For the past decade, students at the University of Manitoba’s Faculty of Law have had the opportunity to pursue part of their legal education in French. However, only since the Fall of 2022 have first-year law students been able to take French law courses that would apply toward obtaining the Access to Justice in French Concentration (A2JF Concentration) designation upon graduation. It is an important milestone to recognize our first official cohort of students who have graduated with this concentration. 

Students in the A2JF Concentration must complete at least 26 of the 92 credits required for the JD degree in bilingual courses – that is, approximately 1/3 of their law courses are completed in French. This innovative program addresses the access to justice need of increasing the number of lawyers in Manitoba and Canada who have the linguistic skills to provide legal services in French.

Left to right: Seth Lozinski [JD/24], Alexander Bastin [JD/25], Maia Bacchus [JD/25], Brent Tichon [JD/25], and Bradley Légaré [JD/24]

Dr. Lorna Turnbull, professor and director of the A2JF Concentration commented, “The graduation of this first cohort of students who have completed the Concentration represents the culmination of years of work by colleagues, members of the community and of course the students themselves, built upon the vision first shared by members of our community with our former colleague, now Justice Gerald Heckman, well over a decade ago.”

We had a celebratory lunch on June 5, 2025 at Promenade Brasserie in Saint-Boniface to recognize the new graduates of the A2JF Concentration and former students who will soon be called to the Manitoba Bar. The celebratory lunch also provided an opportunity to thank the members of the Franco-Manitoban legal community who have supported our students and the A2JF Concentration as instructors, guest lecturers, coaches and judges of the Laskin and Bastarache moots.

We wish to thank Justice Canada’s Access to Justice in Both Official Languages Fund for their generous support. We also wish to thank our students, the University of Manitoba, the Faculty of Law, the francophone legal community, l’Association des juristes d’expression française du Manitoba (AJEFM), Infojustice Manitoba, l’Université de Saint-Boniface, the Law Society of Manitoba, and the Manitoba Bar Association for their support of the A2JF Concentration. We wish to recognize Dr. Lorna Turnbull, director of the A2JF Concentration and Justice Gerald Heckman of the Federal Court of Appeal, former co-director of the A2JF Concentration, for their vision and instrumental work in creating this concentration at the Faculty of Law.

Dr. Turnbull noted, “With their vision, and support, as well as the funding provided by Justice Canada and Canadian Heritage, our community will have better access to justice. Our dedicated alumni who have taken courses in French over the years leading up to the formal approval of the Concentration demonstrate what a difference we can make. I look forward to following these students to see where they will make a difference.”

Félicitations et un grand merci à tous pour votre soutien continu! We look forward to the continued expansion of the A2JF Concentration and seeing the impact that our graduates will have in improving access to justice in French.

I was involved in assisting with the administration of the competition, and I heard praise from many people, including judges, coaches, and fellow competitors, about their performances.

The pair of Heather Peterson and Erin Kyriakopoulos, who competed in the English stream, even received the award for “Best Process Management”, which goes to the team that best demonstrates skills in time management, preparation, adaptability, and self-reflection. Erin explained, “I feel privileged to have had Heather Peterson for my partner in the process, whose dynamism and ability to turn a phrase I deeply admire.” 

Heather Peterson and Erin Kyriakopoulos, received the award for “Best Process Management” (English stream) which goes to the team that best demonstrates skills in time management, preparation, adaptability, and self-reflection.

A Bit More About the CNNC

Nine years ago, the University of Manitoba’s Faculty of Law hosted the inaugural national negotiation competition at Robson Hall, which has been run annually since then.  The size of the competition has been growing each year, both in terms of total teams participating and number of law schools represented. 

The 2025 competition was hosted by the University of Windsor Faculty of Law, in collaboration with the Windsor Law Centre for Cities. The competition was generously sponsored by the University of Manitoba’s Desautels Centre for Private Enterprise and the Law.

This year’s competition theme was “Negotiating Housing”, and the competition problem involved negotiations between a municipality and a First Nation over the construction of infrastructure and affordable housing on a greenfield site.  The writing of the problem was a truly collaborative effort, with input from Professors from the University of Manitoba, the University of New Brunswick, the University of Saskatchewan, and the University of Windsor.

This year, the competition involved three rounds of negotiation taking place over two days, with each round building on the last. Issues to be negotiated included the building of infrastructure; the purchase and supply of power from a hydroelectric power plant on the reserve; the construction of affordable housing units; the allocation of the housing between Indigenous and non-Indigenous people; the use/development of various recreational spaces; and most importantly, the reconciliation of the relationship between the municipality and the First Nation. For every round, each team possessed confidential details about client circumstances and settlement preferences.  The first two rounds were bi-party, with the last round involving a more complex four-party negotiation. Heather Peterson had the following observations about the problem: “The fact pattern for this year’s CNNC was very dense and multifaceted with a daunting four-party negotiation for the final round. I was very pleased to see that the theme included extremely important and topical challenges around housing, conservancy, and reconciliation.”

 All of the negotiating took place under the scrutiny of judges, who scored each team’s negotiation skills.  At the end of each session, the judges provided detailed feedback to each team about what they did well, and potential areas for improvement. 

The competition has always had an educational component, and this year was no exception.  There was a pre-competition symposium involving two panels.  The first panel focused on challenges and breakthroughs in how housing problems have been framed, debated and addressed.  The second panel involved an examination of the successes and challenges of housing in Indigenous communities. Yvan Larocque, Clinical Counsel here at the University of Manitoba and well-respected Indigenous business lawyer, was one of the speakers on the second panel, and discussed his experiences advising and representing Indigenous communities with economic development generally, and housing specifically. He was also one of the judges for the French stream of the competition.

Panelists left to right: Professor Dan Brant and Yvan Larocque.

French Stream 

This was the third year that the CNNC ran a parallel French stream, and this year saw the most teams ever participating in that stream. Teams competed in French using a translated version of the same problems as in the English stream.

