51吃瓜

The Law Centre Program is a full term course worth 7.5 units. The Program is offered three times per year, during the Fall, Spring and Summer Terms. The Program is open to 14 students each term. To foster a cooperative spirit, the Program is a pass-fail course. There are no pass pluses or fail minuses.

While enrolled in the Program students will develop skills, including: interviewing, counselling, negotiation, drafting and oral advocacy skills. Students will use the latter when appearing before the Provincial Court (in the Criminal, Family and Small Claims Divisions) and administrative tribunals (such Employment and Assistance Tribunals, EI Board of Referees, CPP Tribunals, and Residential Tenancy Arbitrators).

Students can also expect to became familiar with criminal law and procedure, civil procedure as it relates to Small Claims, Family and Divorce matters, evidence, family law, corrections law, consumer law and social welfare legislation including Employment Insurance, CPP, Employment and Assistance (welfare), landlord and tenant and human rights law.

The term begins with a four week intensive Orientation Period. The Orientation is conducted in the Moot Courtroom of the UVic Faculty of Law. Some students have described the Orientation Period as "boot camp." But former students will tell you they never learned so much in so little time. During the Orientation Period class will meet daily from 9:00 a.m. to at least 5:00 p.m. At this time students will be introduced students to the skills and law they will need to effectively represent Law Centre clients. Classes will include lectures, demonstrations, role plays, and critiques of role plays. Students will also meet representatives from numerous government and private agencies that provide help to Law Centre clients including: the Crown, the police, the probation office, the Native Courtworkes, the Ombudsman's Office, the Family Jusice Counsellors, Transition House, the Family Violence Project, and the Separation and Divorce Resource Centre. Click here to see a sample orientation schedule. Students should expect to set aside a portion of each evening to devote to the prescribed readings and preparation for the next days class.

At the end of the Orientation Period students are required to complete a take home exam. The exam usually takes about 12 hours to complete.

After the exam the class moves to the Law Centre. The Law Centre is located in the 51吃瓜 Courthouse at 850 Burdett Avenue. 

The first two weeks at the Law Centre are heavily structured. The Clinical Staff will meet with each student to thoroughly discuss each file each student has inherited. Students can expect to start with approximately 35 files. During the first two weeks students will begin preparing for court and administrative tribunal hearings. They will participate in many hours of training in order to be able to assist on "Rota," i.e., initial interviewing of prospective clients . Students will participate in seminars with the police, crown counsel, duty counsel, trial coordinators, diversion administrators and other players in the criminal justice system. A highlight of the first two weeks at the Law Centre is the "Breathalyser Party." Students will be introduced to research in the operation of the Data Master and the "Approved Screening Device" by a forensic scientist reknown for his work in the field of impaired driving. This knowledge will assist students in defending clients charged with drunk driving offences. During the Breathalyser Party students will have an opportunity to imbibe and have a sample of their breath analyzed. Then party on...

During the remainder of the term students will work on client files, represent clients in court and before administrative tribunals, and assist on Rota. Students will attend William Head Institution (a minimum security prison) and Wilkinson Road Jail (a maximum security prison) to assist inmates with their legal problems. Students will also attend Mt. St. Mary's Hospital (an extended care facility) to deal with the legal concerns of persons residing in this institution.

During the term students will be closely supervised in their work by the Clinical Director, Glenn Gallins, The Assistant Clinical Director, Steve Perks, and the Clinical Instructor, Tybring Hemphill. All files being conducted by students will be reviewed during three formal file reviews. In addition all trials and other significant court appearances will be attended and supervised by one of the Clinical Staff. The Clinical staff maintain a complete "open door" policy and students can get advice and assistance at any time with regard to files they are conducting.

During the term students will also participate in a series of seminars dealing the file management, stress management, time management, and various administrative law issues. Each term a member of the local Provincial Court Bench meets with students to discuss concerns of the Bench, talk about effective advocacy and respond to student questions.

Every Friday afternoon students attend a planning and case commentary meeting. During this meeting we ensure that all cases coming up in the next several weeks have co-counsel appointed and a Clinical supervisor assigned to attend court with the student responsible for conducting the case. In addition students discuss the legal, ethical, policy and procedural issues which arose in the cases they dealt with during the week. While structured, the Friday afternoon meeting is conducted in an informal, "happy hour" atmosphere.

At the end of the term students are required to prepare and orally deliver a research paper.

