capital. The Clinic draws on the University’s strengths in environmental law and related fields such as economics, science and public health, and on Ecojustice’s strengths in law, policy and science. Students from law, together with ones from science and other disciplines, get hands-on experience working on environmental issues, on behalf of community and non-profit clients, under the supervision of experienced lawyers and professors.

University of Ottawa Community Legal Clinic

The University of Ottawa Community Legal Clinic provides legal services to the community, including providing legal education, advocacy and law reform for, and on behalf of, people of low income, members of historically disadvantaged groups, and students.  The Clinic provides legal education to law students in uOttawa’s Common Law Section. Law students working as caseworkers gain practical legal skills and court/tribunal experience while making a contribution to the Ottawa community.

Samuelson-Glushko Canadian Internet Policy and Public Interest Clinic (CIPPIC)

CIPPIC is based at uOttawa’s Common Law Section.  It seeks to ensure balance in policy and law-making processes on issues that arise as a result of new technologies. Law students work with clinic counsel on projects and cases involving the intersection of law, technology and the public interest.

uOttawa Startup Law Clinic

The Startup Law Clinic aims to give law students practical insight into the legal challenges faced by startups and promote the development of the Ottawa startup community.

Equality Law Clinic

The members of the Clinic team work in collaboration with equality seeking groups, legal clinics and not-for-profit organisations on test case litigation, interventions, appeals and law reform initiatives. The team has defended the rights of its clients before various administrative tribunals, every level of Canadian courts and international treaty bodies. The Equality Law Clinic website.

The University of Ottawa common law section participates to a number of Moot Competitions every year. Students have the opportunity to try-out for moot for English, French and Bilingual moot competitions in various areas of the law. For example, our students have participated in the following external moot competitions in the past:

English Moots

• FMC GALE CUP MOOT – Simulation of Recent SCC Case
• HAROLD G. FOX MOOT – Intellectual Property Law
• ICC INTERNATIONAL COMMERCIAL MEDIATION COMPETITION – ICC Amicable Dispute Resolution
• KAWASKIMHON LAW MOOT – National Aboriginal Law
• WILSON MOOT – Equality Issues
• WILLEM C. VIS INTERNATIONAL COMMERCIAL ARBITRATION MOOT – International Commercial Law and Arbitration
• ELSA MOOT COURT COMPETITION – WTO Dispute Settlement System

Bilingual Moots

• ARNUP CUP / SOPINKA CUP – Criminal Law
• PHILIP C. JESSUP INTERNATIONAL LAW MOOT COURT COMPETITION – International Court of Justice Simulation
• LASKIN MOOT – Administrative and Constitutional Law

French Moots

• OTTAWA-MONCTON MOOT COURT COMPETITION – Privacy Law
• CHARLES ROUSSEAU MOOT COURT COMPETITION IN INTERNATIONAL LAW – Public International Law

Dean’s Legal Research and Writing Fellows Program (Selected upon application)

The Dean’s Research and Writing Fellows Program is a unique and challenging opportunity open to top achieving upper year students with keen writing skills and demonstrated leadership abilities.  Successful applicants must have excellent research and communication skills and superior academic achievement. Dean’s Fellows work with a lawyer-mentor on an advanced and realistic research problem, and receive intensive writing instruction from program director, Professor Melanie Mallet.  Dean’s Fellows learn new, more efficient research skills and produce a high quality written work that showcases their writing skills. Fellows will lead small tutorial sessions of the first year course, Principles of Legal Research, CML 1101

Legal Writing Academy Portfolio and Leadership Course (Selected upon application)

Legal Writing Academy Portfolio and Leadership is a three-unit course for twelve upper year students with excellent writing and interpersonal skills.   The course is given in English only. Students will produce three high-quality pieces of legal writing to showcase to future employers.  Students who demonstrate outstanding writing and interpersonal skills will be eligible to become paid Legal Writing Academy Peer Mentors during the academic year.