The University of Manitoba Faculty of Law once again continued its participation in the French stream with skillful negotiators. Maia Bacchus and Tess Poulton, students in the Access to Justice in French Concentration, were excellent representatives of Robson Hall. Students in this Concentration pursue part of their legal studies in French by completing at least 26 credits of bilingual courses, including the French Negotiation course (Négociation juridique).

Andrea Doyle commented,

“I am pleased with how Maia and Tess demonstrated their excellent negotiation skills and strategies as well as their ability to represent clients in French at this year’s CNNC. They worked hard and impressed the judges with their preparation, complementary negotiating styles and insightful questions.

“Preparation for the CNNC was a team effort. Support was provided by our students who participated in the English stream (Erin, Heather, Larissa and Kirsten) and their coaches, Andrew Torbiak and Heather Wadsworth. Chris Dick of Norton Rose Fulbright Canada and Kennedy Pinette of MLT Aikins, both graduates of the University of Manitoba Faculty of Law, provided valuable advice and feedback to Tess and Maia.

“We appreciate the CNNC organizing committee’s work in continuing to expand the French stream providing students an important opportunity to apply their negotiation skills in French. We wish to thank Justice Canada, the Faculty of Law and members of the Franco-Manitoban legal community for supporting the Access to Justice in French Concentration. We also wish to acknowledge and thank the Faculty of Law and the Desautels Centre for Private Enterprise and the Law for their support of our negotiation teams.”

Student Experiences

The student competitors had an opportunity to reflect about their experiences after the competition concluded. All agreed that the competition was an invaluable experience, one they would highly recommend to their fellow law students.

The students emphasized the valuable professional skills acquired from the competition. “This experience has highlighted for me the importance of making space for collaboration and creativity in legal work,” said Erin. “I am confident that the skills I have honed and lessons I have learned through participating in CNNC will serve me in my future legal career.”

Kirsten described her acquisition of skills as follows: “The CNNC was a highlight of law school. Thanks to our fantastic coaches, we were able to further develop our negotiating skills that we will take into practice. The weekend was an exhilarating few days filled with collegiality, collaboration, and friendly competition. I feel truly blessed to have been able to participate!”

Regarding the impact of the competition on her skill-building, Larissa explained, “Collaborating with my partner and coaches to develop strategies for representing our clients’ interests not only enhanced my legal skills but also strengthened my ability to communicate, think critically, and adapt under pressure—skills that will serve me well as a lawyer and in everyday life. Applying these skills in a competitive setting was both challenging and rewarding.”

Heather Peterson found the final round particularly valuable, stating,  “The four-party negotiation was invigorating and infused with so much kindness and goodwill; I think it was excellent practice for the realities of legal practice where multiple interests and communities must figure out a way to equitably share resources.” 

The students also viewed the competition as an opportunity to network with and learn from law students from other schools. Heather Peterson explained, “It was absolutely awe-inspiring to negotiate with exceptionally talented law students from across Canada. The ways in which different teams incorporated environmentalism and aspects of truth and reconciliation were profound, and I was so excited to be a part of it.”

“It was inspiring to engage with law students from across the country. The level of professionalism and talent demonstrated by the other competitors underscored the strength of the next generation of Canadian lawyers.” – Larissa Einarson, 3L

All of the coaches were filled with praise for the students’ performances.  For example, coach Andrew Torbiak said, “The weekend of the CNNC is the culmination of months of practice, preparation and improvement. I couldn’t be more proud of Kirsten, Larissa, Erin and Heather, this year’s English competition representatives from Robson Hall, for the time and effort that they put into this competition.

“When I was a student negotiator, the fact patterns we dealt with typically involved simple, everyday contractual arrangements, or dealt with the aftermath of some outrageous or unrealistic incident between the parties. This year, the team grappled with scenarios involving access to clean drinking water and affordable housing, and building relationships between government and Indigenous peoples, all in the context of Reconciliation.

“Our students approached this subject matter with sensitivity and respect for the interests of their client and represented their school and province admirably. I’d like to thank each of them for being such a pleasure to work with.”

The admiration went both ways, as all of the students mentioned the extreme gratitude they felt for the invaluable mentorship of the coaches. 

“People were always inviting me to alumni events, and I was regretfully having to say, “Actually, I didn’t study law here,”” says Lebois, who holds both a BA (2005) and an LLB (2008) from the University of Ottawa.

Lebois had initially selected the U of O because, he explains, “continuing my education in French was important to me, and very few options were available in Western Canada at the time. I was thrilled when Robson launched the A2J in French program, and saw an opportunity to celebrate that and participate in Robson’s French common law culture by completing my thesis in French.”

While Lebois was contemplating whether or not to do an LLM at the University of Manitoba, the founders of the Access to Justice in French (Common Law) Concentration program, then-Professor Gerald Heckman (now Justice Gerald Heckman of the Federal Court of Appeal), and Professor Lorna Turnbull, reached out for support from the Francophone legal community. The timing was right, and Lebois joined the Faculty’s graduate program in 2021 as an LLM student, inspired by the research of (now-retired) Professor Karen Busby, founder of the Centre for Human Rights Research housed in Robson Hall.

His thesis, written in French under Turnbull’s supervision, was titled, “Les modes substitutifs de résolution des différends en matière de violence à caractère sexuel ou de discrimination chez les institutions postsecondaires au Manitoba.”

Lebois’ thesis drew from a number of experiences including his time working as in-house Counsel at the University of Manitoba, where one of his portfolios was serving as Human Rights Counsel for the Office of Human Rights and Conflict Management. “As I was continuing to learn about the investigatory process and continuing to administer it at the University, I was also talking to counterparts across the country and seeing what was going on at their universities,” recounts Lebois. “I was asking questions about how their systems worked and what was successful within their areas, and how we could improve.”

These mechanisms are provincially legislated but not very standardized, and Lebois argues that they could be improved.

