The department of philosophy offers a general certificate program in Law and Social Thought. We recognize that university students tend to be pre-occupied with concerns about life after university, and, in particular, with preparation for a career. The Law and Social Thought certificate is designed to forge connections between a liberal arts education and the world of work. Students in the certificate generally go on to apply to law school or graduate school.
The program places the study of law in the context of a liberal arts education; that is, the law will be studied within both a humanities and a social science context. Some courses emphasize the moral and philosophical dimensions that inform legal life and link the study of law with social and political thought. Others focus on legal institutions: how they yield regulation and socially sanctioned force, and how they interact with society.
You will study with philosophy professors who are experts in the field:
- Louis-Philippe Hodgson was a postdoctoral fellow in the Law and Philosophy program at UCLA and received his Philosophy doctorate from Harvard University. He specializes in social and political thought and published various articles in the field, including in the journal Ethics.
- Andrée-Anne Cormier completed a postdoctoral fellowship in political philosophy in the department of law at Pompeu Fabra University, Barcelona. She specializes in applied ethics and social and political philosophy, with a focus on issues of justice regarding the family and interpersonal relationships. She’s also interested in and published articles in philosophy of education.
Students may earn a Certificate in Law and Social Thought concurrent with fulfillment of the requirements for a bachelor’s degree at York University. To register for the certificate, students must submit an application to Academic Services.
Arjan Heir
Arjan graduated from Glendon’s psychology program in 2020, where he was in the cognitive neuropsychology stream. His experience in the Certificate in Law and Social Thought Program has prepared him to examine legal and social structures through a critical lens as he now begins law school at Columbia University, New York. His highlights of the program include the in-depth philosophical analysis of real-world case studies, vibrant debates on contemporary issues spanning from the ethics of intimate relationships to legal paternalism, and finding a community of fellow students who are also passionate about social and legal topics.
Bariquis Ismail
Bariquis is majoring in psychology with a concentration in cognitive neuropsychology. She chose to pursue a Certificate in Law and Social Thought to develop her critical thinking on social issues and is looking forward to furthering her education in psychiatric research. The courses she took include: Introduction to Law and Social Thoughts, Philosophy of Law, The Moral Limits of the criminal law, Violence Against Women, Psychology and Law, Introduction to Abnormal Psychology.
Bariquis étudie en psychologie avec une concentration en neuropsychologie cognitive. Elle a choisi d’entamer le certificat en droit et pensé sociale afin d’exercer sa pensée critique sur des enjeux sociaux et souhaite poursuivre ses études en recherche psychiatrique.
Program Requirements
Students must complete 24 credits as follows:
- GL/PHIL 2923 3.00 Introduction to Law and Social Thought;
- GL/PHIL 2925 3.00 Law, Justice and Equality;
- One of the following*:
- GL/PHIL 3633 3.00 Responsibility, Crime and Punishment;
- GL/PHIL 3638 3.00 Sex, Love and the Family;
- GL/PHIL 3654 3.00 The Moral Limits of the Criminal Law;
- 15 credits from the list of approved courses.
*A student who chooses to take more than one of these upper-level courses will need proportionally fewer additional credits from the list of approved courses.
All credits must be completed at York University, and the course listed above at Glendon. A minimum overall grade point average of 4.00 (C) is required for all the above courses
LIST OF APPROVED COURSES
CANADIAN STUDIES
GL/CDNS 2600 6.0 Government and Politics of Canada/Introduction au gouvernement et à la politique Canada
GL/CDNS 3663 3.0 Human Rights and Civil Liberties in Canada
ECONOMICS
GL/ECON 3370 3.0 Industrial Organization I / Organisation industrielle I
