2010 Faculty Research News

In the spring of 2010, Sander Duncanson (LLB 2010) won the 2010 Canadian Bar Association (CBA) National Environmental, Energy and Resources Law Section (NEERLS) Law School Essay Contest David Estrin Prize for his paper, "Managing Produced Water from Coalbed Methane Operations: A Critical Examination of Alberta's Regulatory Framework," which he wrote for Professor Arlene Kwasniak's Water Law course. Now articling with Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP in Calgary, Mr. Duncanson has been invited to present at the NEERLS annual conference in April 2011 on the topic of water issues surrounding CBM development in Alberta.

Professor Iwan Saunders' "Developments in Tort Law: The 2009-2010 Term" is about to be published in (2010) 52 Supreme Court Law Review (2d) 311.  Professor Saunders received research assistance from current law students Shaun Driver and Charles McRoberts, and from alumna,  Allison Palmer

Following a university wide competition, the School of Public Policy has offered research grants of $5000 to two LLM students. Course based LLM student Matthew Ducharme's proposal for a project entitled "Law and Policy Surrounding Canadian Shale Gas Development" (supervised by Professor Allan Ingelson) was accepted, as was thesis based LLM student Sasha Ransom's proposal for a project on "Policy options for long term liability rules for CCS and transfer of liability" (supervised by Professor Nigel Bankes). 

Professor Catherine Brown (with third year JD student, Corinne Grigoriu) has published a short piece entitled "Properly Constituting the Trust: Lessons from Antle" in the Focus section of the December 3 edition of Lawyer's Weekly. 

Two U of C law professors presented papers at the CIRL November 19^th Conference on "Public Participation in Alberta's Energy and Natural Resources Development: Is There Room for Improvement?"  Professor Nickie Vlavianos spoke on "The Foundations of Public Participation in the Resource Development Process" and Professor Shaun Fluker presented on the topic of "Standing to Participate at the ERCB Project Approval Stage." 

Professor Maureen T. Duffy accepted invitation from the Canadian Council for Refugees to participate as an expert in children's law in a workshop held in Calgary November 25. The workshop included a panel with Linda McKay-Panos and Brian Seaman of the Alberta Civil Liberties Research Centre.  Maureen presented on compliance with the Convention on the Rights of the Child in anticipation of Canada's upcoming review. The workshop was an introductory component of a larger campaign to address the rights of children under Canada's immigration and refugee system.

LLM student Astrid Kalkbrenner published an article in the November 2010 edition of the Journal of Energy and Natural Resources Law entitled "Long-Term Liability Issues for CCS-CDM Projects in the Post-Crediting Period."  JENRL is the journal of the International Bar Association's Section on Energy, Environment, Natural Resources and Infrastructure Law (SEERIL) and its Editor is Professor Nigel Bankes.

Professors Jennifer Koshan and Jonnette Watson Hamilton's article "'Terrorism or Whatever': The Implications of Alberta v. Hutterian Brethren of Wilson Colony for Women's Equality and Social Justice," was recently published in Volume 50 of the Supreme Court Law Review (2010). Volume 50 is also being published as Sheila McIntyre and Sanda Rodgers, eds. The Supreme Court of Canada and Social Justice: Commitment, Retrenchment or Retreat  (LexisNexis, 2010).   

Professor Arlene Kwasniak has accepted an invitation from the World Wildlife Fund as a selected Canadian Water expert to participate in a workshop to be held in Ottawa, November 15th and 16th.  The purpose of the workshop is for participants to identify changes to law and policy, advances in traditional and scientific knowledge, and aspects of planning and management, in order to help develop a federal/provincial/territorial framework to protect and restore environmental flows in Canada.  In addition to participating in the workshop, Arlene will make a presentation on possible legal and policy approaches to restore and protect instream flow, and will present and evaluate Alberta's approaches. 