“My generalized observation was that everyone who is involved in the complaint mechanism is somehow diminished by the complaint process,” Lebois says. “So, whether you’re the complainant or the respondent, and regardless of how the outcome ended up flowing, whether the complaint was substantiated or not, whether there was obviously visible discipline of the respondent or not, that didn’t really matter, people were finding themselves lacking something for having participated in it.”   

He wondered if there was a better way to handle complaint mechanisms. Then he discovered the book, Achieving Fairness: A Guide to Campus Sexual Violence Complaints (Thomson Reuters, 2020) by Johanna Birenbaum and now-retired UM Faculty of Law professor Karen Busby, which goes into depth about the complaint mechanisms that exist across Canada at post-secondary institutions. He used this book as a roadmap and focused his research on a complimentary idea—how to better integrate certain types of dispute resolution models into the complaint mechanisms that currently exist.

Lebois’ bold and innovative research focuses on complaint mechanisms for human rights violations as they exist at postsecondary institutions in Manitoba. Based on his careful research and experiences, Lebois’ dynamic thesis proposes a different system than the one that postsecondary institutions currently use. The current model is a concurrent offering of resolution options, where a complainant is offered alternative dispute resolution concurrently to more formal mechanisms of redress. “Offering these concurrently is the wrong choice in my opinion, and that is what I argue in my thesis,” Lebois explains. “I believe that they should be offered as a cascade where the alternative dispute resolution for non-criminal behaviors should always be offered first before a formal complaint mechanism is explored.”

“ADR doesn’t get necessarily a great rap outside of certain types of uses, and certainly, there are some who say alternative dispute resolution is only appropriate in certain circumstances; for example, only when desired or asked for explicitly by a complainant. I’m not necessarily in agreement with that assessment,” Lebois explains. “I think that there are a number of examples wherein groups have participated in alternative dispute resolution even if it wasn’t given as an entirely opt-in option and that’s still benefited a number of the stakeholders. In the criminal sphere you see this a lot already, where you have diversion programs that move someone to sentencing circles or to alternative resolution where they have to take actions that are really specific to the crimes that they have committed, and the accused is expected to take ownership of the actions that they have posed within their community. And that is something that works.”

Lebois admits that there are valid critiques of ADR, and in some cases, it certainly draws out more of the complainant’s time and energy. But, as Lebois says, “There is a lot of opportunity for presenting a space in which the accused can take ownership, can apologize, can learn, and can make concrete steps towards restitution.”

He drew a lot of inspiration from the Dalhousie School of Dentistry case from 2015, where many of the students involved saw great outcomes from ADR rather than more formal mechanisms. “There is much more room for alternative dispute resolution to take centre stage as part of the complaint mechanisms that exist at post-secondary institutions,” is a key takeaway from this research according to Lebois.

When asked who benefits from his thesis, Lebois says, “It’s not really a stretch to say it’s everyone that benefits from this. […]  Universities are an economic driver within Manitoba, representing a lot of important work being done, a lot of important training being done, and a lot of innovation that’s taking place. You want the systems that underpin all of that to work well as well.”

However, the research itself gears more towards the decision-makers of complaint mechanisms, boards of governors and directors, depending on which post-secondary institution, because it is about the ways that the system can be adjusted to better serve everyone.

Lebois is a testimony to the University of Manitoba’s LLM program at the Faculty of Law.  Completing a master’s degree in law, being a Francophone lawyer, and conducting research in the French language are possible, even outside of Canada’s Francophone hubs like Quebec, Ontario and New Brunswick.

Even though his thesis topic is not related to language rights, his decision to write it in French, is “a nod to the language rights that are entrenched in the University of Manitoba Act,” he explains, “and an acknowledgement of the oft-forgotten cultural realities that founded both the province of Manitoba and the University of Manitoba (thanks to its founding colleges, one of them now operating as Université de Saint-Boniface). Just as we seek to show prospective JD students the value of completing the A2J in French program, I also wanted to be an example of that at the graduate level.”

Lebois recommends that lawyers with the capacity to upgrade French/English bilingualism to communicate clearly and concisely should do so, as this opens a lot of opportunities, including a graduate degree. He suggests that more lawyers should consider investing in their French skills because of the benefits to themselves and to the community they serve. “Bilingualism really does have a lot of benefits noted throughout the profession, and so I really wanted to shout that from the rooftops as much as I could to say it’s doable, and it’s worth taking the time and effort to do it,” he says.

The Faculty of Law at the University of Manitoba hosts the Access to Justice in French Concentration program for JD students, and now has graduated its first of hopefully many more LLM students in French.

This year’s moot related to an appeal of a recent decision of the Quebec Superior Court regarding section 23 of the Charter (minority language educational rights). The participating teams came from across Canada – the University of Calgary, the University of Saskatchewan, the University of Manitoba, the University of Ottawa (Common Law Section), McGill University, and l’Université de Moncton.

The University of Manitoba team consisted of Alexander Bastin (2L), Bradley Légaré (3L), Nadine Plourde (2L), Brent Tichon (2L) and researcher Samantha Pearce (2L). The team was coached by Julien Bédard of Justice Canada and Richard Goulet of Manitoba Hydro.

Brent Tichon (2L) was recognized as the 4^th best mooter for his oral arguments during the competition (4e meilleur plaideur). Tichon was very positive about his experience at the Bastarache Moot, commenting: “I had a wonderful time at Bastarache. It was challenging but very rewarding to write a factum in my second language and then orally present it before lawyers and judges. My French has improved dramatically, and I was even lucky enough to win the prize for the 4^th best mooter.”

Coach Julien Bédard who provided significant mentorship and support and travelled to Ottawa with the team observed, “The U of M team’s hard work paid off. Chief Justice Rivoalen was impressed by their factums and by their performance during the final practice, and their performance only got better at the competition in Ottawa, handling difficult legal questions with poise and confidence, all of it in their second language! I’m proud of them. The moot itself was a fantastic experience. There was a lot of camaraderie between the teams.”

