Katrina Andres of UVic named winner of CBA Law School Essay Prize

  • June 17, 2013

OTTAWA – Katrina Andres of the University of Victoria’s Faculty of Law is the winner of the 2013 Canadian Bar Association (CBA) National Environmental, Energy and Resources Law Section (NEERLS) Law School Essay Contest David Estrin Prize.

Ms. Andres’ essay, Professional Reliance in the Great Bear Rainforest: A Case Study, examines the trend towards professional reliance and results-based standards that give rise to particular challenges in the context of a distinct area such as the Great Bear Rainforest, which has its own unique land use planning processes.

“The winning essay stood apart from the rest due in large part to its methodical treatment of a cutting edge issue, namely, the increasing reliance by environmental regulators upon the work of third party professionals in connection with the licencing, permitting or approval of activities having an environmental impact,” said Stuart Chambers, NEERLS Executive member and Essay Committee chair.

“The paper dealt with an issue of national relevance given significant provincial and federal regulatory changes. It was comprehensive, well-organized, and effectively analyzed a real-world example.”

Katrina Andres is a third year law student at the University of Victoria and will graduate with the Law Faculty’s new Concentration in Environmental Law and Sustainability designation in June 2013. She was a student in the Environmental Law Centre’s intensive clinical program in 2011-12 and is a past board member with the Environmental Law Centre. She interned with West Coast Environmental Law in 2011 and will article on northern Vancouver Island at Shook, Wickham, Bishop & Field.

The prize consists of $500 cash plus registration, airfare, meals, and accommodation at the CBA 2013 NEERLS Law Summit, taking place June 20-21, 2013 in Yellowknife. Ms. Andres’ essay will be published in an upcoming edition of the NEERLS newsletter, EcoBulletin.

The Canadian Bar Association is dedicated to support for the rule of law, and improvement in the law and the administration of justice. Some 37,000 lawyers, law teachers, and law students from across Canada are members.

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