What do U.S. First Lady Michelle Obama, consumer advocate Ralph Nader, and former Supreme Court of Canada Chief Justice Bora Laskin have in common? All three are graduates of Harvard Law, as is Malcolm Lavoie, incoming Assistant Professor at the University of Alberta Faculty of Law in 2017. Lavoie earned his LLM at Harvard in 2015, where he studied as a Frank Knox Memorial Fellow and a Fulbright Scholar. His research was awarded the 2015 Harvard Project on the Foundations of Private Law Writing Prize.
Lavoie is no stranger to UAlberta Law, having served as Visiting Assistant Professor for the 2015-16 academic year. His research deals primarily with property law and private law theory, and his published work includes articles on constructive expropriation, remedies in contracts for the sale of land, Aboriginal land rights, among other topics.
Following his year as Visiting Assistant Professor, Lavoie returned to Harvard in September 2016 to begin his Doctor of Juridical Science (SJD). The SJD program is Harvard Law School's most advanced law degree, and the program ranks among the top in world. Lavoie is one of just 16 candidates who joined the program this year, almost exclusively drawn from Harvard's top LLM graduates. He was again awarded a Frank Knox Memorial Fellowship for his SJD studies, as well as a fellowship with the Harvard Project on the Foundations of Private Law.
Lavoie will spend the first year of his SJD in Massachusetts, before returning to Edmonton and UAlberta Law next summer to take up his Assistant Professor duties and simultaneously continue to work on his dissertation: "Property and Self-Government: The Uses and Limits of Collective Property Rights in Minority Cultural Groups." The focus of Lavoie's research is on the role that property institutions play in furthering the collective interests of minority cultural groups, including Indigenous groups. This builds upon his previous research at Harvard examining restrictions on the alienation of Indigenous land.
"I'm pleased at the opportunity to continue my research at Harvard, as well as my affiliation with the Harvard Project on the Foundations of Private Law," said Lavoie. "Knowing that I'm coming back to a faculty position at the University of Alberta Faculty of Law makes this even better. The U of A is home to one of Canada's top law schools, and I had a wonderful experience teaching there last year."
"We look forward to welcoming Malcolm back to the Faculty next July as a tenure-stream Assistant Professor and are excited at what he will be bringing to the Faculty and the University," said Dean Paul Paton. "Malcolm is already recognized internationally for his groundbreaking work in private law theory and in the intersection of property law issues with energy, Aboriginal and Indigenous concerns. He is a popular and valued teacher who challenges his students. Malcolm's recruitment to the Faculty - together with Dr. Anna Lund and Dr. Cameron Jefferies earlier this year - builds upon the tradition of academic excellence, innovative teaching, and a commitment to public service that has been a hallmark of the University of Alberta Faculty of Law."
Malcolm Lavoie holds a BA (Hons.) in Economics from the University of British Columbia; an MSc (Distinction) in Political Theory from the London School of Economics; BCL and LLB degrees from McGill University; and an LLM from Harvard Law. From 2013 to 2014, he served as a law clerk to the Hon. Justice Rosalie Abella of the Supreme Court of Canada.