FAQ: Professional Legal Training Course

Yes, attendance at PLTC is mandatory. If you need to miss a class for medical reasons, please notify your instructor in advance so they can arrange for you to make up the missed class. The director will be notified of repeated absences.

When you are licensed to practise law in British Columbia, you are licensed as both a barrister and solicitor and permitted to practise in any area of the law. PLTC has therefore identified core practice areas that represent typical areas of practice for articled students and newly called lawyers. By requiring you to demonstrate entry-level competence in each of these practice areas, PLTC supports the Law Society’s mandate to set standards for lawyers and to protect the public interest. 

Although this is a professional office building, you may dress casually for class. However, business attire is required for advocacy exercises (chambers application, civil and criminal trials) when guest judges are present, advocacy and interviewing assessments, and Bencher interviews.

It is not possible to get an extension on any PLTC assessment or exam. Assessments submitted after the due date and time will receive a failed grade.

Upon request, PLTC will grant a deferral of an assessment or examination. Deferral is to the next regularly scheduled assessment or examination date (i.e. in the next PLTC session). This may result in a delay in your eligibility for call and admission. There is no cost to complete deferred items.

However, if you want to defer three or more assignments, assessments and/or examinations, you must have a discussion with the director. The director may require you to re-attend PLTC in whole or in part or impose other conditions.

If a student fails to hand in or attend an assessment or examination without requesting a deferral, the student stands failed in the assessment or examination.

To apply for a deferral of one or more assessments or qualification examinations, you must send a written request to the program coordinator.

Unofficial student results are posted to the online Student Portal as soon as they are available. Approximately three weeks after the end of PLTC, official transcripts showing the final results are sent to you at your firm’s address. Your principal will receive a copy approximately one week later pursuant to Rule 2-72(5). If you are not returning to your firm after PLTC, you can ask the Law Society to send your transcript at another address by notifying the program coordinator.

If you fail one or two of the assessments or examinations on the first attempt, you are automatically entitled to redo the failed assessment or examination at the next session. If you fail an assessment or examination for a second time, or fail more than two assessments and examinations on the first attempt, you must seek permission from the Executive Director for an opportunity to re-write the failed work.

If this happens, we will send you detailed information along with your transcript at the end of the session about what to do and how to proceed.

You may also apply to have any failed exam or assessment re-marked. For each re-mark or rewrite of a remedial or failed assessment or examination, there is a fee of $105 ($100 plus GST), per Rule 2-74(8).