Professor Glenn Gallins, , B.A. (Wisconsin) 1967, M.S. (Wisconsin) 1968, LL.B. (British Columbia) 1972, LL.M. (London) 1983, was called to the Bar of British Columbia in 1974. Professor Gallins is Director of the Law Centre Clinical Law Program. He was a member of the Faculty from 1980 to 1984, and rejoined the Faculty in 1992. In 2007 he was the winner of the 51吃瓜 Alumni Award for Excellence in Teaching. He has received the Law Faculty's Master Teacher Award several times and has also been awarded the Law Faculty's Service Award. He has also been the recipient of the 51吃瓜 Community Leadership Award which acknowledged his exemplary leadership in linking the 51吃瓜 and the community for the greater public benefit, and the 51吃瓜 Bar Association's Pamela Murray Award which recognized his high professional standards and substantial contributions to the well being of the local bar. In 2013 Professor Gallins was awarded the  for his distinguished contributions to the legal profession and residents of British Columbia. The Goyer award is the highest honour that that can be bestowed by the BCCBA.

Professor Gallins' teaching and research interests focus on clinical legal education, lawyering skills, and the application of social science research techniques to develop strategies and techniques to improve the delivery of legal services.

In the past Professor Gallins has served as a municipal solicitor, Director of Legal Information Services for the Ministry of the Attorney-General, and as Executive Director of the Law Centre.

Professor Gallins has been very active in community affairs, and has sat on the boards of numerous volunteer agencies. He is a Past Commander of the Canadian Power and Sail Squadrons and former member of the Capital Health Board and Beacon Community Association Board. Professor Gallins is married. He has four children, all of whom have pursued careers as physicians.

As Clinical Director, Professor Gallins is responsible for the educational content of the Clinical Program. He personally conducts most of the classes held during the Orientation Period. He is also responsible for all aspects of the administration of the Clinical Program.

Steve Perks, B.A. (UVic ) 1981, LL.B. (UVic) 1987, is the Assistant Clinical Director, and one of the lawyers in the clinic to whom students may look for assistance in the conduct of their files.  With The Law Centre since 1994, Steve is an experienced clinical law instructor.   His areas of practice include human rights, administrative law, civil litigation, criminal, and family law.  In addition to his work at The Law Centre he has taught the Administrative Law, Civil Procedure, and Social Welfare Law courses within the faculty.  He also co-coaches UVic Law’s mooting teams entered in the Canadian Client Consultation Competition.

Prior to joining The Law Centre, Steve was in private practice in 51吃瓜 in the above mentioned areas of practice.  He also served as Crown Counsel in Courtenay, B.C. for a two year period.  Prior to law, Steve was a graduate of the Environmental Studies Program at UVic, and went on to become a Planning Co-ordinator with the B.C. Ministry of Forests.  Steve was a seasonal park interpreter in Banff and Jasper National Parks.  He was also a tennis teaching professional.  In his fields of interest, Steve has tended to gravitate to teaching roles.

Throughout his career Steve has maintained a level of voluntary community involvement, that has included: 51吃瓜 Bar Association (board member), Association for Canadian Clinical Legal Education (board member), UVic Educational Equity Advisory Committee (Professional Employees Association representative), Together Against Poverty Society (board member), 51吃瓜 Confederation of Parent Advisory Councils (board member), Bays United Youth Soccer Association (board member), Oak Bay Tennis Club (president), and South Island Tennis Association (president).

Tybring Hemphill is a Clinical Instructor in the Law Centre Student Clinic Program. He obtained his BSc in Psychology and Linguistics from the University of Toronto in 1987. After a few years of real work he again sought refuge and solace in learning, choosing to attend the Law School at UVIC. He graduated in 1992 and was called to the Bar of B.C. the subsequent year. He has practiced, and continues to practice when not working at the Clinic, at the firm of McKimm & Lott in Sidney primarily in the area of Criminal Defence. Tybring joined the faculty in July 2000. He assists students with the preparation of trials, hearings and other matters, regularly attends Court with the students and is happily almost always able to give positive feedback.

Judy Jones is the Program Administrator for the Law Centre Clinical Program. She provides administrative and computer training for students and secretarial support to the Director, Assistant Director and Clinical Instructor.   Judy has worked in an administrative and secretarial capacity for her entire working career.  Her previous experience with the public and most recently, Legal Services Society, enables her to provide knowledgeable and professional assistance to fellow staff members and clients.

Susan Noakes is the staff social worker with the Law Centre. She graduated from the 51吃瓜 in 1985 with her BA (Hons.) in Sociology and later returned to UVIC to complete her BSW (1990) and MSW (2002). She has been a registered social worker with the Board of Registration of Social Workers in BC since 2004. Susan has had many roles with the Law Centre: social work student (1990); board member, paralegal and now staff social worker. Her thesis Answering the call: the processes of developing the social work identity examined the development of the social work identity - an idea that was inspired from first working at The Law Centre.

