Doctor of Philosophy in Law (PhD)
Overview
The PhD in Law is designed to provide advanced training for outstanding graduate students who have already obtained a Master of Laws (LLM) degree or its equivalent. The PhD is a research-intensive degree that prepares graduates for opportunities in law teaching, legal research, policy development, public and governmental service, and the practice of law.
The degree requirements include course work, comprehensive exams, a dissertation proposal and defence, a dissertation, and an oral dissertation exam. Working closely with a supervising faculty member, a student in the PhD program is expected to produce a book-length piece of original legal scholarship and of publishable quality.
The PhD provides an opportunity for focused study in a chosen field of law. It does not, of itself, qualify a holder for entry to the legal profession in British Columbia or any other certification for legal practice.
Quick Facts
Degree
Doctor of Philosophy
Mode of delivery
On campus
Registration options
Full-time
Research Information
Research Facilities
Allard Hall, the home of the Peter A. Allard School of Law, was opened in 2011. The latest technology connects the Faculty with campuses, courthouses and offices around the world, and a new, state-of-the-art UBC Law Library serves as a vital academic hub for students and the legal community. Natural light, contemporary classroom designs, expanded student service spaces, a student forum space at the centre of the building, and new research spaces are all part of the new facility. The Law Library has a research collection of approximately 225,000 volumes.
Requirements
Document Requirements
Additionally to the required documents please submit:
C.V. or resume
Dissertation Proposal: PhD degrees in the Allard School of Law at UBC are dissertation-based degrees involving original research. Dissertation (PhD) proposals form an important part of the admissions process and help to guide the assignment of supervisors and supervisory committees. A proposal should outline a research project that could reasonably lead to a dissertation that makes an original scholarly contribution in the chosen field of legal study. The PhD dissertation proposal is approximately 10 pages (2,500 words), excluding bibliography. Clarity of expression is important. Please upload your thesis proposal under "Writing Sample".
List of possible thesis supervisors: All applicants must submit a list indicating your first and second choice for a thesis supervisor, this list should be uploaded to your application form. There is no need to secure a thesis supervisor nor is it is necessary to contact potential thesis supervisors prior to submission of an application as many faculty members prefer that applications are referred by the Graduate Committee for their review.
TOEFL (ibT) Overall Score Requirement
100
25
25
25
25
IELTS Overall Score Requirement
7.0
7.0
7.0
7.0
7.0
Supervisor commitment required prior to application?
No
Prior degree requirements
Completion of either an LLB or JD and a Masters degree.
Deadline Details
Application Deadline
Deadline to submit online application. No changes can be made to the application after submission.
Transcript DeadlineDeadline to upload scans of official transcripts through the applicant portal in support of a submitted application. Information for accessing the applicant portal will be provided after submitting an online application for admission.
Referee DeadlineDeadline for the referees identified in the application for admission to submit references. See Letters of Reference for more information.
September 2020 Intake
Application Open Date
01 September 2019Canadian Applicants
Application Deadline: 01 December 2019
Transcript Deadline: 01 December 2019
Referee Deadline: 15 December 2019
International Applicants
Application Deadline: 01 December 2019
Transcript Deadline: 01 December 2019
Referee Deadline: 15 December 2019
Funding Sources
All full-time students who begin a UBC-Vancouver PhD program in September 2018 or later will be provided with a funding package of at least $18,000 for each of the first four years of their PhD. The funding package may consist of any combination of internal or external awards, teaching-related work, research assistantships, and graduate academic assistantships. Please note that many graduate programs provide funding packages that are substantially greater than $18,000 per year. Please check with your prospective graduate program for specific details of the funding provided to its PhD students.
Career Outcomes
24 students graduated between 2005 and 2013: 1 is in a non-salaried situation; for 1 we have no data (based on research conducted between Feb-May 2016). For the remaining 22 graduates:
RI (Research-Intensive) Faculty: typically tenure-track faculty positions (equivalent of the North American Assistant Professor, Associate Professor, and Professor positions) in PhD-granting institutions
TI (Teaching-Intensive) Faculty: typically full-time faculty positions in colleges or in institutions not granting PhDs, and teaching faculty at PhD-granting institutions
Term Faculty: faculty in term appointments (e.g. sessional lecturers, visiting assistant professors, etc.)
