
Criminal Justice
Faculty of Arts
Program Description

Program Overview
From the courtroom to the crime scene. Your future career in law and order starts here
What is criminal justice?
Criminal justice focuses on the systems used to address and handle crimes. This includes everything from investigating crimes and arresting suspects to prosecuting them in court and managing their punishment. Criminal justice involves various agencies like police, courts, and correctional facilities working together to enforce laws and ensure justice is served.
What you’ll learn
In the Criminal Justice program, you’ll explore the different philosophies, history, and theories about criminal justice. You’ll gain an understanding of how our legal and judicial systems work, the role of police and judges, and how laws are made and enforced. In addition to courses in criminal law, you'll take courses in public and private law and dispute resolution as well as selecting from approved course options in psychology, history, and sociology. You’ll also learn about how judges make decisions and the challenges they face with immoral law.
When you graduate
Once you finish your studies, you will be equipped with the knowledge and skills to enter the workforce in a variety of positions, including law enforcement, corrections, legal professions, and more. Students who complete the 4-year program will graduate with a Bachelor’s of Arts in Criminal Justice.
The program can also prepare you for law school or graduate school.
Take advantage of small class sizes and study with criminal justice professionals and experts.
Engage in the thinking, reasoning, and debate required to improve the social, political, economic and human conditions in today’s society.
Study famous trials, major legal principles, and historical cases to understand the evolution of criminal justice.
Career Outlook
You can pursue a wide variety of careers with a Bachelor of Arts in Criminal Justice in law enforcement, corrections, legal services, forensics, victim services, and social services. Some of these careers include:
- Crime scene investigator
- Corrections officer
- Customs officer
- Insurance officer
- Law clerk
- Lawyer (requires law school)
- Paralegal
- Police officer
- Private investigator
- Probation officer
- Researcher
These careers are available in both the private and public sectors. Some may require additional training and education.
You can also work for organizations such as the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), Canadian Security Intelligence Service, Correctional Service Canada, the Supreme Court of Canada, and more.
Program Details
Program language:
English
Delivery method:
On Campus
Contact info
Jim Ketchen(705) 675-1151 ext. 4325
Administrative Assistant: Jennifer More ext. 5380
lawandjustice@laurentian.ca
Please contact the email above, and our recruitment team will get back to you!
Admission Requirements
Ontario High School Applicants
Program Prerequisites:
- 1 grade 12 English U/M course; 5 other grade 12 U/M courses
- A minimum overall average of 70% in the 6 best grade 12 U/M courses
Additional information for applicants who have completed Advanced Placement courses.
Additional information for applicants who have completed the International Baccalaureate.
Applicants from outside an Ontario High School
Canadian High School Applicants from outside Ontario
How To Apply
Canadian Applicants
If you are a Canadian citizen or permanent resident, you must complete your application through the Ontario Universities Application Center (OUAC).
For detailed instructions on the application process, see the How to Apply: Canadian Undergraduate Applicants page.
Apply Now as a Domestic Applicant
International Applicants
If you’re an international applicant, you must fill out the International Application Form.
For detailed instructions on the application process, see the How to Apply: International Students page.
Degree Options
Bachelor of Arts (Honours) in Criminal Justice
Total 120 credits
Students must follow these regulations in order to meet graduation requirements for the BA or B.Sc.
**All students entering a BA program as of September 2017 are required to take 6 credits each of linguistic awareness, scientific literacy and Indigenous content as per the regulations. Students may fulfill these requirements at any time during their studies. Eligible courses are available at the 1000, 2000, 3000 and 4000 levels and students should take them at the appropriate time in their studies.
Courses fulfilling these requirements may be taken as electives or as part of a minor, concentration, major or specialization.
Students may not exceed 42 credits at the 1000 or 9100 level in their degree program.
Major in Criminal Justice
JURI 1105E Introduction to Legal Studies *
JURI 2107E Public Law *
JURI 2136E Introduction to Interpersonal Dispute Resolution *
JURI 3206E Introduction to Criminal Law and Procedure
JURI 3216E Themes in Criminal Law
6 credits at the 3000 or 4000 level from the Criminal Justice Approved Course List
6 additional credits at the 4000 level from the Criminal Justice Approved Course List
12 additional credits from the Criminal Justice Approved Course List
78 credits of electives** (Students must complete a minimum of a minor (24 credits) or a second major (42 credits) from among their elective credits.)
* minimum grade of C- (60%) is required to count in the major
Minor in Criminal Justice
JURI 1105E Introduction to Legal Studies *
JURI 2107E Public Law
JURI 3206E Introduction to Criminal Law and Procedure
JURI 3216E Themes in Criminal Law
9 additional credits at the 2000 or 3000 level credits from the Criminal Justice Approved Course List
* minimum grade of C- (60%) is required to count in the minor
Criminal Justice Approved Course List
JURI 2426E Nature of Legal Authority
JURI 3126E Theories of Judicial Decision Making
JURI 3136E Adversary System and its Critique
JURI 3246E Women in Conflict with the Law
JURI 3306E Legal Rights in Criminal Proceedings
JURI 4026E Wicked Legal Systems
JURI 4286E Youth Criminal Justice
JURI 4386E Great Trials
JURI 4816E Selected Topics offered as Advanced Themes in Criminal Law
JURI 4826E Selected Topics offered as Advanced Topics in Criminal Justice Theory
HIST 3476E Crime & Punishment in England
PHIL 2345E Bioethics: Human Life Issues
PSYC 3605E Psychopathology
PSYC 4026E Forensic Psychology
SOCI 2066E Explanations of Crime
SOCI 2067E Institutions of the Criminal Justice System
Sample Courses
An introduction to the basic concepts needed to undertake a critical study of law and the legal system. Topics include the nature and function of law, legal reasoning, the origins and fundamental principles of Canadian common and civil law systems and the relationship of law to other disciplines such as economics, history, philosophy and sociology. (lec 3) cr 6. Students may not retain credit for both JURI 1105 and JURI 1205.
