Ontario bar exams: the barrister and solicitor licensing exams

To become a lawyer in Ontario, you must pass two licensing exams set by the Law Society of Ontario: the barrister exam and the solicitor exam. Both are self-study, open-book, and multiple-choice. This guide covers the format, upcoming dates, fees, and how candidates prepare.

The format

• Two exams: barrister (litigation-focused) and solicitor (transactional and practice-focused).
• Both are open-book and multiple-choice, written in person, in English or French.
• The Law Society provides the official study materials online. You may print them, mark them up, and bring the printed copies into the exam. Digital materials are not allowed in the room.
• Exams run from 10:00 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., with arrival by 8:30 a.m. for screening.
• Results are usually available about eight weeks after the sitting.

Source: Law Society of Ontario, licensing exams.

What each exam covers

Upcoming dates

Check the dates and deadlines page for registration and deferral deadlines. Locations outside Toronto have limited capacity, and summer sittings are offered in more cities.

Fees

If you defer or rewrite in a new licensing year, you must buy that year's updated study materials. Missing an exam without an approved excused absence forfeits the fee (Law Society of Ontario).

Attempts, rewrites, and appeals

• You may write each exam up to three times during your licensing term, and some candidates may be approved for a fourth.
• You can write the exams before you have articles, and you can write one at a time.
• If you fail, you can request an appeal within 10 business days of your results. The decision is final.
• If you write for the first time in winter and fail, the next chance is the summer sitting, in a new licensing year.

How candidates prepare

The Law Society says its materials are all you need. Candidates who have recently written describe a practical approach (Canadian Law Forum):

• Plan about three to four weeks per exam. One posted plan read about 50 pages a day, under five hours a day, six days a week.
• Build or buy an index. The exam is open-book but timed, so finding answers fast matters more than memorizing.
• Do practice questions. They teach you where information lives in the materials. Recent candidates recommend sticking with established providers rather than new ones.
• Budget extra time for civil litigation. Candidates consistently describe it as the densest barrister section.
• Do not study both exams at once. Professional responsibility is shared, so you do not need to relearn it for the second exam.

Writing during articling

If you write during articling, you may take up to seven business days off for each first attempt, including the exam day. Those days count toward your 10-day articling time-off limit, so taking the full 14 days extends your articles by four business days (Law Society of Ontario).