FAQ

How do I declare a Law and Society Minor?

  • A student may self-declare for the Law and Society Minor (LASO) during their registration window on the Student Services Centre (SSC) once they have earned 27 credits, provided they are students in Good Standing.

What should I do to become a Law and Society Minor?

  • Learn about the program here on the website. If you have questions, you can contact us here.
  • Make use of the planning worksheet, which you can download HERE, so that you know what prerequisites you would need to be eligible to take the upper-level courses you hope to take to complete your Law and Society Minor.
  • If you are in the Faculty of Arts and have completed 27 credits, self-declare a Law and Society Minor online on the SSC when your registration window opens for winter session. If you want to declare a Law and Society Minor after your registration window ends, please contact us here.
  • Enroll in LASO 204 Introduction to Law and Society. Registration in LASO 204 is restricted to declared minors.

Do I have to declare a Law and Society Minor to take LASO 204?

  • Yes. LASO 204 is specifically designed for the Law and Society Minor program and is required for the program, so it is restricted to students who have declared their Minor on the SSC.

How can I be a Law and Society Minor if I am not a student in the Faculty of Arts?

  • Visit the advising office in your faculty to find out the procedure for having an Arts Minor. They will declare your Minor on the SSC for you.
  • Submit a contact form to inform us of your intent to be a Law and Society Minor. Make use of the planning worksheet so that you know what prerequisites you would need to be eligible to take the upper-level courses you hope to take to complete your Law and Society Minor.
  • There may be courses in your own Faculty that may be counted toward the LASO Minor.  The LASO advisor may double count as many as six of these credits.
  • If you have taken the above steps and still cannot register for LASO 204, please contact us here.

What if I didn’t take LASO 204 in my second year?

  • You may still take the course in your third or fourth year. About a quarter of the class are upper-level students who, for one reason or another, were unable to take the course in second year.

Who is the Law and Society Program Chair?

  • Carole Blackburnan Associate Professor in the Department of Anthropology, currently serves as the LASO Program Chair.
  • For program enquiries and advising, please contact us here.

What courses should I take in the FIRST and SECOND years?

  • LASO 204 – Introduction to Law and Society, is a 3-credit course that serves as the foundational or “core” course for the program, focusing on the ideas, concepts, and frameworks for thinking about the nature of law and legal processes in both Canadian and global context. This course is restricted to Law and Society minors; if you completed 27 credits, you can register for this course as soon as you declare your LASO Minor on the SSC.
  • Plus, a minimum of 9 credits consisting of a combination of the following:
    • approved courses listed in the Calendar
    • specific lower-level courses that serve as prerequisites for upper-level courses
    • topical courses approved by the LASO Program Chair
    • or a completed CAP – Law and Society program

NOTE: Students must ensure they have taken prerequisites for upper-level courses they plan to take for the Minor in the various departments. The prerequisites may count towards the LASO Minor.

What courses should I take in the THIRD and FOURTH years?

  • A minimum of 18 and a maximum of 30 credits drawn from the Law and Society courses page.
  • All LASO courses count toward the Minor
  • No more than 12 credits from upper-level courses may be taken in the same department
  • A maximum of six upper-level credits may double count to meet the minimum requirements of both your major and minor programs.

What if courses are not counting appropriately toward the LASO Minor in Degree Navigator?

  • The quick answer: contact us to have your program reviewed and any problems corrected.  
  • The long answer: Appropriate courses may not count on Degree Navigator for a variety of reasons:
    • If the course is a “topics” course for which only specific sections are appropriate for the LASO Minor or if the course is not yet on the list of approved courses in the UBC Calendar, you will need to  contact us to have your report edited.
    • You changed the version year on your Minor report – do not do that.  Your Version Year is the year you declared the Minor and automatically appears on your report.  If you change it, then any accommodations made by the LASO advisor disappear.
    • There is a mistake in Degree Navigator, so contact the LASO advisor:
      • Degree Navigator has not yet been updated for the current academic year.
      • Mistakes were introduced when Degree Navigator was updated for the current academic year.