*N.B. You must be enroled in the JD program in order to qualify.

Any enroled JD student may take a course that is recognized for the Option in Health Law. However, JD students who wish to receive formal recognition for having completed the Option in Health Law, which consists of a notation on their transcript, must complete the following requirements:

1. complete a minimum of 18 credits in the area of Health Law:

• a compulsory course (3 credits);
• 15 credits in optional courses in Health Law offered by the Common Law Section or the Civil Law Section;

2. complete a major paper [mandatory for all students enrolled in the JD program] in an approved Option in Health Law course or a directed research course approved for the Option. The topic of the paper completed in a directed research course must be approved by the Option Coordinator. The course codes are CML 3351 (3 credits) and CML 3251 (4 credits) for directed research courses in English, and CML 3751 (3 credits) et CML 3651 (4 credits) for directed research courses in French;
3. obtain a minimum overall average of 6.0 in the Option in Health Law courses.

Full course descriptions are available in the Course Search Engine.

Compulsory Course (3 credits)

3 credits from among the following courses:

• CML 3375 Medical-Legal Problems (3 credits)
• CML 3509 Introduction au droit de la santé (3 credits)

Optional Courses (15 credits)

New courses in Health Law may be added to the curriculum. The Option Coordinator may approve such courses as part of the option for a given year.

If a student wishes to take a course that is not included in the list of courses for the Option in Health Law, the student should ask the instructor of the course to contact the Coordinator of the Option in Health Law at [email protected].  The coordination team will review the course syllabus and decide if the course meets the criteria for an Option in Health Law course.

Courses offered in Common Law in English

Regular courses:

• CML 1105 First-Year Thematic Course – Immigration Health Law (3 credits)
• CML 1105 First-Year Thematic Course – Comparative Health Systems, Law and Policy (3 credits)
• CML 1105 First-Year Thematic Course – Genetic Resources and Traditional Knowledge (3 credits)
• CML 3136 Disability Rights and Social Justice (3 credits)
• CML 3148 Toxic Tort Law (3 credits)
• CML 3151 Access to Health Care (3 credits)
• CML 3181 Sexuality, Gender and the Law (3 credits)
• CML 3193 Forensic Science (3 credits)
• CML 3251 Legal Research and Writing (4 credits)
• CML 3351 Legal Research and Writing (3 credits)
• CML 3354 Law and Psychiatry: Clinical Part (3 credits)
• CML 3379 Law and Psychiatry: Mental Health Law (3 credits)
• CML 4104 Studies in Public Law: Indigenous Health Law (3 credits)
• CML 4104A Studies in Public Law: Law and Policy of Modern Plagues and Pestilence from Ebola to Obesity (3 credits)
• CML 4109 Studies in Human Rights: Disability Practicum (3 credits)
• CML 4111 Studies in Criminal Law: Mental Health Issues and Criminal Law (3 credits)
• CML 4112 Interdisciplinary Studies in Law: Food Law (3 credits)
• CML 4114 Selected Topics - Intensive Study of a Selected Legal Issue: Cannabis Law (3 credits)
• CML 4114 Selected Topics - Intensive Study of a Selected Legal Issue: Advanced Indigenous Health Law (3 credits)
• CML 4114 Selected Topics - Intensive Study of a Selected Legal Issue: Law and Neuroscience (3 credits)
• CML 4343 Biotechnology, Pharmaceuticals and Intellectual Property (3 credits)

Internship:

• CML 3171 Student-Proposed Internship (3 credits)*  The Student-Proposed Internship must be a placement in the field of health law and must be approved by the Common Law Section and the Option Coordinator.

Courses offered in Common Law in French

Regular courses:

• CML 3251 Legal Research and Writing (4 credits) / CML 3651 Recherche et rédaction juridiques (4 credits)
• CML 3351 Legal Research and Writing (3 credits) / CML 3751 Recherche et rédaction juridiques (3 credits)
• CML 3510 Bioéthique, santé et droit (3 credits)
• CML 3511 Responsabilité médicale (3 credits)
• CML 4504 Études en droit public : La règlementation du cannabis au Canada (3 credits)

Internship:

• CML 3571 Stage proposé par l'étudiant (3 credits)* The Student-Proposed Internship must be a placement in the field of health law and must be approved by the Common Law Section and the Option Coordinator.

Courses offered by the Civil Law Section

• DRC 4731 Thèmes choisis en droit : droit de la santé (3 credits)
• DRC 4760 Droit, médecine et biologie (3 credits)

IMPORTANT: You must be currently registered in the University of Ottawa Faculty of Law JD program in order to register for the Option in Health Law.

Do I register for the Option in Health Law before I have completed all the requirements?

No. There is no special procedure to register for the Option in Health Law during the regular annual admission process. Once they have completed their first year of legal studies, law students may take the compulsory and optional courses required to satisfy the requirements of the Option in Health Law, including a Major Paper in an approved course.

Informing the Coordinator of intention to apply to the Option in Health Law

Each student is asked to make known their intention to apply for the Option in Health Law on or before the beginning of their third year. They are asked to email the Option Coordinator, Professor Louise Belanger-Hardy and to copy the Coordinator of the Health Law Centre at [email protected].

Registering for the Option in Health Law once you have completed the requirements

1. JD students who wish to receive formal recognition of an Option in Health Law must complete 18 units in the field of Health Law (see requirements).
2. Once the required units have been achieved, students should obtain the registration form.
3. Students must complete the form to identify which qualifying courses they have completed and to identify their Major Paper.
4. The form must then be signed by the Health Law Option Coordinator and returned to the Common Law Student Centre for processing. This usually occurs during the winter term of the student's final year of study.