On November 12 Professor Shaun Fluker participated in a seminar entitled "The Future of Ecological Integrity in Our Parks and Protected Areas.  The seminar was co-hosted by the Faculty of Environmental Design and the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society to mark the 10 year anniversary for the ecological integrity mandate in Canada's national parks.  It was an opportunity for Professor Fluker to discuss his recent publication, Ecological Integrity in Canada's National Parks: The False Promise of Law, with Canada's leading ecological integrity scientists including Dr. Stephen Woodley of Parks Canada. 

Oceans North Canada, a marine conservation campaign backed by the U.S.-based Pew Environment Group, has released the Research Report it sought from Professor Nigel Bankes about whether Lancaster Sound -- because it has been designated a potential federal marine park -- is legally safeguarded from petroleum extraction. Professor Bankes concluded that “there is no legal moratorium in place” to prevent the Canadian government from issuing oil and gas rights throughout Lancaster Sound, but there are several ways in which the federal government could formally exclude Lancaster Sound from oil exploration.

On November 3 Professor Shaun Fluker attended a workshop in Halifax hosted by the Ocean Tracking Network -- a collection of social and natural scientists developing technology that will track the movement of marine species across the globe.  Professor Fluker was invited to participate in this workshop to facilitate the development of a research agenda that will investigate how this technology can be used to address marine species at risk under the Species at Risk Act (Canada).

Astrid Kalkbrenner is the first recipient of a Canadian Institute of Resources Law (CIRL) Post-Graduate Fellowship. CIRL Post-Graduate Fellowships provide support to graduate students who have completed their thesis or major paper at the University of Calgary Faculty of Law and who wish to work towards the publication of their graduate research. Post-graduate fellows are provided with office space at CIRL, as well as a stipend of $3750 / month for 2 months. Astrid will be using her fellowship to develop publications dealing with the federal-provincial collaboration model in the context of nuclear energy regulation, and strategic environmental impact assessments in this context. 

Professor Arlene Kwasniak's article, "Instream Flow and Athabasca Oil Sands Development: Contracting Out/Waiver of Legal Water Rights to Protect Instream Flow - A Legal Analysis," is now published in (2010) 48:1 Alberta Law Review 1-34. The article looks at whether the Lower Athabasca Water Management Framework and associated oil sands industry agreements adequately address instream flow water management challenges. 

An article on "Alberta's Approach to Local Governance in Oil and Gas Development", written by Professor Nickie Vlavianos and PhD student Chidima Thompson, has just been published in (2010) 48:1 Alberta Law Review 55. The paper considers how municipalities are involved in the decision-making processes preceding oil and gas project approvals, how their views and concerns are addressed at the project approval stage, and what steps they are able to take to regulate and manage oil and gas development within their borders.

Professor Nickie Vlavianos presented a paper on ‘Theoretical Foundations for Public Participation in Energy and Natural Resources Development" at the Colloquium on Environmental Scholarship at the Vermont Law School on October 22.

Professor Allan Ingelson's article on "Long-Term Liability For Carbon Capture and Storage in Depleted North American Oil and Gas Reservoirs- A Comparative Analysis," co-authored with Anne Kleffner and Norma Nielson, has been accepted for publication by the Energy Law Journal. The three authors have received a $25,000 research grant from the Institute for Sustainable Energy Environment and Economy (ISEEE) and Allan is the principle investigator for the grant.

Professor Nigel Bankes,  Professor Jennifer Koshan and PhD student Veronica Potes will be participating in a workshop in Tromso, Norway from October 18 to 20, 2010 on Recognition of Indigenous Property Systems within Arctic States.  This workshop is part of a project funded by the Nordic Council on which Professor Bankes is a co-investigator.  Professor Bankes is presenting on "Treatment of property rights in northern land claims agreements in Canada."  Veronica Potes will discuss "Current negotiations in Ecuador regarding the achuar amazonian people's property rights and autonomy."  Professor Koshan will identify themes of the workshop and ideas for future work. 

