Canon Law

[Nihil Obstat]

Is there a place in the Church for lay Canon Lawyers?
If so, is it common? Even possible to get into?
Is it a viable career choice for someone?

[CatherineM]

There are three levels of degrees that someone including lay people can receive in Canon Law. The first is called the JCB (Latin Juris Canonici Baccalaureusor) a bachelors in canon law. The second is called the JCL, and that's a Licentiate to practice Canon Law. To even begin studying for the JCL, you must have a JD (that's what law degrees in the US are called) or a Masters in Theology or Divinity and a JCB. The JCL is an additional 3 years of study (for a total of 12-14 years of college), a nice fat thesis, and comprehensive exams before a jury of faculty. You have to have a JCL in order to teach Canon Law in a seminary, or to serve in certain ecclesial positions such as judicial vicar or as a judge in the tribunal. There are only about a dozen places that you can even study for the JCL, and half of them are in Rome. There's one in Canada and one in the US.

You must also have the JCL in order to study for the JCD, or Doctorate in Canon Law. These are the guys who run things like the Roman Rota, or head the Pontifical College. As you might imagine, at this level, you are mainly going to find clergy. There are many attorneys who take the JCB just to add it to their resume, and so they can take positions in their archdiocese. One of my Law School professors had a JCL, and he offered introductory courses for Catholic students. They weren't for credit, but provided a nice grounding in the things we would need to represent parties in the tribunal. After being in college for 6 years at that point, I had no desire to go any further at the time. I did enjoy volunteering with the Defender of the Bond, kind of like a prosecutor in a way in the tribunal. Applications for annulments went across his desk, and he determined if they should be granted on their face, or go to trial so to speak. His job was to first defend the bond as valid until shown otherwise. Most of the people who do the paperwork and interviewing of witnesses in the tribunal are lay people. The clergy who are things like the judicial vicar or defender of the bond, usually also have parishes to take care of, so they are always open to people offering to help.