What the LSO licensing exams involve
To be licensed as a lawyer in Ontario, you must pass two licensing examinations set by the Law Society of Ontario (LSO): the barrister examination and the solicitor examination. You can write them in English or French, and you can write one or both at the summer, fall or winter sittings. You do not need to have secured articles before you write.
Both exams are self-study, open-book and multiple choice. The LSO provides online study materials for the licensing year, and you may print and mark them up and bring them into the exam room. No digital access to any materials is allowed in the testing area.
| Feature | Barrister exam | Solicitor exam |
|---|---|---|
| Questions | 160 | 160 |
| Time | 4 hours 30 minutes | 4 hours 30 minutes |
| Format | Multiple choice, 4 options, one best answer | Multiple choice, 4 options, one best answer |
| Areas of law | Professional responsibility, civil litigation, criminal law and procedure, family law, public law | Professional responsibility, real estate, wills, trusts and estates, business law |
| Result | Pass or fail | Pass or fail |
Each exam is divided into sections by area of law. Some questions stand alone, and some follow a short case scenario, but each case-based question can be answered on its own. There are no "all of the above" or "none of the above" options. A small number of unscored experimental questions are mixed in, and you cannot tell which ones they are.
How scoring works
Your score is the number of questions you get right. There is no penalty for a wrong answer, so never leave a question blank. The pass mark is one overall score set by subject-matter experts; you do not have to pass each section separately. The LSO does not publish the pass mark or your score, only a pass or fail result. If you fail, you receive a performance profile by competency category and area of law, and you can request an appeal within 10 business days.
During your licensing term you may write each exam up to three times (four if authorized under the LSO's licensing process policies).
What the exams test
The LSO publishes entry-level competencies for each exam. The barrister exam covers ethical and professional responsibilities, knowledge of Ontario and federal law (including limitation periods, evidence, public law, criminal procedure, family law and civil litigation), the barrister-client relationship, issue analysis, alternative dispute resolution and practice management. The solicitor exam covers ethics, knowledge of the law in real estate, wills, trusts and estate administration, and business law, the solicitor-client relationship, fulfilling the retainer and practice management.
Questions test three levels: knowing the rules, applying them to a routine situation, and judging a more complex scenario. Professional responsibility runs through both exams, so expect questions on conflicts, confidentiality, withdrawal, undertakings and the trust accounting rules in By-Law 9 on each one.
How our practice questions are organized
Our bank has eight sections that follow those areas of law: Professional responsibility, Civil litigation, Criminal law and procedure, Family law and Public law for the barrister side, and Real estate, Wills and estates and Business law for the solicitor side. Professional responsibility questions apply to both exams.
The timed mock is a 40-question mixed exam in 68 minutes. That is a quarter of a real exam at the real pace of about 1 minute 41 seconds per question. Each real exam covers only its own areas of law, so also practise the barrister sections and the solicitor sections on their own.
How to prepare
The LSO says its own study materials are all you need, and every real exam question is written from them. Start there. Practice questions are a way to test yourself, find weak areas and build speed, not a replacement for the materials.
Open book does not mean easy. With 160 questions in 270 minutes, you cannot look up every answer. Tab and index your printed materials so you can find a rule in seconds, and only look up what you are unsure of. Learn the numbers that come up again and again: pleading and appeal deadlines, limitation periods, the cash limit in By-Law 9, land transfer tax brackets, the spouse's preferential share on intestacy and the shareholder meeting rules.
Read every explanation, including on questions you get right. Many questions turn on one detail, such as whether a client is current or former, whether a home is a matrimonial home, or whether a deadline counts holidays.
Our questions are original and written from public sources: the Rules of Professional Conduct, LSO By-Law 9 and the Ontario and federal statutes and regulations listed below, as in force on the date shown. They do not use or reproduce the LSO's copyrighted study materials or any real exam questions. The law changes, and the LSO materials for your licensing year have the final word.
Aptitude Tests Canada is an independent practice platform. We are not affiliated with or endorsed by the Law Society of Ontario or the Government of Ontario.
Three worked examples
One question from different sections of the full pack, with the answer and explanation.
Two business partners ask Liam to act for both of them in buying a franchise. Before accepting the joint retainer, what must Liam tell each of them?
- That he can keep acting for both of them even if a dispute later arises
- That each partner must pay the full fee if the other partner defaults
- That he will favour whichever partner signs the retainer agreement first
- That nothing either tells him can be kept confidential from the other
A statement of claim was issued on March 1. Under the Rules of Civil Procedure, by when must it normally be served?
- Within six months after it was issued
- Within 30 days after it was issued
- Within two years, the same as the limitation period
- Within 60 days after it was issued, unless the court extends it
Police arrest a suspect at 9 p.m. on a weekday and do not release him. A justice is available the next morning. By when must he be taken before a justice?
- Within 48 hours, excluding weekends
- Within 72 hours of the arrest
- Before the end of the next business week
- Without unreasonable delay, within 24 hours