Windsor Law Professor Gemma Smyth is the inaugural recipient of the Association for Canadian Clinical Legal Education’s (ACCLE) Buhler Award. Named in honour of Sarah Buhler, long-time ACCLE board member and professor at the College of Law University of Saskatchewan, the award is presented to a professor whose work intersects academic and clinical approaches to clinical and experiential legal education.
According to the association’s announcement, Professor Smyth is being honoured in recognition of her commitment to researching the practice of clinical legal education across the country and supporting expansion of clinical and experiential programs in law schools.
“I am honoured to receive this award,” says Smyth. “Windsor Law has a deep commitment to clinical and experiential learning, and this award is a symbol of that commitment.”
Before serving her term as Associate Dean (Academic) from July 2018 to June 2020, Smyth held the position of academic clinic director in the Faculty of Law from July 2009 to June 2015 and interim associate dean from July 2016 to June 2017. She was director of University of Windsor Mediation Services between 2003 and 2009, and has taught clinic and experiential learning courses throughout.
Smyth is the co-author of the first text on clinical legal education in Canada, with Buhler and Sarah Marsden, and she hosts an open-source Youtube channel with material on law practice, focusing on clinical skills.