Professor Janet Walker of York University’s Osgoode Hall Law School has been selected to receive the title of Distinguished Research Professor.

The title is given to active members of the academy in recognition of their scholarly achievements in research, is awarded for life and evolves into a Distinguished Research Professor Emeritus on retirement.

The major criterion for the honour is sustained and outstanding scholarly, professional or artistic achievement where a significant portion of the candidate’s work has been accomplished at York University. The award is inclusive of all full-time faculty in all disciplinary areas.

Walker is a full professor and past associate dean, and currently teaches private international law, international commercial arbitration and complex litigation in the JD and the professional LLM programs and is director of the Professional LLM in Civil Litigation and Dispute Resolution. She has also taught civil procedure, professional responsibility and international business transactions and has served as convener of the Litigation, Dispute Resolution and the Administration of Justice Stream, and director of the Mooting Program.

She is the author of Castel and Walker: Canadian Conflict of Laws, and the Halsbury’s Laws of Canada volume on the Conflict of Laws; she is the general editor of The Civil Litigation Process, and of Class Actions in Canada, and co-editor of Common Law, Civil Law and the Future of Categories. She is also a co-author of Irwin Essentials: Civil Procedure, Private International Law in Common Law Canada, and A Practical Guide to Mooting.

Walker has lectured and taught internationally, and held various visiting professorships around the world. As well, she has served as an international advisor to the American Law Institute in its project with Unidroit to develop Principles and Rules of Transnational Civil Procedure; and as a member of the Uniform Law Conference of Canada Committee on National Class Actions, of the IBA Task Force on Guidelines on Recognition and Enforcement of Collective Redress Judgments, of the ILA Committee on International Civil Litigation, the ABA Canada/US Class Working Group on Protocols for Parallel Class Actions and the Uniform Law Conference of Canada’s Project on Uniform International Arbitration Legislation.

She has served as President of the Canadian Branch of the International Law Association, Chair of the Toronto Chapter of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators, and she is Secretary General of the International Association of Procedural Law. Walker was the Law Commission of Ontario’s first scholar in residence, she has been the common law advisor to the Federal Courts Rules Committee since 2006 and she is currently serving as academic advisor to the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators.

She is a member of the American Law Institute and a senior Fellow of Massey College. She is a member of the University Club of Toronto, as well as the Athenaeum Club in London. Walker has also served as an ICC and ICDR arbitrator in various matters, as well as a consultant.

“Your nominators have highlighted your international leadership in the fields of private international law, procedural law, comparative law and international commercial arbitration,” said York University President and Vice-Chancellor Rhonda L. Lenton in a letter to Walker. “Your commitment to excellence is evidenced by your strong publication record, particularly your authorship of the main text on private international law in Canada, Canadian Conflict Laws, which is the most-cited private law work in Canadian courts. As an academic and an eminent practitioner, you have had a significant and positive impact on the University community as well as the legal profession.”

The title of Distinguished Research Professor has in the past been announced and celebrated during York's convocation; however, a date is pending given the current COVID-19 circumstances.

Courtesy of YFile.