Dean Mayo Moran was among the leaders of 10 premier law schools from five continents that marked the opening of the new Center for Transnational Legal Studies -- a first-of-its kind, collaborative effort to offer transnational legal education in a truly global setting.
The inspiring formal ceremony was webcast live on October 28 in London and attended by the representatives of all participating institutions, including Dean Moran from the University of Toronto's Faculty of Law; Georgetown University's President John J. DeGioia and its Law Center Dean T. Alexander Aleinikoff; Professor Pascal Pichonnaz of the University of Fribourg, Switzerland; Dean Yoav Dotan of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem; Dean Timothy Macklem of King's College; Dean Tan Cheng-Han of the University of Singapore; Professor Calixto Salomao Filho of the University of Sao Paulo and Professor Gianmaria Ajani of the University of Torino and Professor James C. Hathaway, Dean of the University of Melbourne .
"We are extremely proud to be a part of this unique international collaboration between some of the world's leading law schools," says Dean Moran. "Our students are making a unique contribution to the conversation, and will no doubt be able to utilize this experience throughout their studies and in their careers. I am confident our faculty will also return to Toronto energized with a host of new ideas and inspiration," she adds.
Part of the opening ceremony included a visit by the CTLS's administrators, faculty and staff to London's 18th-century Spencer House, to hear remarks by the Right Honourable Baroness Brenda Hale of Richmond, a justice on the United Kingdom's highest court.
She congratulated each of the partner universities on the initiative recognizing the tremendous achievement in bringing together universities from all over the globe. She said she certainly would have appreciated a similar opportunity to study transnational legal issues when she was a law student.
"Transnational questions," she said "now have a much more direct impact on people's lives." Hale cited examples involving multiculturalism and international human rights.
On the second day of the festivities, the Faculty of Law's Professor Kerry Rittich was joined by Georgetown Dean Aleinikoff , Professor Andrea Biondi (King's College); Professor Franz Werro (Georgetown and Fribourg University) and Professor Muthucumuraswamy Sornarajah (National University of Singapore) for a panel discussion on faculty perspectives on the Center.
Located in the heart of London's legal quarter, CTLS offers its current group of 56 students, nine of which are from U of T, the unique opportunity to discuss law and perspectives across national boundaries. The two-day inaugural celebration also included discussions designed to lend perspectives on the Center and the newly emerging "global lawyer."