Her professional background includes 3 years as a child protection worker in the British Columbia Interior, 4 years as a legal advocate with the Together Against Poverty Society and 8 years with Community Living Services/Community Living BC as a guardianship social worker. Her community work involves 14 years as an active board member of the Together Against Poverty Society. Her role is to provide social work services to clients through The Law Centre as well as to educate law students about working in an interdisciplinary setting.

COURSE NAME: Law 350A The Law Centre Clinical Law Program

PRE-REQUISITES AND RECOMMENDED COURSES:

Pre-requisites: Evidence

UNIT VALUE: 7.5 units

HOURS PER WEEK:

Students are required to attend this program "full-time"; minimum attendance being 9:00 am to 5:00 pm, Monday through Friday. Additional time will be required for trial preparation, the conduct of files, seminars, and public education programs.

TERM OFFERED:

Fall, Spring, Summer

PRINCIPAL INSTRUCTOR:

Glenn Gallins

COURSE OBJECTIVES AND SUBJECT MATTER TO BE COVERED:

Course Objectives

The primary objective of The Law Centre clinical program is to further the educational goals of the faculty by providing the opportunity for students to learn by conducting files on behalf of clients, under close supervision in a model law office setting.

Participation in the program will give the student the opportunity for students reflection and critical examination of:

1. The role of a lawyer

2. The conflict between a lawyer's professional identity and personal morality;

3. The values implicit in the current substantive law;

4. The relationship between law and justice;

5. The role and utility of the Courts;

6. The impact of the law on creating and resolving clients problems; and

7. The need for law reform.

The experience will give the student the opportunity to develop practical and applied skills and a solid grounding in many substantive areas of law. Under the rubric of lawyering skills the following subjects are now being formally taught at The Law Centre;

1. Interviewing

2. Counselling

3. Fact Investigation

4. Negotiation

5. Drafting - including:

(a) Correspondence;

(b) Opinions;

(c) Court documents;

(d) Agreements; and

(e) Wills

6. Advocacy in Criminal Court - including:

(a) An overview of the preparation for criminal trials;

(b) Dealing with clients in custody

(c) First Appearances;

(d) Examination-in-chief

(e) Cross-examination;

(f) Voir dires;

(g) Objecting to evidence;

(h) Submissions;

(i) Speaking to sentence; and

(j) Defending persons charged with drinking-driving offences.

7. Family Law - including:

(a) Initial interviewing of clients with family problems

(b) Problem identification and referral to appropriate resources

(c) Counselling;

(d) Adoptions including preparation of pleadings, Affidavits, appearing in Chambers and drawing Orders; and

(e) Divorces through The Law Centre Assisted Divorce Program including drafting a Writ of Summons and Statement of Claim, Affidavit of Service and documents to obtain an Order.

8. Advocacy in Small Claims Court including:

(a) An overview of Small Claims procedures;

(b) Drafting pleadings;

(c) Preparing for and making Small Claims Chambers applications;

(d) Preparing for and appearing at Settlement Conferences;

(e) Examination-in-chief;

(f) Cross-examination;

(g) Submissions after trial;

(h) Preparation of Orders;

(i) Collection procedures; and

(j) Preparation of Small Claims appeals.

9. Chambers Practice

10. Advocacy before various administrative appeal bodies - including:

(a) Residential Tenancy Arbitrators;

(b) BC Benefits (Welfare) Tribunals;

(c) E.I., Board of Referees and Umpires;

(d) Workers' Compensation Review Boards;

(e) Criminal Injuries Compensation Review Boards

(f) Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunals; and

(g) Mental Health Review Panels

11. Procedures for the Resolution of Ethical Dilemmas

12: The use of referral agencies

13. An Interdisciplinary Approach to the Resolution of Legal Problems

N.B. Every student may not have the opportunity to directly participate in each of the above areas. However, the program offers a broad exposure to a variety of legal problems. The opportunity to be involved varies according to the problems presented by clients and the limitations imposed by the Rules of The Law Society and the Regulations of the Legal Services Society.

The following subjects are dealt with at The Law Centre under the rubric of Law Office Management and Procedure:

1. Liability of Lawyers.

2. Time Management.

3. Practice Management

4. The use of office equipment.

5. The application of computers to the practice of law.

6. Stress management

7. Self-evaluation.

In addition, an ability to speak in public is fostered through the requirement that students deliver or participate in a number of public legal education programs.

In order to meet the objectives of the course, students are required to perform certain tasks which are listed on the "List of Required Experiences" which is distributed to students at the beginning of the term.

METHODOLOGY

The term begins with a three week orientation period during which students are expected to gain a knowledge of the lawyering skills which will be used during the rest of the term.

The manner of instruction during the orientation generally follows the following plan:

1. Students are provided with relevant mat