University of Calgary Faculty of Law

University of Calgary Faculty of Law
Name	University of Calgary Faculty of Law
Established	1976 (law school established 1976; common law program 1977; current building 2016)
Type	Public
Parent	University of Calgary
City	Calgary
Province	Alberta
Country	Canada
Dean	L. Yves Fortier (note: verify current)
Students	approx. 500

Contents

University of Calgary Faculty of Law is the law school of the University of Calgary located in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. The faculty offers professional legal education in common law with graduate research programs and clinical training, engaging with provincial institutions such as the Government of Alberta, national bodies like the Supreme Court of Canada, and international partners including the International Criminal Court and the United Nations.

History

The faculty was created amid provincial legal reforms influenced by figures such as Peter Lougheed and commissions like the Macdonald Commission, with early leadership connected to scholars from Osgoode Hall Law School, University of Toronto Faculty of Law, and McGill University Faculty of Law. Its formation paralleled developments at institutions including University of British Columbia Faculty of Law, University of Alberta Faculty of Law, and Dalhousie University Faculty of Law. The school’s expansion through the late 20th century intersected with national events such as the Patriation of the Constitution and the passage of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, informing curriculum shifts alongside precedents from the Supreme Court of Canada and appellate decisions from the Alberta Court of Appeal.

Throughout the 1980s and 1990s the faculty recruited visiting scholars from Harvard Law School, Yale Law School, Columbia Law School, Stanford Law School, and London School of Economics, and engaged in exchanges with the University of Oxford and University of Cambridge. The 21st century saw a purpose-built facility developed with input from architectural firms who had worked on projects for University of Toronto and Queen's University. The faculty’s history includes collaborations with institutions like the Canadian Bar Association, Law Society of Alberta, Canadian Judicial Council, and participation in national inquiries such as the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples.

The faculty offers a Juris Doctor program drawing on comparative perspectives from Common law of England and Wales, Civil law of Quebec, and international frameworks from the Geneva Conventions and World Trade Organization jurisprudence. Graduate offerings include Master of Laws programs with specialized streams in areas connected to institutions such as the International Court of Justice, World Intellectual Property Organization, and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Clinics and seminars emphasize litigation skills reflective of practice before the Alberta Court of Queen's Bench, appellate advocacy linked to the Federal Court of Canada, and transactional training with ties to the Calgary Chamber of Commerce and energy regulators like the Alberta Energy Regulator.

Courses address constitutional matters shaped by cases heard at the Supreme Court of Canada, international human rights topics related to the Inter-American Court of Human Rights, and Indigenous legal traditions examined with reference to treaties such as the Treaty of Fort Laramie and reports like the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada. Comparative law offerings draw on scholarship linked to European Court of Human Rights, International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea, and the African Court on Human and Peoples' Rights.

Admissions reflect competitive processes similar to those at McGill University Faculty of Law, University of Toronto Faculty of Law, and University of British Columbia Faculty of Law, with applicants evaluated on academic records from institutions such as Queen's University, University of Alberta, Simon Fraser University, University of Waterloo, and Western University. Many students have backgrounds working for organizations like the Calgary Police Service, Canadian Forces, PwC, Deloitte, and non-profits including Amnesty International and Canadian Red Cross. The student body engages in mooting circuits that include competitions hosted by Windsor Law School, Osgoode Hall Law School, and international contests such as the Philip C. Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition and Manfred Lachs Space Law Moot Court Competition.

Research centres include initiatives collaborating with national and international bodies like the Institute for Research on Public Policy, the Canadian Institute for the Administration of Justice, and the International Development Research Centre. The faculty houses clinics and centres focused on areas connected to the Canadian Human Rights Commission, energy and resource law interfaces with the National Energy Board (now Canada Energy Regulator), and Indigenous legal issues tied to organizations such as the Assembly of First Nations and the Métis National Council. Scholarly output engages with journals and networks including the Canadian Bar Review, Osgoode Hall Law Journal, Harvard Law Review, and international forums such as the American Society of International Law.

Clinical programs afford experiential opportunities mirroring practice before tribunals like the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, regulatory hearings similar to those before the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission, and appellate preparation for appearances at the Supreme Court of British Columbia. The faculty’s research collaborations have included partnerships with foundations like the Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation and investigative commissions such as the Commission of Inquiry into the Deployment of Canadian Forces to Somalia.

The faculty’s building on the University of Calgary campus features moot courtrooms designed to replicate courtrooms such as those of the Supreme Court of Canada and chambers similar to the Alberta Court of Appeal, legal research collections comparable to holdings at Bodleian Library and Library and Archives Canada, and technology suites used for online advocacy competitions affiliated with organizations like the International Criminal Court. Campus life ties into city institutions including the Calgary Public Library, Calgary Stampede, Calgary Health Region, and venues like the Scotiabank Saddledome. The campus is served by transit links to downtown Calgary and connections to regional hubs such as Banff and Canmore.

Faculty and alumni have included judges and public figures appointed to courts such as the Supreme Court of Canada, the Federal Court of Canada, and provincial courts including the Court of Queen's Bench of Alberta. Alumni hold positions in government named after leaders like Stephen Harper, Justin Trudeau, and Ralph Klein, and have served at institutions such as the Department of Justice Canada, Parliament of Canada, House of Commons of Canada, and diplomatic posts to the United Nations and European Union. Prominent legal scholars and practitioners affiliated with the faculty have collaborated with peers from Harvard Law School, Yale Law School, Cambridge University, Oxford University, and legal organizations like the International Bar Association and the Canadian Bar Association.

Notable alumni include judges, litigators, corporate counsel at firms such as Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt, Blake, Cassels & Graydon, Stikeman Elliott, and leaders in non-profit sectors including Legal Aid Alberta and the Canadian Civil Liberties Association.

Category:Law schools in Canada