Nola Ries, LL.M Graduate

“After several years of practicing law with the British Columbia Ministry of Attorney General, I started to explore options for undertaking graduate studies in law. With a longstanding interest in health law and policy and experience in constitutional, administrative and human rights litigation, I wanted to focus my thesis research on Charter litigation concerning access to health care in Canada. The University of Alberta Faculty of Law offered many advantages that made it an ideal choice for me. First, the Health Law Institute at the University of Alberta is highly regarded across Canada and internationally for its high-calibre, interdisciplinary research in numerous areas of health law and policy. Second, the Faculty has strengths in constitutional law, as well as a graduate curriculum that provides strong training in the practice of legal scholarship. Third, the University of Alberta offers exceptional library and research resources.

While these factors motivated my interest in the U of A Faculty of Law, two irresistible opportunities solidified my decision to choose this school over others. Generous scholarship funding was offered to me through the Alberta Law Foundation and an innovative Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) health law graduate training program. Even more importantly, I was also offered the opportunity to work under the supervision of Professor Timothy Caulfield, an internationally distinguished scholar who hold a Canada Research Chair in Health Law and Policy.

Several years later, I am thrilled to report that my decision to complete my graduate legal education at the University of Alberta under Professor Caulfield’s supervision has benefited me in more ways than I could ever have anticipated. The experience of working with Professor Caulfield and other faculty and staff members with the Health Law Institute and the Faculty of Law has opened doors that have allowed me to pursue a highly rewarding career.”

Timothy Caulfield, Graduate Supervisor

“I’ve been very lucky; I’ve had incredible graduate students, like Nola, who have become nationally and internationally regarded in their fields. In fact, numerous former graduate students have gone to have extraordinary careers, and I feel grateful to have the opportunity to collaborate with them now.

Many of my graduate students are able to be a part of the Health Law Institute research projects. This is a unique opportunity that allows them to be a part of large interdisciplinary team, which they may not have been able to experience otherwise.

There are a wide variety of topics that students can study under the umbrella of health law and my own research interests lay mainly in Health Law and Policy, Biotechnology and Science Policy and Bioethics. At the Health Law Institute the topics that I supervise have largely been in the health law field, but the definition of health law is expanding all the time and now includes biotechnology issues, in addition to the more traditional health law issues like malpractice and consent. The work we has also included an analysis of the issues associated with genetically modified food, patent law and public health.

Being a graduate supervisor is definitely a mutually beneficial relationship because I am able to feed off of my students’ enthusiasm and it is also an excuse to learn more about whatever area they are studying!”

 

Nola Ries obtained her LLM degree in 2003.

Tim Caulfield is a Canada Research Chair in Health Law and Policy; Professor, Faculty of Law & School of Public Health; and Research Director, Health Law Institute.