The students from the University of Manitoba who participated in the Bastarache Moot are all students in the Faculty of Law’s Access to Justice in French Concentration, where students complete at least 26 credits of bilingual law courses. The University of Manitoba’s Faculty of Law has for the past decade offered students the opportunity to pursue part of their legal education in French. Beginning in the Fall of 2022, the Faculty of Law introduced the Access to Justice in French Concentration thanks to generous support from Justice Canada’s Access to Justice in Both Official Languages Fund.

The students emphasized the wonderful learning experience that they had in preparing and participating in the Bastarache Moot. Nadine Plourde (2L) stated:

“I don’t know that I’ve had a more effective or more rapid improvement in my abilities to communicate in French and specifically in legal French in any other instance while at law school. The Bastarache Moot and our coach, Julien Bédard’s personal feedback and coaching has had a massive impact on my confidence in my abilities and communication skills.”

The Bastarache Moot was hands down the highlight of my experience in law school so far. Having an opportunity to compete in a moot entirely in French massively improved my language skills, and arguing in my second language has boosted my own confidence in both English and French.

 – Alexander Bastin (2L)

Alexander Bastin further commented, “The lessons I have learned as a result of participating in Bastarache have made me a better student, and I am certain that they will contribute to my success as a professional. I encourage any law student — no matter how nervous you are — to try out for Bastarache next year: if you receive even a fraction of the benefits that I did, you will be forever grateful for the experience.”

Samantha Pearce (2L), who provided important contributions as the team’s researcher, stated, “Researching for the Bastarache Moot was a wonderful experience. Even though I wasn’t a mooter, I feel as though my reading comprehension and oral comprehension in French have improved greatly. I’m so proud of my classmates and all of their hard work!”

I’m grateful that I got the opportunity to participate in the Bastarache Moot not only because it was another chance to learn and prove that I can be an effective French advocate, but also because I got the opportunity to represent the Franco-Manitoban community in a mock appeal that touched on a subject that is important to me. For me, the best part of the Bastarache Moot was the opportunity to be immersed in a totally French environment composed of people from communities similar to our own.

 – Bradley Légaré (3L)

Andrea Doyle, who was the faculty advisor for this moot and is the Coordinator of the Access to Justice in French Concentration, emphasized the importance of teamwork to successfully participate in a moot. She noted, “All of the students, whether a mooter or a researcher, worked very well together supporting each other. The team received invaluable support from their coaches, Julien Bédard and Richard Goulet, as well as members of l’Association des juristes d’expression française du Manitoba (AJEFM), including judges and lawyers who volunteered their time to provide helpful feedback to the team during their practices.”

Bradley Légaré (3L) expressed his appreciation to the team’s coaches, commenting, “I would like to thank my coaches for their patience and hard work to help us improve. Without people from the community like them, we wouldn’t have the opportunity to participate in these events and I wouldn’t have been able to keep my connection to the Franco-Manitoban community. Julien et Richard, gros merci pour tout votre travail et votre soutien. Je me sens vraiment chanceux d’avoir été enseigné par vous et j’espère pouvoir avoir le même impact positif sur un futur participant. Vous m’avez tous deux aidé à me sentir confiant dans mon avenir en tant qu’avocat et c’est la meilleure chose que j’aurais pu apprendre.”

In concluding his remarks about the Bastarache Moot, Brent Tichon (2L) stated, “Most of all, it was a wonderful experience to get to work with our amazing Manitoba team and our very supportive mentor, and the chance to meet the students from the other schools. This has been the highlight of my law school education, and I can’t recommend it enough.”

The Manitoba Team consisted of Maia Bacchus, Zeynep Fattah, Kirsten Nynych, Jayden Wlasichuk, and researcher Ashley Slagerman. The team was coached by Tanys Bjornson and Tamara Edkins [JD/2019] (Manitoba Department of Justice).

Spirit of the Laskin award

The Manitoba Team was honoured to be awarded the Spirit of the Laskin award, the recipients for which are selected by the other teams and given to the school that best showcases the spirit of the moot – fair competition, commitment to bilingualism, and professional camaraderie. “UM won this award last year, so we were honoured to bring it home again, and to tie with the Moncton team,” Wlasichuk explained. “The Laskin was such a great learning experience, and one of my favourite times of law school!”

“The Laskin Moot was such an incredible experience,” said Wlasichuck. “There were dozens of students from across Canada all together in Calgary to moot about constitutional and administrative issues relating to Artificial Intelligence – thank goodness we only needed to know the law, not the technology!”

Coach Tanys Bjornson commented, “This year’s judges made numerous comments about the excellent quality of the advocacy. The competition was fierce but Manitoba’s team still managed to once again secure the Spirit of the Laskin award. This means that they were voted by their peers to embody the social spirit of the Laskin and displayed fairness and professional camaraderie throughout the competition even when under the stress of competing. It was a pleasure to watch these young women transform into very capable advocates while still maintaining the collegiality for which Manitoba has become known.”

The Spirit of the Laskin means so much to us, and we are proud that the other teams thought of us when they voted. The Laskin was a wonderful opportunity for us to make connections before we go off to practice law – and it’s a great practical experience that we can carry for the rest of our careers!

– Jayden Wlasichuk (3L)

Members of Team Manitoba commented about their rewarding experience in participating in the Laskin Moot.In particular, second-year student, Kirsten Nynych stated:

“The Laskin moot was the most rewarding experience I have had since starting law school. We learned important skills in our oral practices and received very helpful advice from our coaches and guest judges. The competition itself was a unique opportunity to interact with law students across the country and get advice from some of the country’s most esteemed lawyers and judges. I feel so blessed to have been able to participate and represent Robson Hall in this competition.”