Sample Employers in Higher Education
Thompson Rivers University (2)University of Victoria (2)
University of Manitoba (2)
University of Calgary (2)
University of Hong Kong
University of Alberta
La Trobe University
University of Macau
University of British Columbia
Institute of Development Studies
Sample Employers Outside Higher Education
OneBusinessAsia GroupIndigenous and Northern Affairs Canada
Laramie County, Wyoming
Sample Job Titles Outside Higher Education
Lawyer (2)Founder, Chairman
Senior Resolution Manager
Deputy County Attorney
PhD Career Outcome Survey
You may view the full report on career outcomes of UBC PhD graduates on outcomes.grad.ubc.ca.Disclaimer
These data represent historical employment information and do not guarantee future employment prospects for graduates of this program. They are for informational purposes only. Data were collected through either alumni surveys or internet research.Tuition / Program Costs
| Fees | Canadian Citizen / Permanent Resident / Refugee / Diplomat | International |
|---|---|---|
| Application Fee | $104.00 | $168.25 |
| Tuition * | ||
| Installments per year | 3 | 3 |
| Tuition per installment | $1,665.26 | $2,925.58 |
| Tuition per year (plus annual increase, usually 2%-5%) | $4,995.78 | $8,776.74 |
| Int. Tuition Award (ITA) per year (if eligible) | $3,200.00 (-) | |
| Other Fees and Costs | ||
| Student Fees (yearly) | $930.14 (approx.) | |
| Costs of living (yearly) | starting at $16,884.10 (check cost calculator) | |
* Regular, full-time tuition. For on-leave, extension, continuing or part time (if applicable) fees see UBC Calendar.
All fees for the year are subject to adjustment and UBC reserves the right to change any fees without notice at any time, including tuition and student fees. Tuition fees are reviewed annually by the UBC Board of Governors. In recent years, tuition increases have been 2% for continuing domestic students and between 2% and 5% for continuing international students. New students may see higher increases in tuition. Admitted students who defer their admission are subject to the potentially higher tuition fees for incoming students effective at the later program start date. In case of a discrepancy between this webpage and the UBC Calendar, the UBC Calendar entry will be held to be correct.
All fees for the year are subject to adjustment and UBC reserves the right to change any fees without notice at any time, including tuition and student fees. Tuition fees are reviewed annually by the UBC Board of Governors. In recent years, tuition increases have been 2% for continuing domestic students and between 2% and 5% for continuing international students. New students may see higher increases in tuition. Admitted students who defer their admission are subject to the potentially higher tuition fees for incoming students effective at the later program start date. In case of a discrepancy between this webpage and the UBC Calendar, the UBC Calendar entry will be held to be correct.
Statistical Data
Enrolment Data
| 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Applications | 72 | 53 | 32 | 25 | 42 |
| Offers | 6 | 8 | 5 | 6 | 4 |
| New registrations | 4 | 6 | 5 | 5 | 3 |
| Total enrolment | 37 | 43 | 42 | 49 | 48 |
Completion Rates & Times
This program has a graduation rate of 56.76% based on 37 students admitted between 2005 - 2008. Based on 22 graduations between 2014 - 2017 the minimum time to completion is 4.00 years and the maximum time is 8.00 years with an average of 5.99 years of study. All calculations exclude leave times.
Disclaimer
Admissions data refer to all UBC Vancouver applications, offers, new registrants for each year, May to April [data updated: 22 March 2019]. Enrolment data are based on March 1 snapshots. Program completion data are only provided for datasets comprised of more than 4 individuals. Rates and times of completion depend on a number of variables (e.g. curriculum requirements, student funding), some of which may have changed in recent years for some programs [data updated: 23 September 2018].
Upcoming Doctoral Exams
Monday, 29 April 2019 - 12:30pm - Room 200
Brendan Hans Naef
The Responsibility of Home States for Violations of International Obligations by Their Corporate Citizens in Fragile States
Research Supervisors
This list shows faculty members with full supervisory privileges who are affiliated with this program. It is not a comprehensive list of all potential supervisors as faculty from other programs or faculty members without full supervisory privileges can request approvals to supervise graduate students in this program.
