Criminal Law — NCA Complete Notes Bundle

The most common failure in the NCA Criminal Law exam is not knowing the law. It is failing to apply it in sequence. Actus reus, mens rea, party liability, defences, Charter, sentence: each issue requires its own analysis, its own authority, and its own conclusion. Candidates who describe the law without applying it to the facts do not pass.

This bundle builds the 8-step analytical sequence first, then gives you the statutory provisions, case principles, IRAC templates, and practice questions to score marks on every issue type.

WHAT IS IN THE BUNDLE

3 PDFs. Instant download after purchase.

STRATEGIC NOTES - 75 pages

Opens with the Master Exam Framework: an 8-step sequence that structures every criminal law problem question from classification through to sentencing conclusion. This is the analytical spine the entire exam rests on. Step 1 classifies the offence as true crime or regulatory, which determines every subsequent step. Skipping it or getting it wrong costs marks on every analysis that follows.

Covers every testable topic: sources of criminal law and the principle of legality under s.9 CC. Actus reus in full: voluntariness, possession under s.4(3), causation (significant contributing cause under Nette 2001; elevated substantial cause under Harbottle [1993] for s.231(5) only, not all first degree murder), consent including Kirkpatrick 2022 SCC 33 stealthing via s.273.1(1) majority analysis. Subjective mens rea hierarchy: intention, wilful blindness (Briscoe 2010), recklessness, and the constitutional minimum fault requirements for murder. Objective fault: marked departure for s.320.13 dangerous operation (not s.249, which no longer exists) versus marked and substantial departure for s.219 criminal negligence. Party liability under s.21(1) aiding and abetting, s.21(2) common intention including Cowan 2021 SCC 45 TYPE-of-offence foreseeability and Logan [1990] constitutional limit, counselling under s.22 and s.464, attempt, and conspiracy. Specific offences: murder s.229, first degree murder s.231 (not s.214, which does not exist), manslaughter, sexual assault including all Kirkpatrick 2022 and Barton 2019 requirements, theft, robbery, fraud. All defences: NCRMD including Oommen [1994] ordinary moral standards test, automatism Stone [1999] framework, intoxication including Robinson [1996] and Brown 2022 SCC 18 confirming s.33.1 is constitutional, self-defence s.34 including all Khill 2021 SCC 37 s.34(2)(c) factors, necessity, duress including Ruzic 2001 striking s.17 immediacy requirements and Hibbert five elements not six, provocation, entrapment. Criminal procedure: detention including Grant 2009 and Le 2019 SCC 34 systemic racism, search and seizure including Bykovets 2024 SCC 6 IP addresses, Grant s.24(2) three-factor exclusion test, bail ladder under Antic 2017, Stinchcombe disclosure, Jordan s.11(b) ceilings. Sentencing: proportionality as the cardinal principle, Gladue mandatory for all Indigenous offenders, mandatory minimums under Nur 2015 including Hills 2023 SCC 2 struck and Hilbach 2023 SCC 3 upheld. Both cases are on the syllabus and candidates routinely confuse them.

EXAM TEMPLATES - 42 IRAC templates

Every template includes the precise statutory provision and leading case pre-loaded. Your job is to identify which template applies, fill in the placeholders with the parties and facts, and add the factual application sentences.

Includes Template 4 (murder s.229: causation, constitutional minimum, all three s.229 routes),

Template 5 (first degree murder s.231: planned and deliberate with both elements independently required; s.231(5) single transaction test with Harbottle elevated causation pre-mapped),

Template 18 (common intention s.21(2): Cowan 2021 TYPE-of-offence foreseeability and Logan limit built in),

Template 24 (intoxication: specific versus general intent classification, Robinson test, s.33.1 bodily integrity block), Template 25 (self-defence s.34: all s.34(2)(c) Khill factors pre-listed for holistic application),

Template 28 (duress: principal versus party threshold question, Ruzic strike, Hibbert five elements stated explicitly), and templates for every other testable issue including entrapment, NCRMD, automatism, Grant s.24(2) exclusion, Jordan s.11(b), Gladue, and mandatory minimums.

PRACTICE Q&A - Full-length exam questions

Calibrated to NCA Criminal Law exam difficulty: open-book, three hours, problem questions requiring full IRAC analysis on multiple issues per question.

Covers every issue type the exam tests: murder and first degree classification under s.231(5) with Harbottle causation applied, party liability combining s.21(1)(b) aiding and s.21(2) common intention with Cowan 2021 applied, sexual assault including Kirkpatrick 2022 stealthing and Barton 2019 reasonable steps, Charter breaches and Grant s.24(2) exclusion including Bykovets 2024 IP address question, defences including Brown 2022 intoxication and Khill 2021 self-defence, and sentencing with Gladue applied and Hills versus Hilbach distinguished. Full model answers throughout with precise statutory section numbers and case citations.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Passed all 5 NCA exams in 2025. Preparing for the Ontario Bar. LLM in International Commercial Law, University of Bristol. Litigation experience at Eversheds Sutherland, DWF, and Keoghs in the UK.

REVISED JUNE 2024 SYLLABUS

Includes Sundman 2022, Bissonnette 2022, Cowan 2021, Khill 2021, Brown 2022, Bykovets 2024, Hills 2023, Hilbach 2023. Aligned with the current NCA Criminal Law syllabus for the June 2026 sitting. Third Edition 2026.

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