Professor Lorna Turnbull, Director of the Access to Justice in French Concentration, and a guest judge for the final practice of Team Manitoba stated:

“It was really thrilling to sit as a ‘judge’ with the Chief Justice of Manitoba Marianne Rivoalen and Judge Denis Guénette of the Provincial Court of Manitoba in the court room of the Manitoba Court of Appeal for the last practice of the Robson Hall team. All the hard work through the months, and the effort of incorporating feedback from previous practice rounds, paid off in an excellent practice by all four members of the team. Whether in French or English, they all did an excellent job of submitting their arguments and responding to questions, even highly technical ones about what to do with AI’s tendency to hallucinate (yes, it’s a thing, look it up)!”

Andrea Doyle, who is an Instructor and the Coordinator of the Access to Justice in French Concentration expressed her appreciation to the coaches as well as the judges, lawyers and professors who supported Team Manitoba. She stated, “I wish to thank the coaches, Tanys Bjornson and Tamara Edkins for their dedication and hard work as well as the support of members of l’Association des juristes d’expression française du Manitoba (AJEFM), including the judges, lawyers and professors who volunteered their time to provide valuable feedback to the team during their practices.”

Bilingualism

A unique aspect of the Laskin Moot is that it is a bilingual moot where at least one mooter from each team must prepare their written and oral argument in French. Maia Bacchus, a second-year student in the Access to Justice in French Concentration at the University of Manitoba, Faculty of Law fulfilled this important requirement.

The University of Manitoba’s Faculty of Law has for the past decade offered students the opportunity to pursue part of their legal education in French. Beginning in the Fall of 2022, the Faculty of Law introduced the Access to Justice in French Concentration thanks to generous support from Justice Canada’s Access to Justice in Both Official Languages Fund.

Maia Bacchus shared how she rose to the challenge of mooting in her second language:

“The Laskin Moot in particular is geared toward those who are bilingual, and while I was a bit nervous, I am so glad I had the opportunity to participate in French. The process of preparing for the Moot and then having the opportunity to argue in front of real judges and established lawyers really improved my spoken as well as written French.”

Having the opportunity to do this in a second language is unique and I would highly encourage anyone who is thinking of it to just go for it. You’ll improve greatly, have something unique to put on your resume, and you will enjoy the experience immensely! J’ai adoré cette opportunité et je vous encourage à en profiter!

– Maia Bacchus (2L)

Bacchus also commented how being bilingual allowed her to communicate with all of the moot teams, whether they were more comfortable speaking in French or in English. She stated, “At the competition itself I enjoyed getting to know my colleagues from other provinces, and was pleasantly surprised to hear how impressed the judges and my fellow competitors were with my spoken French, which allowed me to be able to communicate with some of my colleagues who were not comfortable communicating in English.”

Maia Bacchus noted her experience participating as the bilingual mooter in the Laskin Moot had been rewarding and that she could “…say with certainty that it was one of the best experiences of law school!”

The pair of Éric Gagnon & Seth Lozinski, who competed in the French stream, even received the “Spirit of Negotiation” award for that stream, which is peer-nominated and goes to the team that best illustrates the values of collaboration, humility, teamwork and respect.  Robson Hall teams have a long history of winning this award. Éric stated, “I was especially honoured to have been chosen by my national peers for the Spirit of the Negotiation prize, alongside my partner Seth Lozinski, for our commitment towards collegiality and collaboration throughout the negotiation process.”

The student competitors had an opportunity to reflect about their experiences after the competition concluded. Ryan Hall indicated that preparing for the CNNC was “an intimidating process”, but that the high quality of the competitors made the competition “fun, and exciting”.  He also highlighted the important social and networking aspects of the competition: “While the CNNC is largely about negotiating, it is just as much about making connections. This was one of the things I found the most valuable about the competition. It puts competitors in place to network with future legal professionals across Canada, something that is not offered anywhere else.” He ultimately described the CNNC as “one of my best experiences from law school.”

The development of collaborative skills were most important to Nicolas Nudler:

“My time at the CNNC was one to remember. The high-level negotiation and advocacy skills of my coaches, peers, and the other competitors during this competition really made this experience one that I can learn from and take with me as I navigate real-life negotiations throughout my law career. If I had to choose one thing that I took away from this competition, it’s that collaboration between the parties during a negotiation makes for the best result for the client.”

Seth Lozinski reflected, “One valuable lesson I learned from the competition was the importance of adapting my negotiation approach based on the other party, which I’m sure will serve me well throughout my career.”

Both Jamie Robertson and Rebecca Penner believed that the competition helped develop  the skills they needed to succeed in legal practice. Jamie stated, “Competing in the CNNC was a very rewarding experience. During the weeks of preparation, we developed valuable negotiation skills from our coaches that we will continue to use in our future legal careers. I am fortunate to have had the opportunity to compete among the best negotiators in Canada.”

Rebecca explained, “Preparing for and competing in CNNC was truly a fantastic experience that vastly improved my confidence in navigating the strategic and artistic elements of negotiation. The case was nuanced, complex and highly relevant to current events and perspectives which made the whole experience very valuable as we head into our careers, and I feel very lucky to have competed alongside such an incredible calibre of students.”

For Éric Gagnon, highlights of the competition were a combination of collaborative opportunities and the location: “It was wonderful to negotiate and collaborate with colleagues from across the country in the heart of a city as vibrant as Montréal.”

The Manitoba teams were expertly coached by three Robson Hall alumni: Andrea Doyle, an Instructor at the University of Manitoba; Andrew Torbiak, who practises Estates and Trusts with Tradition Law; and Heather Wadsworth, who practises family law at Amica Law. The coaches were filled with praise for the students’ performances.  Andrew Torbiak stated,

“Our students had a great showing at this year’s competition, and represented Robson Hall admirably. This was one of the strongest groups of students Robson Hall has ever fielded in the competition. Having coached for the past 8 years of CNNC competition, I can also say that the overall skill of competitors from across Canada has never been higher. I’d like to thank the students for their diligent preparation for the CNNC weekend, and their dedication during the competition itself. We are very proud of their performances.”

