NCA Administrative Law study guide
NCA Administrative Law · Work through your exam, one topic at a time.
The NCA Administrative Law exam is one of the challenge examinations that the National Committee on Accreditation (NCA) uses to assess the legal education and professional experience of individuals who obtained their credentials outside Canada or in a Canadian civil law program. Candidates who are assigned this subject sit it to demonstrate that their knowledge of Canadian administrative law matches what would be expected of a graduate of a Canadian common law program. The exam is administered by the Federation of Law Societies of Canada, and the NCA describes its exam system as one standard of evaluation across the country, so a candidate who qualifies through the NCA can enter bar admissions programs in any Canadian common law jurisdiction. The NCA publishes exam outlines and sample exams as study aids, and it also publishes schedules and online exam rules. Candidates should begin by reviewing the official outline for the subject, then work through the sample materials to understand the style of questions, and then build a study schedule around the exam dates that the NCA offers. This page is an independent study resource and is not affiliated with or endorsed by the NCA or the Federation of Law Societies of Canada. Topics on this exam: Administrative Law. The NCA Administrative Law study guide has 1 section and about 403 words.
01Administrative Law: Delegated Legislation, Natural Justice, and Judicial Review
Administrative law in Canada is about who may decide, on what authority, and how a court may check that decision. Begin with the enabling statute: a tribunal has no jurisdiction beyond what the legislature granted, and delegated legislation (regulations, rules of practice, by-laws) is valid only if it falls within the regulation-making power and is consistent with the parent Act. A regulation that conflicts with the statute is ultra vires; so is one made for an improper purpose or without the required procedural steps such as publication or consultation. Fairness is a duty owed before a decision is made.
403 words, about 2 minMore study resources for NCA Administrative Law
- Practice questionsUnder the basic framework of administrative law, which branch of government is generally charged with creating statutory authority for agencies?
- FlashcardsBaker v Canada. A 1999 Supreme Court of Canada case establishing that the duty of fairness applies to administrative decisions affecting individual rights, and setting out five factors that determine the content of that duty.
- Cheat sheetThe NCA administrative law syllabus covers four areas: procedural fairness and the duty to act fairly; the grounds of judicial review (illegality, irrationality, procedural impropriety, and, in Canada, jurisdictional error and abuse of discretion); the standard of review; and remedies and the scope of judicial intervention.
- Key termsAdministrative Law. The body of law that governs how government agencies are created, how they exercise their powers, and how courts review their decisions and actions.
- Study planMap the full domain-1 blueprint into a one-page outline of sub-topics, weighting each by expected exam emphasis.
- Common mistakesCandidates memorize review standards in isolation and then pattern-match on keywords rather than on the procedural posture of the decision, so a discretionary decision gets analyzed as if it were a pure legal question.
- Exam-day guideBring the original, unexpired ID in the name used on your registration.