Intensive, selective and challenging, our doctoral program is ideal for scholars intent on deepening and broadening their critical understanding of the law, as well as their original engagement with it.
Our Doctor of Civil Law (DCL) program serves as a starting point for those planning to pursue careers in academia, think-tanks, government and international organizations, among others. Our students build the teaching supervision, leadership and knowledge that they need to take on any challenge. Whatever their ambitions, our students have great success in achieving them. The DCL program allows for the development of a substantial thesis, which makes an original contribution to legal scholarship.
McGill's Faculty of Law currently hosts approximately 70 doctoral students, who come from all around the world. Each year, we admit roughly 15 new students to this vibrant community.
Our doctoral programs
The Faculty of Law offers three options for students in its doctoral program:
- Doctor of Civil Law - Law
- Doctor of Civil Law - Comparative Law
- Doctor of Civil Law - Air and Space Law
| Required/Recommended | Program |
|---|---|
| Required | Courses CMPL 641 - Theoretical Approaches to Law LAWG 702 - Legal Res Methodology for DCL (for students admitted as of Fall 2017) Research course LAWG 703 - LitReview, Analysis & Proposal (for students admitted as of Fall 2017) Comprehensive exam LAWG 701 - Comprehensive Exam - Law - if Law CMPL 701 - Comprehen Exam-Comparative Law - if Comparative Law ASPL 701 - Comprehensive - Air/Space Law - if Air and Space Law Seminar LAWG 704 - DCL Research Seminar 1 (for students admitted as of Fall 2017) LAWG 705 - DCL Research Seminar 2 (for students admitted as of Fall 2014) |
| Recommended |
LAWG 601 - Communication 1
LAWG 602 - Communication 2 LAWG 625 - Legal Education Seminar |
Research affiliations
If their area of research is suitable, DCL candidates may wish to be associated with:
- the Centre for Human Rights and Legal Pluralism
- the Paul-André Crépeau Centre for Private and Comparative Law
- the Centre for Intellectual Property Policy
- or one of the Research Chairs at the Faculty of Law.
Doctoral students at McGill’s Faculty of Law are invited to participate in Faculty Seminars and other workshops as a way to underscore their membership in a community of academic scholars.
