USask College of Law announces five appointments

Professor Lola Ayotunde has been appointed to a tenure-track position in the College of Law, commencing July 1, 2023. 

Dr. Lola Ayotunde (Ph.D.) joined the College of Law as an Assistant Professor in 2022. Before that, she practiced law and taught Wills Law as a sessional lecturer at the College. She has a Ph.D. in Law, and her research focuses on human rights law, natural resources development, international environmental law, public international law, and Indigenous peoples’ rights. Her research has explored issues such as transnational Indigenous advocacy and procedural environmental rights, frameworks for multi-stakeholder participation in oil and gas management and protecting host communities’ rights in natural resource extraction. Her works have been published in the Journal of Sustainable Development Law and Policy and the Research Handbook on the International Law of Indigenous Rights.

Dr. Ayotunde is a member of the Law Society of Saskatchewan and barrister and solicitor of the Supreme Court of Nigeria. Before joining the faculty, she worked in different capacities with the Saskatchewan Human Rights Commission as a lawyer, privacy officer and systemic advocacy investigator. She also worked as an in-house solicitor and labour relations advisor with private organizations.

Professor Josh Favel has been appointed to a faculty position in the College of Law, for a one year term, commencing July 1, 2023.

Professor Favel is Plains Cree and a member of Poundmaker Cree Nation. Before joining the College of Law, Professor Favel completed his Master of Law degree at the University of Cambridge as a Paul Martin Sr. scholar recipient.

Professor Favel earned his Juris Doctor at the University of Toronto, Faculty of Law, where he also completed a Certificate in Aboriginal Legal Studies. While at the University of Toronto, Professor Favel received the Dean’s Key award, was a June Callwood Fellow, and served as the Co-Editor-In-Chief of the Indigenous Law Journal.

Professor Favel formerly practiced corporate and Aboriginal law in Toronto with two leading national firms. Professor Favel is a member of the Law Society of Ontario and serves on the Law Society of Ontario’s Indigenous Advisory Group.

Professor Favel’s research and teaching interests are in the areas of private law and Aboriginal law. 

Professor Glen Gardner has been appointed as the Law Foundation of Saskatchewan, H. Robert Arscott Chair for a one year term, September 1, 2023 to August 31, 2024.

As an alumnus of the University of Saskatchewan College of Law and most recently Deputy Minister of Justice and Deputy Attorney General, Glen Gardner’s career has touched upon and grown many areas of the justice system.  In his private law practice, Glen was an early adopter of mediation and other forms of dispute resolution, as counsel representing clients.

Glen moved to government to better pursue this work and elevate the practice and awareness of mediation through his leadership at the Dispute Resolution Office, where he became known for his skill and expertise in resolving conflicts related to civil litigation and family matters, workplace interventions, labour negotiations, and public consultations.  Glen moved from his role of Director of the Dispute Resolution Office to become Saskatchewan’s first Assistant Deputy Minister of Justice Innovation.

Glen’s work throughout his varied career has focused on finding new ways to provide better service in the justice system and building capacity to support those improvements. This focus is anchored in the belief that accessible, affordable, understandable justice services are the key to building stronger communities.

Glen has graciously shared his passion for dispute resolution and collaborative law as a teacher, sessional lecturer and mentor.  He’s been most rewarded by opportunities to recruit top talent to “the cause” and see others excel in these areas.

Professor Virginia Torrie has been appointed to the Estey Chair in Business Law for a one year term, commencing August 1, 2023.

Virginia Torrie (she/her) is the Editor-in-Chief of the Banking & Finance Law Review and an Affiliated Researcher with the Desautels Centre for Private Enterprise at the University of Manitoba. She is the author of over 40 publications on banking, insolvency and fintech, including Reinventing Bankruptcy Law (University of Toronto Press) and Debt and Federalism (UBC Press, co-authored). Her research has been cited by the Ontario Court of Appeal, la Cour d’appel du Québec and several lower courts.

Dr. Torrie’s current research includes a second volume of Debt and Federalism (co-authored) and a new edition of the Annotated Bank Act (Thomson Reuters, co-authored). A nationally recognized expert, Dr. Torrie has appeared before audiences at universities, financial institutions, labour groups, alumni associations and professional conferences. She has testified as an Expert Witness to the Senate Committee on Banking, Commerce and the Economy (BANC), appeared on TV news, and been interviewed for periodicals such as the Globe and Mail.

An active member of the legal community, Dr. Torrie has served as an elected member of bar council for the Manitoba Bar Association and Chair of its Insolvency Section, as well as on the Executive of the Insolvency Section of the Canadian Bar Association. She currently serves on the Selection Committee for the Walter Owen Q.C. Book Prize (administered by the Canadian Foundation for Legal Research).

Professor Colton Fehr has been appointed to a tenure-track position in the College of Law, commencing January 1, 2024.

Dr. Colton Fehr joined the Faculty of Law at the University of Saskatchewan in a tenure-track position commencing on January 1, 2024. He was previously an Assistant Professor at both the Faculty of Law at Thompson Rivers University and the School of Criminology at Simon Fraser University. Before embarking on an academic career, Dr. Fehr worked as a law clerk at the Provincial Court of Saskatchewan and as a Crown prosecutor for Saskatchewan Justice. His teaching and research interests fall broadly into the areas of criminal law, criminal procedure, evidence, and constitutional law. Dr. Fehr is currently a research affiliate with the Centre for Constitutional Studies and has been an editor on several Canadian law journals. His scholarship has appeared in numerous academic journals and he is the author of two books: Constitutionalizing Criminal Law and Judging Sex Work: Bedford and the Attenuation of Rights.