This course provides an introduction to private law principles, focusing on the law as a facilitator and regulator of relationships between individuals, including contractual relationships, property relationships and personal injury claims, as well as the origins and functioning of the common law. PREREQ: JURI 1105 (minimum 60%) and completion of 30 university credits. (lec 3) cr 3. Students may not retain credit for both JURI 2106 and JURI 2206.
This course provides an introduction to the field of public law, examining areas such as constitutional law, administrative law, public international law and criminal law. PREREQ: JURI 1105 (minimum 60%) and completion of 30 university credits. (lec 3) cr 3. Students may not retain credit for both JURI 2107 and JURI 2206.
This course explores the central role that conflict plays in society, along with the wide variety of legal and quasi-legal disputing processes that have been devised to deal with it through time and across the cultures. PREREQ: JURI 1105 and completion of 30 university credits. (lec 3) cr 3.
This course examines the legal rights and duties of buyers, sellers, employers and employees in Canadian law. Topics include contracts, insurance, negotiable instruments, business forms, property and credit. PREREQ: JURI 1105 and completion of 30 university credits. (lec 3) cr 3. Cross-listed with COMM 4716, JURI 2306, MGMT-2006, ADMN 2306 and MGMT 4001. Students may not retain credit for JURI 2306, MGMT 2007, COMM 4716, ADMN 2306 and MGMT 4001. Students enrolled in the Faculty of Management may not take this course for credit within their program.
This course examines the nature of legal authority through a study of classical and contemporary jurisprudence. PREREQ: JURI 1105 and completion of 30 university credits. (lec 3) cr 3.
This course examines the theoretical foundations of criminal responsibility, as well as basic criminal procedure. PREREQ: JURI 1105 and completion of 60 university credits. (lec 3) cr 3.
This course considers aspects of the criminal justice system as they affect both adult and young offenders. Topics may include Charter rights of accused and convicted persons, concepts of punishment, and goals of sentencing. PREREQ: JURI 1105 and completion of 60 university credits. (lec 3) cr 3. Students may not retain credit for both JURI 3216 and JURI 3306.
This course allows students to explore varying recent explanatory frameworks for, and applications of, theories of women's criminality in differing contexts. Emphasis is placed on fostering critical analyses of the interconnections among women's and girls' criminal actions, social relations, and responses by the police, prosecutorial, judicial, and correctional systems. PREREQ: JURI 1105 and completion of 60 university credits, or permission of the instructor. (lec 3) cr 3. Students may not retain credit for both JURI 3246 and JURI 4246.
This course will look at how and why the law regulates parent-child relationships and the competing interests of parents, children and the state in such regulation. PREREQ: JURI 1105 and completion of 60 university credits. (lec 3) cr 3. Students may not retain credit for both JURI 3606 and JURI 3505.
This course traces the evolution of employment and labour law in the context of the justification for modern labour legislation, industrial safety regulation and employment standards. The primary focus is the law of individual work or the Common Law work regime and the regulatory framework that impacts upon it, and how these are transformed by the law of industrial relations. PREREQ: JURI 1105 or LBST 1006/1007, and completion of 18 university credits. (lec 3) cr 3. Crosslisted with JURI 3616.
This course traces the emergence of Canada's present labour regime in the context of the mobilization and discipline of workers from the first master and servant laws to contemporary laws relating to collective bargaining. The primary focus of the course will be the unionized workplace or industrial relations law and some of the key statutes that impact upon it. PREREQ: LBST 1006/1007 or JURI 1105, and LBST 3616 or JURI 3616, and completion of 60 university credits. (lec 3) cr 3. Crosslisted with JURI 3616.
This course examines rights-oriented approaches to law. Topics may include theoretical and historical foundations of rights-oriented approaches, the evolution of charters, declarations, and bills of right, and critiques of rights-oriented approaches. PREREQ: JURI 1105 and completion of 60 university credits. (lec 3) cr 3.
This course considers the Canadian legal response to crimes committed by children and young people from a theoretical and historical perspective. PREREQ: JURI 2106/2107 (minimum 60%) and completion of 90 university credits, or permission of chair and instructor. (lec 3) cr 3.
This course examines some of Canada's and the world's best known trials, placing them in historical, social, religious and political context. PREREQ: JURI 2106/2107 (minimum 60%) and completion of 90 university credits, or permission of chair and instructor. (lec 3) cr 3.
This course considers the justification for legal intervention in personal beginning and end of life decisions and the competing interests and values involved in such decisions. Topics may include the history of the control of reproduction, abortion, forced medical treatment of pregnant women, modern reproductive technologies, forcing or withholding medical treatment, euthanasia and human biotechnology. PREREQ: JURI 2106/2107 (minimum 60%) and completion of 90 university credits, or permission of chair and instructor. (lec 3) cr 3.
The content varies from year to year, depending on which faculty member teaches the course. PREREQ: JURI 2106/2107 (minimum 60%) and completion of 90 university credits, or permission of chair and instructor. (lec 3) cr 3.
The content varies from year to year, depending on which faculty member teaches the course. PREREQ: JURI 2106/2107 (minimum 60%) and completion of 90 university credits, or permission of chair and instructor. (lec 3) cr 3.
Faculty Members
Sessional Faculty
- Mathieu Ansell
- Dawn Dubois
- André Emond
- Renée Fuchs
- Madeleine Hebert
- Henri Pallard
- Eugène O'Sullivan
- Melissa Sullivan
- Kara Vakiparta
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