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Allard School of Law Milestones
The Peter A. Allard School of Law and West Coast LEAF partnered to create Rise Women’s Legal Centre, which opened on May 24, 2016. The first of its kind in BC, the clinic was created to provide legal services to low income women in the Lower Mainland, focusing particularly on legal representation in family law and related areas.
Originally located in a repurposed World War II army hut, the Law Library’s modest early history was only made possible through the dedication of various early donors, who supplied gifts of law reports, statutes, textbooks and other legal materials. In the first year of the library, some 5,000 books were donated by members of the public and the legal profession.
The photograph above was taken in Vancouver, British Columbia in June, 2015. From left to right: Dean Mary Anne Bobinski (Dean of Law: 2003 – 2015); Joost Blom, QC (Dean of Law: 1997-2003);
Sowing a seed, and nurturing something special - Professor Michael Jackson, QC used this imagery to capture the foundation of the Indigenous Legal Studies Program (ILSP) at the Peter A. Allard School of Law 45 years ago. On Thursday May 14th, 2015, the Allard School of Law celebrated 35 years of the ILSP and 20 years of the Indigenous Community Legal Clinic (ICLC).
The Chair in Feminist Legal Studies is the first of its kind in Canada. It was established in 1992 to reinforce and strengthen the existing base of feminist legal studies in the law school by expanding research and teaching in the field at both the graduate and bachelor's degree levels. The Chair also raises public awareness of women's issues at the University of British Columbia (UBC) and in the broader community through the development of a feminist understanding of day-to-day legal issues.
In 1997, the Centre for Feminist Legal Studies (CFLS) was established with Professor Susan B. Boyd as its Director.
The Peter A. Allard School of Law at the University of British Columbia and the Tsinghua University School of Law have concluded a ground-breaking agreement that will enable eligible students enrolled in the LLB program at Tsinghua University to spend two intensive years in the JD program at the Allard School of Law and obtain both an LLB degree from Tsinghua and a JD degree from UBC.
The Peter A. Allard School of Law has signed an agreement with Melbourne Law School that will allow eligible JD students at either law school to enroll in an LLM program at the partner institution in lieu of their final term or semester of JD study. Participating students will receive JD and LLM degrees in three and a half years of full-time study: two and a half years in a JD program and approximately one year in an LLM program.
Nearly 350 alumni, faculty, students, staff, and supporters gathered in downtown Vancouver on April 21, 2015, to pay tribute to Dean Mary Anne Bobinski’s achievements over the past 12 years. Dean Bobinski completes her two terms as Dean this June.
On January 22, 2015, UBC Law alumnus Peter A. Allard, QC, donated $30 million to UBC’s Faculty of Law, the largest gift ever to a Canadian law school. In recognition of his gift, which will enable the faculty to build on its reputation for championing human rights and social justice, the university will rename the law school the Peter A. Allard School of Law.