Professor Nigel Bankes is attending an international workshop on the "Politics and Policy of Carbon Capture and Storage" at Princeton University on October 14 and 15.  The workshop involves international experts invited to develop a social science research agenda around the adoption of CCS technologies as a mitigation option for dealing with growing greenhouse gas emissions. The workshop and overall research project is financed by the Swedish Foundation for Strategic Environmental Research (Mistra) and coordinated through the Department of Political Science at Lund University, Sweden.

Professor Arlene Kwasniak is publishing an article titled "Use and Abuse of Adaptive Management in Environmental Assessment Law and Practice: A Canadian Example and General Lessons" in the Journal of Environmental Assessment Policy and Management, an interdisciplinary, peer reviewed, international journal focusing on environmental assessment policy and decision-making. 

Professor Jassmine Girgis is presenting a paper entitled "Corporate Reorganization and the Economic Theory of the Firm" at the INSOL Europe Academics Forum to be held in Vienna, Austria on October 13 and 14. 

Professor Shaun Fluker is participating in "Under Western Skies: Climate, Culture, and Change in Western North America," an interdisciplinary environmental conference that is being hosted by Mount Royal University from October 13 to 16, 2010. The overall theme of the conference is to explore interactions between humans and the natural environment in Western North America.  In a panel discussion on the afternoon of Friday, October 15, Professor Fluker will present some findings from his current research examining the use of legal process by wilderness advocates in Alberta.

"Equality, Legislation and the Constitution", a conference to mark the European Year of Equal Opportunities for All and the 70th anniversary of the Irish Constitution was held on Saturday 6th October, 2010 at NUI Galway. It was hosted jointly by the Faculty of Law, Department of Justice, Equality & Law Reform and the Equality Authority.  Professor Kathleen Mahoney spoke at the session on "Comparative Perspectives on Equality Law." 

Professor Kathleen Mahoney was a speaker at the Closing Plenary of the Second Echenberg Family Conference on Human Rights, Global Conference on Human Rights and Diverse Societies, held at McGill University on 7 - 9 October, 2010. 

Professor Jennifer Koshan spoke at a public forum in Vancouver on October 6, 2010 on the topic of "What are the benefits and pitfalls of domestic violence courts for women and children in BC?"  Also participating in the forum were Wanda Wiegers from the University of Saskatchewan College of Law, Mary Ellen Turpel-Lafond, Representative for Children and Youth in BC, and representatives from the police, Attorney General's office, and women's shelters.

Professor Jennifer Koshan spoke on a panel at the Sheldon Chumir Foundation symposium "Gender, Culture and Religion:  Tackling some Difficult Issues" on October 2, 2010.  Approximately 230 people attended the symposium, including several U of C law students. 

Professor Jassmine Girgis has been appointed as the INSOL International Scholar to represent the Americas for 2010-2011. INSOL International is a world-wide federation of national associations for accountants and lawyers who specialise in turnaround and insolvency. An INSOL International Scholar is responsible for issuing quarterly reports on current legislative and case law developments relevant to international insolvency in chosen jurisdictions in their respective region.  The INSOL Scholars will work on formulating new studies and projects, including long-term studies in conjunction with organisations, such as the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund, and the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law..

Professor Lyndsay Campbell is the co-editor of a book, forthcoming in November 2010, that is now available for purchase from Carolina Academic Press. In Freedom's Conditions in the U.S.-Canadian Borderlands in the Age of Emancipation, American and Canadian legal historians explore the operation of race in the borderlands in the mid-nineteenth century. 

Professor Nigel Bankes was awarded an Honorary Doctoral degree from the University of Akureyri in Iceland on September 9, 2010 in recognition of his outstanding work on Arctic law issues. In awarding the LLD to Professor Bankes, Sigurður Kristinsson, the Dean School of Humanities and Social Sciences at the University of Akureyri, noted: 

"These prestigious awards are made in recognition of extraordinary achievements in the areas of research, teaching, and public policy.  In each of these areas, Professor Bankes has excelled in terms of quantity and quality of results.  This can be readily seen in his publications list, which is both extensive and of impressive quality."  

