Faculty Colloquium: Panel Discussion on Clinical and Experiential Learning

Critical Reflections on Clinical and Experiential Learning at Allard Hall

The focus of the session will be for faculty and supervising lawyers to discuss how clinical program at Allard Law involve critical issues beyond individual file work, including addressing systemic injustices and meeting the challenges of educating students on substantive law, ethics and policy analysis in a clinical setting.  There is not a paper for the session, but attendees can get a brief overview of the growth of our clinical programming over the past five years by viewing the document here.

Panelists:

Patricia M. Barkaskas is Métis from Alberta. Her research focuses on the intersection of justice and law, including access to justice, clinical legal education, and decolonizing and Indigenizing law. She is particularly interested in examining the value of Indigenous pedagogies in experiential learning, clinical legal education, and skills-based legal training, and disrupting the normative violence of colonial legal education.
Professor Barkaskas is the Academic Director of the Indigenous Community Legal Clinic, which is located in the Downtown Eastside community of Vancouver on the traditional, ancestral, and unceded territories of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish), and sə̓lílwətaʔɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations.
Before attending law school, Professor Barkaskas earned a M.A. in History, with a focus on Indigenous histories in North America, and worked for Residential school survivors as an historical legal researcher for the Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement. As part of her J.D., she completed a Law and Social Justice Specialization. After receiving her law degree from UBC, she practiced in the areas of child protection (as parent’s counsel), criminal, family, civil litigation, and prison law. She has written Gladue reports for all levels of court in BC.

Nicole Barret, Associate Professor of Teaching and Director of the International Justice and Human Rights Clinic

Nicole Barrett is Director of the International Justice and Human Rights (IJHR) Clinic at Allard Law, where she teaches international human rights, international criminal law, and international humanitarian law. Professor Barrett and the IJHR Clinic work with international courts and tribunals, a wide range of international and domestic non-governmental organizations, and provide human rights law and policy advice to governments. Her research interests include human rights, international criminal law, corruption, and human trafficking, on which she has widely published, presented and testified.

Chris Heslinga, Supervising Lawyer at the Indigenous Community Legal Clinic, LSLAP Credit Program and LSLAP Non-Credit Program

Vandana Sood, Supervising Lawyer at the Rise Women’s Legal Centre

Vandana has focused her legal career on working to achieve gender equality and empowerment for women. Prior to

joining Rise Women’s Legal Centre, Vandana was a sole practitioner and practised primarily in the areas of family law, child protection law (as parent’s counsel) and immigration &refugee law, with a focus on assisting women who had experienced family violence. Vandana also worked previously at an aboriginal law firm, articled in criminal law with Glen Orris. Q.C., and worked as a Mental Health Advocate for CLAS during law school. Vandana has a J.D. from the University of British Columbia, and an M.Sc. from the University of Calgary. Vandana is a strong believer in the power of community and is excited about the potential of Rise to help unite communities working to achieve gender equality. In her spare time, Vandana can be found spending time with dear friends and family, trying to start her own food revolution in her backyard, doing yoga, or escaping to the Sunshine Coast.

Moderator: Nikos Harris

Nikos Harris is an award-winning professor who also has extensive experience as appellate counsel. He has authored numerous articles on issues in criminal law and evidence, and his writing has been cited in a number of trial and appellate judgments. Nikos has served as a guest speaker for a number of organizations including Continuing Legal Education, the Trial Lawyers Association, and Crown Counsel of British Columbia. He is also is an advocacy advisor for the Supreme Court Advocacy Institute which assists counsel in preparing submissions for the Supreme Court of Canada. Nikos served as a judicial clerk at the British Columbia Court of Appeal and was a Raymond Herbert Award recipient.