According to Heather Wadsworth, “I am immensely proud of Rebecca, Jamie, Nicholas, Ryan, Seth, and Eric for both their hard work and dedication in preparing for the competition and how they conducted themselves at the competition itself. It was a delight to be one of their coaches and being a part of the CNNC is a highlight of my year.”

The admiration went both ways, as all of the students were also filled with praise and appreciation for the efforts of the coaches.   For example, Seth Lozinski stated, “Our coach, Andrea Doyle, was incredibly supportive and provided us with helpful feedback and encouragement throughout the entire experience.”

A Bit More About the CNCC

Eight years ago, the University of Manitoba’s Faculty of Law hosted the inaugural national negotiation competition at Robson Hall, which has been run annually since then.  The size of the competition has been growing each year, both in terms of number of teams participating and number of law schools represented. 

The 2024 competition was hosted by McGill Business Law Platform, McGill Faculty of Law, in collaboration with McGill’s Sustainable Growth Initiative (SGI).

 This year’s competition theme was “Negotiating Sustainability”, and the competition problem involved negotiations over the location of battery plant to a fictious community. The writing of the problem was a truly collaborative effort, with input from Professors from McGill, University of Saskatchewan, University of New Brunswick, and University of Manitoba and a practising lawyer in Montreal.

This year, the competition involved three rounds of negotiation taking place over two days, with each round building on the last. Issues to be negotiated included the precise location of the plant, the proportion of foreign workers employed, affordable housing for the community, and transportation infrastructure.  During each round, each team possessed confidential details about client circumstances and settlement preferences.  The first two rounds were bi-party, with the last round involving a more complex three-party negotiation. All of the negotiating took place under the scrutiny of judges, who scored each team’s negotiation skills.  At the end of each session, the judges provided detailed feedback to each team about what they did well, and potential areas for improvement. Yvan Larocque, Clinical Instructor here at the University of Manitoba, was one of the judges for the French stream, and did an excellent job.  He was also a member of the organizing committee, along with me, and we helped to administer the competition in Montreal.

French Stream

This was the second year that the CNNC implemented a parallel French stream. Teams competed in French, using the same problems (which were translated) as the English stream.

According to coach Andrea Doyle, “Our team of Éric Gagnon and Seth Lozinski negotiated in French and won the Spirit of Negotiation Award for the French stream (le prix d’excellence dans l’esprit de la négociation pour la section française). Seth and Éric were recognized for their collaboration and collegiality as well as their engaging and personable attitudes. They were great ambassadors for Robson Hall.”

Professor Lorna Turnbull, Director of the Access to Justice in French Concentration stated, “The University of Manitoba’s Faculty of Law has for the past decade offered students the opportunity to pursue part of their legal education in French. Beginning in the Fall of 2022, the Faculty of Law introduced the Access to Justice in French Concentration thanks to generous support from Justice Canada’s Access to Justice in Both Official Languages Fund.”

Students in the Access to Justice in French Concentration pursue a portion of their studies in French by completing at least 26 credits of bilingual courses, including the French Negotiation course (Négociation juridique).

Andrea Doyle, who is the Coordinator of the Concentration in Access to Justice in French at U of M Faculty of Law in addition to being the coach of the French team, had the following to say:

“Preparation for the CNNC was a team effort. I wish to acknowledge and thank the support that was provided to our French team by our students participating in English (Jamie, Rebecca, Nico and Ryan) and their coaches, Andrew Torbiak and Heather Wadsworth, as well as articling students Chris Dick, Norton Rose Fulbright Canada and Kennedy Pinette, MLT Aikins LLP. Chris Dick and Kennedy Pinette, recent graduates of the University of Manitoba Faculty of Law, successfully competed in last year’s inaugural French stream of the CNNC and provided valuable feedback and insights in Éric and Seth’s preparations.”

We appreciated all of the work of the organizers in ensuring that a French stream was offered again this year and their commitment to continuing and expanding the French stream of the CNNC in the future.

Both Seth Lozinski and Éric Gagnon are taking the Concentration in Access to Justice in French, and expressed the importance of the French stream to them. Seth Lozinski stated,  “I was … able to enhance my advocacy skills in French, which is a step toward my goal of representing the Franco-Manitoban community in the future.” Éric stated, “As a Franco-Manitoban, I was extremely appreciative of the opportunity to do this in French.”

Events were intended to inform and educate both members of the public and the legal community. All events were free, livestreamed and recorded for public access and education. Other Manitoba events included an online panel hosted by the Law Society of Manitoba on Wednesday, October 25^th titled “Are we there yet? Reflecting on A2J Progress & the Obligation to Advance A2J in Manitoba”, and two Manitoba Bar Association Section online panels: “Racial Equity, Legal Education, and Access to Justice“ (Thursday, October 26th, 2023), and “Access to Justice in Family Law and Navigating a File with a Self-Represented Litigant” (Friday, October 27th, 2023).

Natasha Brown, Director of Access to Justice and Community Outreach at the Faculty of Law said, “Manitoba’s A2J Week demonstrates a commitment of the law school, the Law Society and the MBA to work together, in collaboration with Manitoba’s justice system stakeholders, to discuss meaningful solutions to advance access to justice. Making the law accessible and transparent to the public is of utmost importance to all three organizations.  Between us, we had a total of 750 registrants this year which would not have been possible without the many individuals who devoted their time and expertise to make the week a success.  I look forward to working with all three organizations for A2J Week 2024.”

The Faculty’s event featured Manitoba’s Chief Justice Marianne Rivoalen as the Keynote speaker, along with Judge Denis Guénette of the Provincial Court who moderated a panel that included Dr. Lorna Turnbull and clinical instructor Andrea Doyle of the Faculty of Law, 

Tarik Daoudi, Executive Director of the Association des juristes d’expression française du Manitoba (AJEFM), Ruphine Djuissi, a lawyer at AJEFM, and Jean-René Dominique Kwilu, Executive Director and Lead Counsel at la Clinique Juridique Franco-Justice (CJFJ).

