We are excited to share that the Canadian Centre for Professional Legal Education (CPLED) is celebrating its 20^th anniversary this month, marking a significant milestone for our organization. As a leader and innovator in pre-Bar call legal education, we are proud to have achieved so much with our partners over the past two decades.

CPLED was founded on March 26, 2004, by the Canadian prairie law societies with the goal of developing a shared Bar admission education program to train and assess new lawyers entering the profession. By working collaboratively, the participating provincial regulators believed they could build a better training program together than if they worked alone. Since then, we have grown to offer innovative competency-based programs and courses to over 2,400 students annually.

Looking back, we are proud of the milestones we have accomplished together at CPLED. In 2018, we embarked on a journey to redevelop the Bar admission program into an innovative and experiential competency-based skills program to better prepare new lawyers entering the profession. This led to the pilot launch of the Practice Readiness Education Program (PREP), the new Bar admission program, in August 2019.

In September 2019, we welcomed the Nova Scotia Barristers’ Society, which joined as the fourth participating jurisdiction with CPLED. The following year, in February 2020, we piloted the Legal Research and Writing (LRW) course to a small group of National Committee on Accreditation (NCA) candidates. The LRW course provides NCA candidates with a strong foundational knowledge of legal research and writing for the Canadian judicial system.

In June 2020, PREP was launched across the four participating jurisdictions to approximately 800 PREP candidates despite a global pandemic, marking a significant milestone for CPLED. In August 2020, CPLED launched the LRW course nationally.

In June 2021, Accelerated PREP was piloted to a small cohort of candidates from Alberta, providing an alternative program delivery style and providing candidates with the opportunity to complete their Bar admission program in a shorter timeframe. In May 2022, a soft launch of Accelerated PREP was offered to all four participating jurisdictions, providing more flexibility for firms and candidates. Finally, in May 2023, Accelerated PREP was launched across the four participating jurisdictions, allowing candidates to select the program delivery style that best suits their learning preferences and personal needs.

We are proud of our achievements and remain committed to innovation, excellence, and sustainability as we look ahead to the future. Our vision is bright and fueled by the dedication and passion of our team and the strength of our partnerships.

As we celebrate this significant milestone, we extend our deepest gratitude to our Board of Directors, employees, contractors, participating law societies, partners, and the Canadian legal community. Together, we have navigated an evolving landscape, embraced change, and seized opportunities to make a lasting impact.

We invite you to join us in celebrating 20 years of CPLED and look forward to many more years of providing innovative and experiential pre-Bar call legal education in Canada.