UNB Law

🎊 Congratulations to the Hon. Graydon Nicholas, C.M., O.N.B., LL.D. (LLB ’71), who recently received the Knights of Columbus Caritas Award.

Graydon becomes one of only seven people in history to receive this international honour, which the organization bestows on individuals for what it considers extraordinary acts of charity, service and sacrifice for the good of others.

A significant part of Graydon’s life and work has been dedicated to reconciliation and to bridging the gap between the Catholic Church’s past actions and its relationship with Indigenous peoples. He also played an integral role in the development of the organization’s Native American Solidarity Initiative, which was launched in 2019.

🎉 Congratulations to Professor Jane Thomson on being awarded a 2026 Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) Insight Development Grant!

Prof. Thomson, together with co-applicant Prof. Adam Hofri-Winogradow of Peter A. Allard School of Law, has received $70,016 over two years to support their research project, The Law of Dependants' Relief in Canada: A Mixed-Methods Study.

The project involves finding and analyzing every reported decision concerning dependants’ relief claims in Canada since 2006, the last time the authoritative text on the subject was published.

Dependants’ relief statutes allow a surviving spouse, child, or other family member of a deceased person to sue the decedent’s estate for financial relief if a testator fails to make "adequate provision" for the applicant’s maintenance in her will.

Navigating the law of dependants’ relief in Canada is complex; it is fragmented across 13 distinct provincial and territorial schemes, and different jurisdictions’ courts frequently interpret identical statutory provisions in drastically different ways.

Over the next 20 years, the Canadian population of persons aged 65 or older is expected to grow by 68%, with the subset of seniors aged 75 or older growing even faster. As this impending intergenerational wealth transfer unfolds, this area of the law is going to become increasingly important.

The goal of this project, in part, is to provide a much-needed update about the fragmented landscape of Canadian dependants’ relief obligations and further to identify those areas in need of reform.

Learn more: https://blogs.unb.ca/newsroom/2026/07/research-projects.php

👏 Incredible things are happening at the UNB Legal Clinic !

From Fredericton to communities across New Brunswick, the Clinic is helping make access to justice a reality for more people.

📖 Now, for the first time, you can see that impact all in one place. Check out the UNB Legal Clinic’s inaugural Annual Report and discover the people, stories and important work behind the Clinic’s growing impact across the province.

📖 Don't miss the latest issue of Nexus: http://www.unb.ca/nexus

Honouring and celebrating our alumni:
✅ Marc Mercier receives the Ilsa Greenblatt Shore Award
✅ The Hon. Scott Brittain’s path to the bench
✅ Remembering the Hon. Terri A. MacPherson, K.C.
✅ Kelly VanBuskirk's work with the Sport Law Clinic
.. and much more!

🎉 Congratulations to UNB Law alumni Nick Currie, Jake Bartlett, Marina Luro, Eric Cimic, Caitlin Grogan, and Liam Dunphy, who have all been called to the bar this month and will be joining Stewart McKelvey as their newest associates!

We are so proud to see our graduates reaching this exciting milestone and look forward to watching all they accomplish in the profession. ⚖️

📖 The latest issue of Nexus is here: http://www.unb.ca/nexus

Leadership, advocacy, scholarship, and impact: Our Spring/Summer 2026 issue celebrates the people, stories, and ideas shaping the UNB Law community.

In this issue:
✅ Marc Mercier receives the Ilsa Greenblatt Shore Award
✅ The Hon. Scott Brittain’s path to the bench
✅ Remembering the Hon. Terri A. MacPherson, K.C.
✅ The Sport Law Clinic is reshaping fairness in amateur sport
✅ Students secure clerkships across the country
✅ Hilary Young wins Teaching Excellence Award
✅ A historic performance at the 25th McKelvey Cup
✅ Bruno Gelinas-faucher on pro bono constitutional advocacy
✅ UNB Law students visit Internment Camp B/70
✅ Law and landscape: Geoff Bladon’s dual practice
✅ Four law students chosen as Sir Howard Douglas Scholars

🎉 UNB Law congratulates Professor Kerri Froc on her role in supporting the Coalition pour l'équité salariale du N-B · NB Coalition for Pay Equity’s advocacy for pay transparency legislation, which received Royal Assent on Friday, June 12, 2026.

Supported by a grant from the The Canadian Bar Association / L'Association du Barreau canadien's Law for the Future Fund, Prof. Froc contributed legal and policy research, helped develop model legislation, facilitated a workshop on possible legislative approaches, and met with government officials to discuss draft legislation. We also recognize the contributions of Gabriel Laidlaw-Bale (JD’23), who provided research support to Prof. Froc and assisted with drafting the model law.

“Pay transparency is an important step toward closing gender and other wage gaps by giving workers and job applicants access to information they need to assess whether pay practices are fair and ensuring that workers are not disciplined for discussing pay with colleagues,” says Prof Froc. “For New Brunswickers, the Pay Transparency Act represents meaningful progress toward greater accountability, fairness, and equality in the workplace.”

From the Coalition: https://equite-equity.com/en/royal-assent

GNB press release: https://www.gnb.ca/en/news/n-b.2026.06.government-advances-legislation-focused-accountability-workers-and-economic-growth.html

⚖️ There is still time to register for the Intensive Trial Advocacy Program (ITAP), taking place June 20–26, 2026, at UNB Law. ⚖️

Register now: https://lnkd.in/ge8aUsJn

ITAP is a highly practical, week-long program designed exclusively for practicing lawyers—focused on building core trial techniques for civil, criminal, and administrative matters.

The program employs a “learning by doing” approach through continual participation in simulated trial sessions, coupled with individual and group critique by experienced trial counsel and judges.

Delivered by experienced practitioners, this hands-on program offers immediate, real-world value you can bring back to your practice.

🎓 Watch the Class of 2026 cross the stage!

UNB's 197th Encaenia - Ceremony C Live-stream of Ceremony C of the University of New Brunswick's 197th Encaenia. Degrees granted to graduates from the faculties of Arts, Law, Renaissance Coll...