GL/ECON 3375 3.0 Industrial Organization II / Organisation industrielle II
GL/ECON 3642 3.0 Business Ethics
GL/ECON 4275 3.0 The Economic Analysis of Law
GL/ECON 4570 3.0 Economics of the Public Sector: Taxation
GENDER AND WOMEN’S STUDIES
GL/GWST 3513 6.0 Les femmes et la loi
GL/GWST 4502 3.00 La femme et la violence
GL/GWST 4502 6.00 Violence against Women
GWST 4509 3.0 Anti-Racist Feminism
HISTORY
GL/HIST 2650 6.0 Introduction to British History, from the Norman Conquest (1066) to the Present
GL/HIST 3639 3.00 Comparative Slavery and Emancipation in the Americas
HUMANITIES
GL/HUMA 1610 6.0 Prisoners, Penitents and Postulants
GL/HUMA 1650 6.0 Introduction to British History, from the Norman Conquest (1066) to the Present
GL/HUMA 2615 6.0 Moral Questions and Social Policies
INTERNATIONAL STUDIES
GL/ILST 2622 3.0 Culture, Globalization and International Civil Society
GL/ILST 2622 3.0 Culture, mondialisation et société civile internationale
GL/ILST 3650 3.0 International Peace, Security and Human Rights/Paix, sécurité et droits humains internationaux
GL/ILST 3652 6.0 Introduction to International Law / Introduction au droit international
GL/ILST 4601 3.0 Issues in International Law/Problème en droit International
GL/ILST 4651 3.0 International Refugee Protection /Protection Internationale des réfugiés
GL/ILST 4682 3.0 Transnational Crime and Corruption
MODES OF REASONING
GL/MODR 1711 6.0 Critical Thinking (Sections A, B, C, D, SU)
GL/MODR 1714 6.0 Thinking and Writing Critically
GL/MODR 1716 6.0 Logique formelle et informelle
PHILOSOPHY
GL/PHIL 2615 3.0 Moral Questions and Social Policies
GL/PHIL 2645 6.0 Ancient Philosophy and Political Theory
GL/PHIL 3237 3.0 Moral Philosophy I
GL/PHIL 3611 3.0 Political Philosophy I
GL/PHIL 3634 3.0 International Justice
GL/PHIL 3642 3.0 Business Ethics
GL/PHIL 3653 3.0 Law & Justice
GL/PHIL 3660 6.0 Early Modern Political Theory
GL/PHIL 4235 3.0 Political Philosophy II
GL/PHIL 4237 3.0 Moral Philosophy II
GL/PHIL 4626 3.0 Contemporary Political Theory
POLITICAL SCIENCE
GL/POLS 2600 6.0 Government and Politics of Canada /Introduction au gouvernement et à la politique du Canada
GL/POLS 3135 3.0 Public Law I: The Constitution and the Courts in Canada
GL/POLS 3136 3.0 Public Law II: The Charter of Rights and Freedoms and the Limits of Public Administration
GL/POLS 3550 3.0 Politics and Place: The Structure of Local Government
GL/POLS 3634 3.0 International Justice
GL/POLS 3650 3.0 International Peace, Security and Human Rights/Paix, sécurité et droits humains internationaux
GL/POLS 3652 3.0 Introduction to International Law/Introduction au droit international
GL/POLS 3663 3.0 Human Rights and Civil Liberties in Canada
GL/POLS 3667 3.0 War, Power, and Sovereignty: Early Modern Political Theory I
GL/POLS 3668 3.0 Community, Liberty, and Institutions: Early Modern Political Theory II
GL/POLS 3720 3.0 American Political Development
GL/POLS 3721 3.0 American Political Institutions
GL/POLS 4601 3.0 Issues in International Law/Problème en droit International
GL/POLS 4636 3.0 Inclusion, Exclusion, and Difference
GL/POLS 4637 3.0 Deliberation and Participation
GL/POLS 4651 3.0 International Refugee Protection/Protection Internationale des réfugiés
GL/POLS 4682 3.0 Transnational Crime and Corruption
PSYCHOLOGY
GL/PSYC 3230 3.0 Introduction to Abnormal Psychology (Psycho-pathology)/ Introduction à la psychologie anormale
GL/PSYC 3600 3.0 Psychology & Law
SOCIAL SCIENCE
GL/SOSC 1610 6.0 Prisoners, Penitents and Postulants
GL/SOSC 3634 3.0 International Justice
GL/SOSC 3642 3.0 Business Ethics
GL/SOSC 3653 3.0 Law & Justice
GL/SOSC 3685 3.0/6.0 Popular Trials
GL/SOSC 3920 6.0 Law and Society
GL/SOSC 3975 6.0 Les femmes et la loi
GL/SOSC 4602 3.00 La femme et la violence
GL/SOSC 4602 6.00 Violence against Women
GL/SOSC 4635 6.0 Topics in Law and Politics
GL/SOSC 4645 3.0/6.0 Mobs, Manias and Delusions: Sociological and Psychoanalytic Perspectives
SOCIOLOGY
GL/SOCI 2520 6.0 Deviant Behaviour and Social Control
GL/SOCI 3217 6.0 Crime and Society
GL/SOCI 3636 3.0 Social Inequality
GL/SOCI 3663 3.0 Human Rights and Civil Liberties in Canada
GL/SOCI 3685 3.0/6.0 Popular Trials
GL/SOCI 3920 6.0 Law and Society
GL/SOCI 4645 3.0/6.0 Mobs, Manias and Delusions: Sociological and Psychoanalytic Perspectives
