Court Clerk Training Offers Many Law-Related Career Options

Imagine finding employment with prestigious institutions such as The Ministry of the Attorney General (Ontario Court of Justice, Ontario Superior Court of Justice), municipal courts, tribunals and boards, official examiners, and court reporting services. It’s possible if you’re interested in becoming a court clerk and attend Court Clerk training at Centennial College, which includes the all-important municipal court training aspect. In these various places of employments, court clerks have a multi-faceted role that includes the implementation of courtroom procedures, in addition to working with judges, lawyers and other courtroom personnel. The court clerk training at Centennial (officially known as Court Support Services) is so respected that even professionals from the Ministry of the Attorney General are singing its praises. “We look forward to the opportunity of working with the graduates of the Centennial College Court Support Services program,” says Ali Maqbool, Supervisor, Court Operations, Family & Small Claims Court, Ministry of the Attorney General.

Taking just two semesters to complete, the undertaking is designed as a certificate program on the recommendation of the Ministry of the Attorney General. Applicants interested in Court Clerk Training must have completed at minimum an Ontario Secondary School Diploma (OSSD) or equivalent or be 19 years of age or older. Academic requirements include compulsory English 12 or U, or skills assessment, or equivalent. Applicants must demonstrate an acceptable level of English language proficiency in order to be considered for admission. Applicants whose first language is not English, and who have studied in an English language school system, for less than three full years may meet English proficiency requirements by providing satisfactory results an English Language Proficiency test.

Once they are in the program, students are introduced to the procedural rules, municipal court training, court reporting and transcribing as well as specific laws such as family law and criminal law. The courses within the offering are led by experienced court clerk training faculty members who work within the court system and provide students with the legal and practical hands-on learning through small class sizes, newly upgraded computer labs, simulated courtroom settings, and practical, career-oriented assignments. In addition to in-class learning, court clerk training at Centennial College sees students take numerous trips to the various courtrooms and tribunals in order for them to see first-hand exactly how their career roles work. Lastly, the program offers a practical on-the-job experience. “The unique thing about [this court clerk training] is that it contains a practicum portion. We have an assimilated courtroom within Centennial College, so the students will actually be able to practice taking an oath and presenting before judges,” says Patty-Ann Sullivan, the program coordinator.

In order to graduate from the court clerk training program, with its focus on Municipal Court Training, students are required to attain a minimum C grade average and an overall minimum GPA of 2.0.