Panelists discussed bilingualism and the important role it plays in legal practice in jurisdictions where French and English versions of laws are equally authoritative. They noted how the demand for French legal services in Manitoba and in Canada has been increasing and shared how each has tried to work towards addressing this demand and what further work needs to be done. The panelists spoke in French and an online interpreter translated the discussion into English to enable a completely accessible session.

Guénette introduced the session, emphasizing the importance of training lawyers in French in order to help French-speaking communities and immigrants from French-speaking countries. He explained that linguistic insecurity is a major barrier to access to justice.

Turnbull shared what the Faculty of Law is doing to fill the gap by training French-speaking law students in the Access to Justice in French Concentration program. Currently, 24 law students are receiving both linguistic and practical legal training in French at Robson Hall. Doyle shared achievements of the program to date, including examples of the many successes the programs’ students had competing in last year’s moot competitions.

Daoudi described the AJEFM’s activities to facilitate access to justice for French-speaking Manitobans. A major step toward this, he noted, is having a bilingual Chief Justice who can be a resource for both lawyers and judges for statutory interpretation in French and English.

Djuissi spoke from personal experience in her legal practice about how the need to understand the law in one’s own language extends to all areas of law including domestic violence, family and criminal law.

Kwilu, who lectures on commercial law at l’Université de Saint-Boniface, in addition to practicing family, criminal and immigration law, shared his experiences representing French-speaking clients in court, describing the nuances and difficulties that arise with both cultural and language differences. For example, he said, family law in Canada is very different for individuals not from countries based in a common law justice system, and needs to be both translated and explained culturally.

Chief Justice Rivoalen shared her experiences practicing for 15 years as a bilingual lawyer and reflected on how the law in Canada says that everyone is supposed to have legal representation in the official language of their choice and how that plays out in reality where often clients go unrepresented because they cannot find a French-speaking lawyer. She also summarized areas of ongoing need such as connectivity to remote areas of Canada, translation of documents and the need for bilingual clerks, staff and judges. She noted that while there’s an obligation for areas of public law to have bilingual services, there is no such obligation in areas of private law. Ultimately, having legal services in French is not a luxury but is essential for people to live their lives.

Audience members attending the Robson Hall event included a number of law students from the Faculty’s Access to Justice in French Concentration, some of whom reacted strongly to hearing support for French language access in the legal system.

Bradley Légaré (3L), and other students hoped the Faculty would hold more similar events. “Improving access to justice in French has been something near and dear to my heart since I started in the A2JF Concentration at Robson Hall, and this is the first time we’ve had a seminar that has focused on this topic in French,” he said. “On a personal level, it was really validating having members of the French legal community explain the importance of pursuing an education which will allow myself to help members of the community. Moreover, I feel like it allowed a light to be shone on the true goals of the A2J in French Concentration, and the important role it has played in the lives of myself and many of the other students who are in [the program].”

“I appreciated the opportunity to hear from lawyers, academics, and jurists who are working hard to improve access to justice in French,” said Dominique Gibson, 3L. “In particular, it was interesting to learn more about various initiatives to improve French legal services in Manitoba, such as InfoJustice. While I left the event feeling optimistic, I also recognize that there is a lot of work to be done to improve access to justice in both official languages in our province. As a future lawyer, I look forward to being part of that work.”

 Access to justice does not demand perfection; rather, it requires open-mindedness, cultural humility, and compassion.

– Avery Alexiuk, 1L

New to the A2JF Concentration this fall, Avery Alexiuk (1L) said, “What I took away from this event is that being a lawyer and an advocate means being a part of something much greater than yourself. As lawyers, we must adapt and evolve to best accommodate the needs of the populations we serve. In order to bridge the gap that exists for diverse and multicultural individuals when accessing legal services, they must have access to legal representation and proceedings in the official language of their choice. Access to justice does not demand perfection; rather, it requires open-mindedness, cultural humility, and compassion.”

Tess Poulton, also in her first year of law shared that, “The opportunity to engage with the legal francophone community of Manitoba is very valuable as a first year law student in the Access to Justice in French program. This panel discussion further inspired me to engage with the French language to the best of my abilities.”

Yomna Eid (1L) shared, “This session provided a great opportunity to hear about the progress that has been made thus far in our community regarding access to justice in French in Manitoba. It was encouraging to hear open and honest interpretations about the challenges that the panelists have encountered. As future legal professionals, it is very valuable to hear about the advantages of offering services in French from current practitioners. These opportunities, along with the A2J concentration in French at Robson Hall allow us to feel empowered to use languages other than English when it best serves the interest of our clients and our communities.”

Adam Gislason (1L) said the panel “emphasized the need for French legal services in all fields of law. With a continually growing Franco-Manitoban community, it becomes increasingly important for law practitioners to facilitate services in both languages such that unilingual French-speaking Manitobans can properly understand the services they require and receive.”

Finally, 3L Eric Gagnon said, “It was wonderful to hear firsthand from deeply respected members of the French-speaking legal community in Manitoba. As a francophone from rural French Manitoba, I deeply appreciate how involved our Faculty of Law has been in organizing initiatives such as L’accès à la justice en français: Un monde à découvrir.”

A member of the public listening to the event online said they were glad they had stayed and listened to the whole Manitoba event, adding, “The information has been great. Makes me want to move to Manitoba, as you seem to havea greater grasp on the importance to litigants.”

The Faculty of Law event was recorded:

Watch the English version here.

Watch the French version here.

The morning began with Justice Heckman having breakfast with students and faculty in the Access to Justice in French (A2JF) Concentration of the JD program. Justice Heckman, together with Dr. Lorna Turnbull, was instrumental in the creation of this Concentration. Students in the A2JF Concentration pursue a portion of their studies in French by completing at least 26 credits of bilingual courses. Currently, 24 law students are enrolled in the Concentration.

