UM Currently | Faculty of Legislation

January 27, 2023 — 

To rejoice the achievements of graduates, the Faculty of Legislation designed the Faculty of Legislation Alumni Awards to be offered annually. Nominees show expectations of inspiring professionalism in 1 of three types such as Excellent Alumni Award, Emerging Leader Award, and the Trailblazer Award.

The Fantastic Alumni Award honours a UM Legislation alum recognized for excellent experienced achievement in their authorized career and who has demonstrated perseverance and dedication to the betterment of the lawful occupation though exhibiting the traits of integrity and professionalism. The Emerging Leader Award honours a UM Law alum who has graduated in the past 10 many years. This alum has shown commitment and commitment to the legal job, and has the traits of integrity, professionalism, and leadership in their time practicing legislation. Lastly, the Trailblazer Award honours a UM Regulation alum who has excelled in a career outside the classic exercise of regulation. This alum is a man or woman of integrity and has demonstrated management and support to the community.

The College of Regulation is pleased to announce the winners of the 2022 Faculty of Legislation Alumni Awards as follows:

Exceptional Alumni Award winner: Sherri Walsh [LLB/1985]

Emerging Leader Award winner: Dayna Steinfeld [JD/2012]

Trailblazer Award Winner: Dr. Jennifer Schulz [LLB/1994]

 

Outstanding Alumni Award – Sherri Walsh [LLB/1985]

A litigator, adjudicator and arbitrator, Sherri Walsh is the Handling Lover of Winnipeg law company Hill Sokalski Walsh. Significantly of her authorized job has been spent serving the community desire and her get the job done has had sizeable impression in the marketing of human legal rights and social justice in Manitoba with repercussions across Canada.

Notably, from 2011 to 2013, she acted as Fee Counsel to the Commission of Inquiry into the Circumstances Surrounding the Demise of Phoenix Sinclair, which was the largest community inquiry at any time held in Manitoba. The resulting report from that Inquiry built sixty-two tips to greater shield kids in Manitoba.

From 2009 to 2019, she served as an adjudicator less than the Human Legal rights Code, serving as Main Adjudicator from 2012 to 2019. In that purpose, she delivered decisions about matters which include employers’ obligations to sustain workplaces that are no cost from discrimination and harassment. These decisions are now followed by employers across Canada.

Just before serving as an adjudicator, she acted for the Human Rights Commission on issues that resulted in beneficial systemic variations to Provincial laws and procedures.

Walsh was an arbitrator on The Manitoba Framework Arrangement – Treaty Land Entitlement, signed in 1997, where by she delivered decisions which settled land disputes that experienced been exceptional for 150 many years.

Regularly acting pro bono as an intervenor for general public interest teams, she has ensured that perspectives of teams this kind of as the Manitoba League of Folks with Disabilities, the HIV AIDS Lawful Network and the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs, ended up set in advance of the Court on issues which include the unilateral imposition of DNR Orders, criminalization of HIV standing, and the in excess of-representation of 1st Nation youngsters in the kid welfare technique.

Walsh has also returned to her roots at Robson Hall training Civil Procedure for nine many years, and sitting on quite a few committees. Outside of authorized apply, she volunteers for community-based businesses which include Harvest Manitoba and at the moment sits on the boards of the College of Winnipeg and the Manito Ahbee Pageant.

All over her vocation, Walsh has obtained quite a few firsts, such as getting the very first girl in Manitoba to act as Fee Counsel to a large public inquiry, initial individual to execute the position of Main Adjudicator under the Human Rights Code, initially Integrity Commissioner for the Metropolis of Winnipeg, and to start with Municipal Codes of Perform Appeals Director for the Province of Manitoba. She serves as a mentor to lots of younger legal professionals, particularly gals in the authorized career and is a single of only a few women in the purpose of Controlling Associate of their organization.

Described by her nominator as “honest, honourable and compassionate,” she willingly shares a number of words and phrases of knowledge right here with current law students:

I am so honoured to be getting this award and to be acknowledged by the qualified faculty that released my job.

 A lawful education is a gift – just one that will affect you for good and will give you a framework via which to navigate the earth, in your particular and specialist life.

 You are relocating into a future which is in numerous strategies unknowable and unsure but the schooling which you are doing the job so tough to obtain will give you the capability to acquire motion and affect outcomes – to pursue and reach just success.

 As you look for the proper occupation path, be correct to yourself and abide by what interests and evokes you.

 Glimpse for mentors. Be a mentor.

 Come across colleagues with whom you share sensibilities and perspectives.

 Think critically.

 Sustain a perception of curiosity and really do not cease studying.

 Have confidence in your instincts.

 Stay hopeful and be brave. Don’t wait when faced with a challenge.

 Factor huge but know that by having even the smallest action you can make a big difference.

 Engage with group and be compassionate in that engagement.

 Ultimately, don’t forget to preserve your feeling of humour.

 Really don’t just take yourself too very seriously and have a very good time!

