July 4, 2016

The Faculty of Law is pleased to welcome three new faculty members to the law school

UCalgary Law welcomes Lisa Silver, Rudiger Tscherning and Mitch Kowalski as newest members of the faculty.

UCalgary Law welcomes Lisa Silver, Rudiger Tscherning and Mitch Kowalski as newest members of the faculty.

Rudiger Tscherning, a former research fellow at the Canadian Institute of Resources Law (CIRL), joins the law school from the University of Heidelberg, where he is a PhD candidate at the Institute for Comparative Law, Conflict of Laws and International Business Law. His doctoral research examines dispute resolution mechanisms in international energy infrastructure projects. Prior to pursuing his PhD, Rudiger was the founding executive director of the Center for Energy and Sustainability Law at Qatar University College of Law, where he also taught energy and sustainability law. Before joining academia, he practiced as a solicitor in London, England, where his litigation practice focused on the environmental and planning law aspects of energy and infrastructure project deliver.

Rudiger will teach Law 403: Legislation, Law 509: Business Associations, and Law 613: Conflict of Laws.

Since earning her LLM from UCalgary Law in 2001, Lisa Silver has been self-employed at Silver Lawyers, specializing in legal research and writing. She has been a sessional instructor at UCalgary Law since 2014, as well as at Mount Royal University since 2010. As a practicing lawyer, Lisa has been involved, primarily as the principal lawyer, in more than 200 appeals before all levels of court in Ontario. She has also been involved in Supreme Court of Canada cases, notably as co-counsel on the Lavogiannis case relating to the constitutionality of witnesses testifying behind a screen. Since moving to Calgary, as a research lawyer, she has written numerous facta and opinion briefs for matters before all levels of the Alberta courts, including SCC leave applications.

Lisa will teach Law 403: Legislation, Law 410: Crime, Law 507: Evidence, and Law 602: Advocacy.

Legal services innovator and adviser Mitch Kowalski will return to the law school for the third year, taking on the role of Gowlings WLG Visiting Professor in Legal Innovation. Created through a generous gift of $125,000 from Gowlings WLG, the visiting professorship will bring a leading scholar, thinker or practitioner to the law school to share insight on the future of the legal profession and the innovative delivery of legal services. In addition to his role at the law school, Mitch provides advice to in-house lawyers seeking affordable, effective legal services, and to law firms seeking competitive advantage. He has an ICD.D designation in corporate governance, and in 2012 was named a Fastcase 50 Global Leader Innovator.

Mitch will teach Law 599: Legal Practice - Innovation.