Trinity Western University

On June 27, 2014, the Council of the Law Society of New Brunswick will meet to determine whether Trinity Western University’s (TWU) proposed law school program should be approved for purposes of meeting the academic qualification requirement for admission to the New Brunswick Bar.

TWU has received conditional approval for the law program from the Federation of Law Societies of Canada’s Common Law Degree Approval Committee. The British Columbia government has also approved the TWU application.

The following material on the subject of TWU will be reviewed by Council:

• Letter from President Marie-Claude Bélanger-Richard, Q.C., Federation of Law Societies of Canada dated December 16, 2013
• Canadian Common Law Program Approval Committee Report on Trinity Western University’s proposed School of Law Program (December 2013)
• Special Advisory Committee on Trinity Western’s Proposed School of Law (December 2013)
• Letter from President Bob Kuhn, J.D., Trinity Western University dated January 8, 2014
• Memorandum from Executive Director Marc L. Richard, Q.C., to Council of the Law Society of New Brunswick dated January 28, 2014
• Memorandum from Executive Director Marc L. Richard, Q.C., to Council of the Law Society of New Brunswick dated March 12, 2014
• Written submissions received by the Law Society of New Brunswick (as of April 30, 2014)
• Trinity Western University's written submission to the Law Society of New Brunswick dated May 30, 2014

The agenda for the June 27 meeting will provide Council with an opportunity for a full and open discussion of any issues that approval of a TWU faculty of law presents.

The Council meeting will start at 10 am at the Algonquin Resort in Saint Andrews, New Brunswick (the resort is located at 184 Adolphus Street). The meeting will take place in the New Brunswick room. 

The Law Society received 96 written submissions and 9 requests to address Council at the June 27, 2014, meeting.

TWU will attend and will be given one hour for its presentation. The other individuals and/or organizations will have 10 minutes for their presentations.  Council will have the opportunity to ask questions during the presentations. Each individual and/or organization must present in person.

Following the presentations TWU will be given 30 minutes to respond in the form of a rebuttal.

Below is the meeting schedule of the Law Society of New Brunswick Council on June 27, 2014:

10am-11am:

Trinity Western University

11am-12:30pm:

Wlodzimiers Sokolowski
Kelly VanBuskirk
Professor Karen Pearlston
Lauren Cicin
Nelson Peters
Ted Flett
LA Henry
Ronald MacDonald, Q.C.
Charles Murray

12:30pm-1pm:

Trinity Western University rebuttal

1pm-1:30pm:

Lunch Break

1:30pm:

Council Deliberation

Media may attend the Council meeting.  However, no recording devices (cameras, tape recorders) will be permitted. 

Please click on the link below to view the proposed notice of motion which will be formally presented following the oral presentations. The notice of motion will be distributed to Council members at this point of the meeting, and no earlier, and recorded in the minutes of the meeting. From this point forward, Council will be seized of the specific issue to be decided.

• Proposed Notice of Motion

Once all Council members have had the opportunity to speak to the motion, the President will call for a vote.  The vote will be by a show of hands.