University of Alberta Faculty of Law

The University of Alberta Faculty of Law is the graduate school of law of the University of Alberta in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Established as an undergraduate faculty in 1912 it is the third oldest law school in Canada, and often considered the oldest law school in Western Canada.

University of Alberta Faculty of Law
Established1912; 112 years ago (1912)
School typePublic
DeanBarbara A. Billingsley
LocationEdmonton, Alberta, Canada
53°31′27″N 113°31′07″W / 53.5243°N 113.5187°W / 53.5243; -113.5187
Enrollment525[1]
Faculty97
WebsiteOfficial website Edit this at Wikidata

The school offers a three-year Juris Doctor (J.D.) program, as well as the graduate degrees of Master of Laws (LL.M.) and Ph.D.

An Anglophone, common law institution, the Faculty is known for its Centre for Constitutional Studies, Health Law Institute, rigorous curriculum and collegial atmosphere.[citation needed]

The Faculty of Law is widely respected for the breadth and depth of instruction it provides in the fundamentals of Canadian law. 92-95% of students at the Faculty of Law find an articling position or pursue graduate studies [2] and the school is ranked second nationally for 'elite firm hiring'.[3]

The Chief Justice of Canada, The Right Honourable Beverley McLachlin; and the Chief Justice of Alberta, The Honourable Madame Catherine Fraser, are both graduates of the University of Alberta Faculty of Law.[4][5]

Academics

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University of Alberta Law Centre

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Admissions Statistics

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University rankings
World rankings
Canadian rankings

The entrance average is traditionally around 3.9/165 (GPA/LSAT).[7] The male-female ratio is approximately 49:51. The average age of admitted students is 25 years of age. In 2017, 17% of applicants successfully gained admissions to the University of Alberta Faculty of Law (185/1060). For purposes of grouping, the law school looks primarily at your last two years of study or the equivalent thereof.[8]

Joint Programs

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JD/MBA: A 4-year joint-JD/MBA program is offered in cooperation with the University of Alberta School of Business.

DUAL JD: The University of Alberta Faculty of Law and the University of Colorado at Boulder Law School (Colorado, USA) offer a dual degree program that enables students to obtain an Alberta law degree and a Colorado law degree within four years. University of Alberta students take the first two years of their legal studies at the University of Alberta and the latter two at Boulder.

Most students at the faculty are Juris Doctor candidates. This is a three-year program. Previously, the University of Alberta Faculty of Law has granted the Bachelor of Laws to graduating students, following the British naming tradition despite structurally being similar to the American graduate education structure. This ended in 2011.[9]

Tuition

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Tuition fees for entering Juris Doctor (JD) are set at C$15,995[10] for domestic students and C$29,727.80[11] for international students in 2017–2018.

Employment

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The Faculty of Law is ranked #2 in Canada for "Elite Firm Hiring" by Maclean's (2014).[3]

Facilities

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Library

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The John A. Weir Memorial Law Library, with approximately 390,000 volumes, is the second largest law library in Canada (after the Osgoode Hall Law School library).

Institutes and Centres of Excellence

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Alberta Law Review

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  • Founded in 1955, the Alberta Law Review is the most widely read university-based law review in Canada, with over 2,500 subscribers.[16]

Extracurricular

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There are 28 clubs, groups and other student led organizations at the Faculty of Law,[17] including Alberta Law Review, Canons of Construction (student newspaper), Environmental Law Association, Law & Business Association, the Law Students Association, OutLaw, and Women's Law Forum and others.

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Each year approximately 250 law students from the Faculty of Law volunteer with Student Legal Services, a student-managed, non-profit society dedicated to helping low income individuals with legal issues in the Edmonton area. Student Legal Services was founded in 1969 and is one of the largest legal clinics in Canada.[18]

Law Show

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Since 1995, law students have presented a large scale variety show with all proceeds going to charity called Law Show. The show features an entertaining law-themed play written by students interspersed with dancing, singing, and videos. Prior to 2008, the show was formatted as a variety hour-style show, but since it has taken the form of a play which spoofs a famous movie or television show. The show is usually held on the final weekend of January.

  • Law Show 2008: It's a Wonderful Law
  • Law Show 2009: The League of Extraordinary Lawyers
  • Law Show 2010: Where in the Law is Carmen Sandiego?
  • Law Show 2011: Draculaw
  • Law Show 2012: The Wizard of Laws
  • Law Show 2013: Charlie and the Law Factory
  • Law Show 2014: Alawddin
  • Law Show 2015: Harry Lawter
  • Law Show 2016: Ferris Buellaw's Day Off
  • Law Show 2017: Alice in Wonderlaw
  • Law Show 2018: Monsters LLP
  • Law Show 2019: Neverlaw: The Peter Pan Story
  • Law Show 2020: Shrek: Law & Ogre
  • Law Show 2021: Scooby-Doo: Long Paw of the Law
  • Law Show 2023: Mean Lawyers
  • Law Show 2024: Lawma Mia!
  • Law Show 2025: Twilaw: Breaking Precedent

Alumni

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Over a dozen graduates of the Faculty of Law have become Rhodes Scholars, and two have won the Vinerian Scholarship at Oxford.

Frank MacInnis, who graduated with an LL.B. in 1971, donated $2.5 million to the law school in 2006.[21]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ LSAC - JD: Canadian Law School Profiles Archived 2015-03-15 at the Wayback Machine. 2013. Retrieved 2014-04-30.
  2. ^ "Student Council Presentation - Law Students' concerns" (PDF). 2013-08-27.
  3. ^ a b "The 2013 Maclean's Canadian Law School Rankings - Macleans.ca".
  4. ^ "Supreme Court of Canada - Biography - Beverley McLachlin". www.scc-csc.gc.ca. Archived from the original on 2013-10-01.
  5. ^ "Catherine Fraser - Faculty of Law - University of Alberta". lawschool.ualberta.ca. Archived from the original on 2014-10-12.
  6. ^ 5656
  7. ^ "Admitted Applicant Profile".
  8. ^ "Home | Ivy Global".
  9. ^ "LLB to JD Conversion". www.law.ualberta.ca. Archived from the original on 2011-03-20.
  10. ^ "Sample Assessments for Canadian Citizens/Permanent Residents in the first year of a program - Fall 2009/Winter 2010". University of Alberta. Archived from the original on 2009-09-05.
  11. ^ "Sample Assessments for International Students in the first year of a program - Fall 2009/Winter 2010". Archived from the original on 2010-03-10.
  12. ^ "About ALRI". Retrieved 2024-05-07.
  13. ^ "About the Centre for Constitutional Studies". Retrieved 2024-05-07.
  14. ^ "About the HLI". www.ualberta.ca. Retrieved 2024-05-07.
  15. ^ "International Ombudsman Institute". Retrieved 2010-12-14.
  16. ^ Alberta Law Review
  17. ^ "Student Clubs - Faculty of Law". www.ualberta.ca. Archived from the original on 2017-10-24.
  18. ^ "History of Student Legal Services of Edmonton". www.slsedmonton.com. Archived from the original on 2011-03-13.
  19. ^ "Aboriginal courts in canada" (PDF). THE SCOW INSTITUTE.
  20. ^ "Biography - Chief Wilton Littlechild". Archived from the original on 2011-09-21.
  21. ^ U of A Faculty of Law receives unprecedented $2.5 million donation - ExpressNews - University of Alberta
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