Justice Gerald Heckman (mid-back row) visited Robson Hall on October 13 and enjoyed a reunion with Faculty and students in the Access to Justice in French Concentration program that he was instrumental in creating. Photo by Lily Deardorff.

During the breakfast, students enjoyed sharing and catching up with Justice Heckman in French. Justice Heckman also graciously answered questions about his recent experiences as a justice of the Federal Court of Appeal.

After sharing time with students in the A2JF Concentration, Justice Heckman presented a guest lecture in English to all first-year students in Legal Methods regarding the importance of bilingual statutory interpretation. Students were engaged in the lecture and appreciated Justice Heckman sharing his time and expertise with them.

Thank you, Justice Heckman, for your support to Robson Hall. We look forward to continued collaborations. Merci beaucoup Monsieur le juge Heckman!

We started at the Société de la francophonie manitobaine, the voice of the francophone community in Manitoba. They are responsible for several programs, including 233-ALLO, and they advocate for the importance of respecting and promoting minority language rights.

From there, we visited the Université de Saint-Boniface, which has supported the program for many years. They offer our students individual tutoring to help them develop their language skills, as well as language skills assessments and individualized learning plans.

Francofonds offers important scholarships to students in our A2JF program, including the Chartier Award named in honour of the recently retired Chief Justice of Manitoba.

A2JF students visit Francofonds.

Our last stop at Infojustice and the Cour du Banc du Roi was a great opportunity to learn more about the legal services offered in French. Infojustice helps underserved members of Manitoba’s French community with legal information, and in some cases advice and representation, and offers summer employment and term time internship opportunities for Robson Hall students.

Visiting Infojustice, which helps underserved members of Manitoba’s French community.

Of course, no tour of St. Boniface would be complete without a visit to Chocolatier Constance Popp on Provencher Boulevard. Constance herself welcomed the group and enthusiastically posed for a photo.

Law students visit Chocolatier Constance Popp (centre, back) at her Provencher Blvd shop.

All in all, our first walk was a big success, and we look forward to seeing our first-year students achieve their educational goals in the years to come.

“I couldn’t be more proud of our Bastarache team,” said faculty advisor, Dr. Gerald Heckman. “Though French is not their first language, the mooters developed excellent written arguments and delivered compelling oral arguments with passion and conviction in la langue de Molière! As one of the judges who attended their practice sessions said, they achieved “un tour de force”!”

The University of Manitoba team consisted of Seth Lozinski (2L), Marie Boyd (2L), Trusha Dash (2L) and Dominique Gibson (2L). The team was superbly co-coached by Julien Bédard of Justice Canada, and Richard Goulet of Manitoba Hydro.

Dash and Gibson, Manitoba’s appellant pair, mooted in the finals and placed second-best pair overall. Gibson placed as second-best oralist, while Boyd took third-best oralist.

Goulet observed that competition judges and organizers were “very impressed by the preparation and advocacy skills which all members of the U of M team demonstrated.”

“Our team demonstrated that it is possible to excel in French advocacy even though this language was not their first,” said Goulet, adding an enthusiastic “Bravo!”

Both Goulet and Bedard noted how very gratifying it was to work with such a talented and committed group of students whose diligent work paid off with stellar performances and persuasive oral advocacy.

“When I learned the results of the moot, I repeated what I told them at the outset: that I was happy for them, but I was not surprised,” said Bedard.

The Concours Michel-Bastarache focuses on constitutional and statutory language rights. This year, the students mooted about whether the Government of Alberta has a constitutional obligation to adequately fund the Campus Saint-Jean of the University of Alberta because it trains the francophone teachers and staff required to give effect to franco-Albertans’ right under section 23 of the Charter to have their children educated in French and/or because the unwritten constitutional principle of the protection of minorities requires that this important franco-Albertan institution be preserved.

Mooters prepared their facta entirely in French and presented oral arguments entirely in French. This year, five teams and six law faculties participated in the moot (Calgary, Saskatchewan, Alberta, Moncton, Ottawa, Manitoba).

Bastarache moot team in front of Parliament in Ottawa. Left to right: Dominique Gibson, Trusha Dash, Seth Lozinski, Marie Boyd.

Highlights of the Ottawa trip for the team included meeting the Honorable Justice Michelle O’Bonsawin and – for the Manitoba appellant team, mooting in the finals before a panel of Judges that included the Honorable Sébastien Grammond, Constance Hunt and Paul Rouleau (author of the Final Report of the Public Order Emergency Commission).

“The Bastarache was an amazing experience and I got to work with the best partner,” said Dash. “I came out of this with renewed motivation for my commitment to bilingualism and to be a lawyer. I advocated and answered questions from real judges in French, something I never thought I would do. Our coaches and professor are to thank for that as they were engaged, actively involved, and incredibly supportive. I felt well-prepared going into a nerve-wracking experience while mooting in a third language.”

“The Bastarache moot was an excellent opportunity to meet French-speaking students from around Canada, and to participate in a competition regarding important constitutional issues,” said Gibson. “This moot helped me to further develop skills that I know will be helpful throughout my legal career. Thanks to Dr. Heckman, as well as our coaches (Julien Bédard and Richard Goulet) for all their support throughout the process.”

“Competing in the Concours Michel-Bastarache in my second language was one of the most rewarding and fun experiences I’ve had in law school so far,” said Boyd. “Mooting in French is something I never thought that I would be capable of doing but the support and help from my coaches and teammates made it possible. I am so lucky to have gotten to work alongside such an awesome team! Highlights for me were meeting other teams from across Canada, touring around Ottawa with my teammates and coach, Richard Goulet and meeting Justice O’Bonsawin!”

The team and coaches are deeply thankful for the support of the Association des juristes d’expression française for helping them organize practice sessions, and for the many faculty members, practitioners and judges who acted as judges at the practice sessions.