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Affolder, Natasha (International Environmental Law, Biodiversity Law, Law and Sustainability)
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Aloni, Erez (Law, law and sexuality, family law, Contracts)
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Arbel, Efrat (Law, Refugee Law, Constitutional Law, Prison Law and Policy, Tort Law, Legal and Critical Theory , Gender and Law)
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Bakan, Joel Conrad (Constitutional Law, Legal Theory, Socio-Legal Studies)
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Benedet, Janine (Penal Law, Labor Standards and Laws, Human Rights and Liberties, Collective Rights, sexual violence against women, prostitution and pornography, sexual harassment in employment and education, sexual abuse of girls)
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Biukovic, Ljiljana (Adaptation of international legal norms by national governments, the impact of regionalism on multilateral trade negotiations and the development of European Union Law,European union Law, International Trade Law, International Dispute Resolution, E-commerce, Comparative Law )
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Bobinski, Mary Anne (legal education (including costs of education/tuition), health law, bioethics, reproductive health law (including cloning, fetal protection, abortion), comparative health law (U.S. and Canada), HIV (legal and policy issues), health care disparities, medical research (legal and ethical aspects of), Health Law, Comparative Health Law, Bioethics, HIV Law & Policy, Reproductive Law & Policy, Torts)
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Christie, Gordon (Legal Theory, and trans-cultural tort law, Aboriginal law, Indigenous legal orders, Indigenous legal theory, Legal Theory and trans-cultural tort law)
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Cui, Wei (Taxation, Law, Social Organization and Political Systems, tax and development, law and development, tax policy, Chinese legislative system, Chinese administrative law, Law and political economy)
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Cunliffe, Emma (Women and the law, evidence, experts, courts and media, open justice, pathology and law, criminal law, SIDS, child homicide )
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Dauvergne, Catherine (Immigration, Immigration Law, Refugee Law, Legal Theory, Globalization)
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Duff, David (Tax Law Tax Policy Environmental Taxation Charities, Tax law and policy, environmental taxation, comparative and international taxation, and distributive justice)
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Edinger, Elizabeth (Constitutional Law, Conflicts (Private International Law), Creditor-Debtor Law )
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Ford, Cristie (Law, Regulation, Social, Economical and Political Impacts of Innovations, Laws, Standards and Regulation Impacts, Administrative Law, Ideological, Political, Economical and Social Environments of Social Transformations, financial regulation, securities regulation, regulation & governance theory, administrative law, financial innovation and "fintech", legal innovation and "law tech", the legal profession)
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Ghebremusse, Sara (natural resource governance; development; Human Rights)
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Goldbach, Toby (Political Culture, Society and Ideology, Procedural Law, Jurisprudence, Dispute Resolution, Comparative Law, Judicial Politics, Law and Development)
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Goold, Benjamin (Law, Privacy, Security, Criminal Justice, Human Rights, Border Studies, Migration)
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Grant, Isabel (Criminal Law, Constitutional Law, Psychiatry and Law)
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Harris, Douglas (Law, People, Cities and Lands, Urban Spaces and Urbanity, property law , condominium law, legal history)
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Hastie, Bethany (Labour & Employment Law, Human Rights, Socio-Legal Studies, Access to Justice)
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Johnston, Darlene (First Nations legal issues, Indigenous legal traditions, canadian aboriginal and treaty rights, law and colonialism, relationship between totemic identity, territoriality and governance)
Pages
Recent Doctoral Citations
- Dr. Regiane Garcia
"Dr. Garcia examined the law and practice of citizen participation in resource allocations in Brazil. Her research offered new data on the workings of participation in health systems. This advances our understanding about the significant role of citizens in ensuring accountable resource allocations that both improve access and support population health." (November 2018) - Dr. Shiva Olyaei
"Dr. Olyaei employed a feminist legal lens to assess the overemphasis on law and legal reform to realize gender justice. She argued that feminist strategies should critically situate themselves in specific sociopolitical contexts, concluding that feminist theories of global south are vitally important for directing the future of Iranian feminist activism." (November 2018) - Dr. Zoe Margaret Prebble
"Dr. Prebble studied criminal offenses that overlap with one another, asking when that overlap contributes to the problem of there being too much criminal law. Using gendered violence case studies, she found that some specific criminal offences are justified because they give a name to distinct gendered harms that would otherwise not be fully recongised by the criminal law." (November 2018) - Dr. Erika Marcela Cedillo Corral
"Dr. Cedillo studied how national legal systems impact the interpretation of globalized standards. Using Mexico as a case study, she developed a framework for states to establish their interpretation of the term public policy using four specific factors and local legal elements. Her work guides us to engage with pluralistic perspectives in law." (May 2018) - Dr. Amy Tak-Yee Lai
"Parody is traditionally understood as the use of existing work to mock or evoke humour. Dr. Lai examined whether parodies infringe on copyright laws. She further defined the scope of protection that copyright law should provide for the right to parody and applied it to several jurisdictions in order to bring their copyright jurisprudences in line with their traditions of free speech." (May 2018)
Sample Thesis Submissions
Further Program Information
Program Website
Faculty Overview
Academic Unit
Program Identifier
VGDPHD-OS
September 2020 Intake
Application Open Date
01 September 2019 Canadian Applicant Deadline
01 December 2019 International Applicant Deadline
01 December 2019 Program Enquiries
If you have reviewed the information on this program page and understand the requirements for this program, you may send an enquiry
Departments/Programs may update graduate degree program details through the Faculty & Staff portal. To update the application inquiries contact details please use this form.