Professor Bankes' remarks on accepting this honour are available here.

The awarding of the honorary degree opened the three-day Third Akureyri Symposium on Polar Law: Human Rights and Good Governance. Professor Bankes also presented a paper on "The Right to Property and Indigenous Peoples" at the Symposium.  

Professor Jassmine Girgis' article, "Tercon Contractors: The Effect of Exclusion Clauses on the Tendering Process," appears in volume 49 of the Canadian Business Law Journal.

Professor Michael Ilg's article "Complexity, Environment, and Equitable Competition: A Theory of Adaptive Rule Design" appears in the current edition of the Georgetown International Law Journal. 

Professor Alice Woolley has placed chapters in two books to be published by Routledge in the summer of 2010.  She and Jocelyn Stacy co-authored "The Psychology of Good Character: The past, present and future of good character regulation in Canada" which appears in Reid Mortensen et al., eds., Reaffirming Legal Ethics: Taking Stock and New Ideas (publication date June 15, 2010).  Professor Wooley's chapter on "Legal Ethics and Regulatory Legitimacy: Regulating Lawyers for Personal Misconduct" will appear in Francesca Bartlett et al,. eds., Alternative Perspectives on Lawyers and Legal Ethics: Reimagining the Profession (publication date August 23, 2010).

The scholarship of four U of C law professors appears in the Volume 47, No. 4 issue of the Alberta Law Review.  "Courting Confusion? Three Recent Alberta Cases on Equality Rights Post-Kapp," an article by Professors Jonnette Watson Hamilton and Jennifer Koshan, appears at 927 - 955.   A case comment on "What has Dunsmuir Taught?", by Professors Alice Woolley and Shaun Fluker, appears at 1017 - 1035. 

Professor Jennifer Koshan and Professor Jonnette Watson Hamilton have two co-authored publications appearing late this summer: The first is entitled "‘Terrorism or Whatever': The Implications of Alberta v. Hutterian Brethren of Wilson Colony for Women's Equality and Social Justice,"  and it will appear in Sheila McIntyre and Sanda Rodgers, eds. The Supreme Court of Canada and the Achievement of Social Justice: Commitment, Retrenchment or Retreat (2010) Supreme Court Law Review and LexisNexisCanada, 2010 (forthcoming)). The second is "Courting Confusion? Three Recent Alberta Cases on Equality Rights Post-Kapp" (2010) 47:4 Alberta Law Review (forthcoming).

Professor Nickie Vlavianos is publishing an article entitled "Alberta's Approach to Local Governance in Oil and Gas Development" in the Alberta Law Review, vol. 48, issue 1 (Summer 2010). The article looks at how municipalities are treated within the current regulatory framework for oil and gas development in the province. Nickie also published in August 2010 an article on "The Issues and Challenges with Public Participation in Energy and Natural Resources Development in Alberta"  in the Number 108 - 2010 issue of Resources, available online from the Canadian Institute of Resources Law.

Professor Jassmine Girgis is one of the editors of the just released 4th edition of Cases and Materials on Contracts. This highly regarded casebook draws on cases and materials from Canadian, Commonwealth, and American sources to present a comprehensive, well-integrated overview of the subject.  

Professor Arlene Kwasniak is publishing an article titled “Instream Flow and Athabasca Oil Sands Development: Contracting out/waiver of legal water rights to protect instream flow – a legal analysis” in the Alberta Law Review. The Article will be published in Volume 41, Issue 1, Fall 2010. As well, Professor Kwasniak has substantially updated and revised an article/entry by Gordon Kerr in the Canadian Encyclopedia (Historica-Dominion Institute) titled “Wildlife Conservation and Management” which is available online at the following link. >> more