41101 Lawyers and Quebec notaries

What this occupation covers

Lawyers and Quebec notaries advise clients on legal matters, represent clients before administration boards and draw up legal documents such as contracts and wills. Lawyers also plead cases, represent clients before tribunals and conduct prosecutions in courts of law. Lawyers are employed in law firms and prosecutor's offices. Quebec notaries are employed in notary offices. Both lawyers and Quebec notaries are employed by federal, provincial and municipal governments and various business establishments or they may be self-employed. Articling students are included in this unit group.

Official main duties

The NOC profile lists 9 main duties for this code.

• Advise clients of their legal rights and all matters related to law
• Research legal precedents and gather evidence
• Plead clients' cases before courts of law, tribunals and boards (lawyers only)
• Draw up legal documents such as real estate transactions, wills, divorces and contracts, and prepare statements of legal opinions
• Negotiate settlements of civil disputes (lawyers only)
• Perform administrative and management functions related to the practice of law
• May act as mediator, conciliator or arbitrator
• May act as executor, trustee or guardian in estate and family law matters.
• Lawyers and Quebec notaries may specialize in specific areas of the law such as criminal law (lawyers only), corporate law, contract law, taxation law, administrative law, international law, commercial law, real estate law, family and estate law, intellectual property law and labour law.

Do not copy these lines into your reference letter. The letter has to describe what you actually did, in your employer’s words. DUTYPROOF flags wording lifted from the NOC as something to review, and an officer reading a letter that mirrors the NOC reads it the same way.

What DUTYPROOF screens for

This is DUTYPROOF’s screening threshold, not IRCC’s decision. For this NOC, screening requires at least 2 of its 9 official duties to be evidenced in your own words, plus the required letter elements. IRCC asks that you performed the actions in the occupation’s lead statement and a substantial number of its main duties — so treat the duty coverage as the number that matters, not the badge.

Codes this one is confused with

The NOC profile names these itself. Choosing the wrong code of a look-alike pair is the most common way genuine work experience fails to establish eligibility.

• 10019 Other administrative services managers
• 10029 Other business services managers
• 42200 Paralegals and related occupations
• 41400 Natural and applied science policy researchers, consultants and program officers

Excluded from this code

• Legal department director (See 10019 Other administrative services managers)
• Legal firm manager (See 10029 Other business services managers)
• Notary public (See 42200 Paralegals and related occupations)
• Patent agent (See 41400 Natural and applied science policy researchers, consultants and program officers)
• Trademark agent (See 42200 Paralegals and related occupations)

Job titles filed under this code

A title on this list does not by itself put your experience in this code — the duties in your letter decide that.

administrative lawyer · advisory counsel · articling law student · assistant corporate counsel · Assistant Crown Attorney · assistant general solicitor · assistant legal advisor · assistant regional counsel · associate counsel · associate lawyer · associate legal advisor · associate legal counsel · attorney · attorney-at-law · attorney's assistant chief agent · barrister · barrister and solicitor · city attorney · city solicitor · civil lawyer · claim attorney · commercial law notary · commercial lawyer · contract counsel

Employment requirements

• Lawyers
• Two to three years of undergraduate studies or, in Quebec, completion of a college program, a bachelor's degree from a recognized law school, successful completion of the bar examination and completion of a period of articling are required.
• Licensing by the provincial or territorial law society is required.
• Be an active member of a law society in the province or territory of legal practice.
• Notaries (Quebec)
• A bachelor's degree in civil law from a recognized law school and a master's degree in notarial law, which includes a 16-week internship, from a recognized law school are required.
• A 15-day training program at the Chambre des notaires du Québec is required.
• Licensing by the Chambre des notaires du Québec is required.