Professional LLM in International Business Law

OsgoodePD’s Professional LLM is a graduate program in law designed specifically for lawyers and professionals with legal work experience. Each of our distinct specializations focuses on interdisciplinary learning and provides you with a unique mix of academic, applied, and theoretical perspectives.  You will learn through interactive discussions and explore practical issues related to your specialization. You’ll have access to a wide range of elective options to broaden your legal knowledge or explore new areas related to your professional interests.  The International Business Law specialization offers an in-depth examination of Canadian and comparative private law concepts. The required course provides an overview of the classification and operation of major legal systems around the world. Designated Elective courses address varied elements of international business practice, including business transactions, cross-border taxation, international arbitration, and international trade. You will explore current trends in international law practice, learning about relevant international legal instruments, regulatory changes, and important ethical considerations. International Business Law students may take courses from many of our business-related specializations, including Business Law, Intellectual Property, Securities, and Financial Law. International Business Law students who are internationally-trained lawyers pursuing accreditation to practice law in Canada may take NCA-accredited electives as well.   

The program is designed to be completed in one year (three active terms) by completing 12 credits (two to four courses) per term. Full-time students must attend courses in-person.
Courses in the International Business Law specialization are scheduled in a variety of ways, primarily as daytime intensive courses or weekly evening courses.  Courses may be held at our downtown Toronto location or on the York University Keele campus.

In your first term of admission, you may be assigned a course as a condition of your admission. Admission condition courses count towards your degree requirements. Students with the following profiles usually have required introductory courses:

Internationally-trained lawyers:  GNRL 6209 – Canadian Graduate Legal Research & Writing (Online) (3 Credits)
Professionals without a law degree: GNRL 6149 Introduction to Graduate Legal Studies (3 Credits)
International students from civil law or distance education backgrounds: GNRL 6514 Introduction to Canadian LLM Studies (no weighting)
You will start the International Business Law program by completing your required course(s).  You should expect your first term to be heavier, particularly if you are taking introductory and required courses. These courses are designed to support new students and to scaffold your knowledge and skills, so they tend to have a larger number of class hours and assignments than elective courses do. 
Required Course
The required course is runs every Fall and Winter, and it must be taken in your first term of study.
BLIS 6501 – Comparative Legal Studies in International Business (6 Credits)

Elective Courses
You must complete at least 18 credits from International Business Law course list (not including BLIS 6501). Most electives are drawn from within your home specialization. Some courses with topics related to your specialization may count as Designated Electives for your program even if they are housed within a different specialization. You’ll know a course is a Designated Elective for your program if it appears under your program on the Course Planner below. Courses that do not appear when you select your program do not count as Designated Electives for your program. (They count as Outside Electives instead.)

Up to 12 credits may be drawn from courses in unrelated specializations, so long as you have any required prerequisite knowledge for those courses. Internationally trained lawyers working toward accreditation may use their Outside Elective space to take NCA-accredited courses. To see course offerings for upcoming terms, review the Course Planning information below.

Research Requirement
The research requirement can be fulfilled through one of the following three options. Most students elect to fulfill the requirement through option 3:

• A Major Research Paper (70 pages, 6 Credits)
• An Independent Significant Research Paper (30 pages, 3 Credits)
• A Significant Research Paper (30 pages) completed as the means of assessment for one of the courses within the specialization.

Courses  - Fall 2023
BLIS6838 Business Associations; (available Fall an winter)
BLIS6875 Contracts for Business
BLIS6509 International Business Transactions
BLIS6298 International Commercial Arbitration
GNR6514 Introduction to Canadian LLM Studies
BLI 6522 Multinational Enterprises and the Law
BLIS6999 Selected Topics in International Business Law

Winter 2023
BLIS6890 Advanced Contract Law
BLIS6512 Anti-Money Laundering and International Country Sanctions - Global Regulatory Challenges

BLIS6815 Business and Human Rights
BLI 6533 Comparative Corporate Governance
BLIS6990 International Finance
BLIS 6505 International Trade Law
GNRL6514 Introduction to Canadian LLM Studies
BLIS6409 Online International Business Transactions

Course Planning  
Courses are not available every term, so we advise planning your courses in advance. 
 The course planning tool is for planning purposes only. Selecting courses using this tool does not enroll you in the course or reserve a space in the course for you.

Note: Check with the institution regarding start/end dates, prices, and delivery method. These may vary according to program, section, and/or semester.