 I desire you all the greatest in your long run endeavours.

 

Rising Chief Award – Dayna Steinfeld [JD/2012]

Dayna Steinfeld is the Winnipeg Guide Attorney at RavenLaw LLP. Called to the bar in the two Manitoba and Ontario, she is fully commited to advancing the legal rights of operating persons, specializing in union-aspect labour regulation, employee-facet work regulation, long-phrase incapacity advantages, human rights and whistleblower protection.

In her daily follow, Steinfeld signifies staff in all regions of the regulation that touch the place of work, like terminations and wrongful dismissals, human legal rights and the duty to accommodate, deal and severance deal evaluations, qualified discipline, workplace investigations and harassment issues. She will work to progress the legal rights of workers in human rights proceedings, grievance arbitrations, labour board hearings, civil court actions, and judicial evaluation proceedings. She signifies each men and women and unions and has appeared ahead of labour and arbitration boards, administrative tribunals, and all concentrations of court.

Steinfeld has been identified as a Lexpert Mounting Star and a CBC Manitoba 40 Under 40. In 2019, she was awarded the Manitoba Bar Association Professional Bono Award for her get the job done symbolizing a coalition of poverty and mental overall health organizations on substantial constitutional privateness challenges right before the Supreme Court of Canada.

Getting begun her lawful profession as an articling college student at RavenLaw’s Ottawa workplace, she clerked for the Honourable Justice Marshall Rothstein at the Supreme Court of Canada just before returning to Winnipeg to operate at a large firm in administrative, regulatory, labour and work regulation.

Her nominator factors out that Steinfeld demonstrates that dedication and really hard operate can assist folks realize good items though advertising and marketing rules of entry to justice and equality. Her willingness to support other individuals obtain their goals is obvious in the perform she has performed with the Manitoba Bar Association’s Women of all ages Lawyer’s Forum to advance the bring about of equality for lawyers identifying as ladies operating in the lawful profession in Manitoba.

Steinfeld offers the pursuing suggestions to recent regulation college students:

As a regulation pupil, attorney or legal experienced, never think you are the pro for the reason that you are the individual in the area with legal teaching. Be humble and curious. Take every opportunity to learn from, and be guided by, your shoppers and all those with whom you operate and collaborate.

 

Trailblazer Award – Dr. Jennifer Schulz  [LLB/1994]

Dr. Jennifer Schulz is a Professor at the School of Regulation, College of Manitoba and the present Affiliate Dean of the Juris Doctor method.

When nonetheless a law pupil, Schulz had her to start with publication, publishing a chapter in Professors Barney Sneiderman and John Irvine’s public health regulation textual content e-book.  She graduated from Robson Hall in 1994.

Following pursuing graduate research at Cambridge and the College of Toronto, she began her profession as a legislation professor at the University of Windsor, ultimately returning to the College of Manitoba by way of the University of Toronto, Osgoode Hall and Harvard. She has taught at Robson Hall considering the fact that 2004, training and conducting analysis in the locations of Different Dispute Resolution, Mediation and Cultural Authorized Experiments. Dr. Schulz has served as each Associate Dean JD and Affiliate Dean of Analysis and Graduate Experiments.

Dr. Schulz’s training competencies have been identified various occasions: she was named Professor of the Year (2002) at the College of Windsor Fantastic Teacher – 2 times (2015 and 2017) at the University of Manitoba’s Students’ Trainer Recognition Reception and she received the Barney Sneiderman Training Award in 2019 from the University of Manitoba.

For her operate in ADR, she was acknowledged with the Lionel J. McGowan Regional Award of Excellence in Dispute Resolution (2015) by the ADR Institute of Canada. Dr. Schulz routinely offers on the subject of ADR to the Manitoba Bar Association, the Canadian Bar Association, and at educational conferences throughout North America and Europe.

She authored the Schulz Report, an specialist evaluation of Manitoba’s Car Harm Mediation application, and accomplished a a few-year professional evaluation of the University of Hong Kong’s LLM plan in ADR.

To her learners, she provides the regulation alive and has been instrumental in inspiring learners to excel in their very own professions. She serves as an inspiration to female law learners, and is approachable and ready to advocate for the retention of gals in the legal occupation.

Dr. Schulz shares these words upon becoming acknowledged with the Trailblazer Award:

I am definitely honoured to have received this award. It means a whole lot to me for the reason that it is from my alma mater and employer, the U of M, and especially its amazing regulation school, Robson Hall. My fellow professors and our students are what make Robson Hall a wonderful location to be every single working day. I in particular hope our pupils know that not only can they uncover satisfying careers as legal professionals as a result of graduating from Robson Corridor, but they can also obtain a myriad of other exciting and enjoyment occupations – like currently being a legislation prof – due to the fact they graduated from U of M.

 

The inaugural Regulation School Alumni Awards will be introduced at the future Practising Pros Reception to be held in March.

Tale submitted by Faculty of Regulation.