Law Faculty Council information

• Membership of Law Faculty Council
• Motions for Law Faculty Council
• Standing Rule on Conduct of Meetings of Law Faculty Council and of its committees

In addition to those persons provided for in the Senate General Bylaw, the Faculty Council of Law shall be composed of:

1. Faculty members who would qualify under the Senate General Bylaw but whose appointments are part-time or reduced rather than full-time.
2. The Director of the Indigenous Learning and Legal Services
3. The Director of Program Development
4. One (1) Bencher of The Law Society of Manitoba, to be appointed annually by The Law Society of Manitoba.
5. A minimum of four (4) students registered in the Faculty Juris Doctor program, together with such additional students, up to a maximum not exceeding 25% of the total full-time faculty plus student representatives, as the faculty may from time to time determine. The initial student representation on the Faculty Council shall be four (4) students.
6. The students included under (5) shall include the President of the Manitoba Law Students Association and one student directly appointed by the Manitoba Indigenous Law Students Association. The rest of the student representatives for the academic year shall be appointed by MLSA and may include additional members of MILSA.
7. One (1) student from a graduate program delivered or housed at the Law Faculty, to be designated annually by the Law Faculty’s Associate Dean of Graduate Studies.

Support Staff Representative

One member of the Faculty Council shall be a full-time non-academic staff of the faculty elected for a three (3) year term by the full-time and regular part-time non-academic staff of the faculty.

Restrictions on Student Representatives

1. Student representatives have full voting status but shall generally be excluded from meetings of Faculty Council and committees while matters concerning individual students or matters involving confidential employee information are being considered. Law Faculty Council may, however, may from time-to-time permit exceptions to these restrictions with the consent of the individual whose privacy is concerned.
2. Student representatives shall be excluded from meetings of Faculty Council and committees while confidential academic matters are discussed, such as the content of examination questions.
3. Student representatives shall not participate in the nomination, election or removal of representatives from the Faculty Council to the University of Manitoba Senate.

Meetings of Law Faculty Council

1. Meetings of the Faculty Council shall be called at the discretion of the presiding officer of Law Faculty Council or at the written request of any seven (7) members of the Faculty Council.
2. At least five (5) days written notice of any Faculty Council Meeting shall be given by the person or persons calling for it.
3. Faculty Council may, in its discretion, permit non-members to attend or invite them to speak.
4. A quorum of the Faculty Council shall be ten (10) faculty members of Faculty Council during the months of September to May inclusive and seven (7) faculty members of Faculty Council during the months of June to August inclusive.
5. The presiding officer at all meetings of the Faculty Council shall be the Dean or Dean’s designate.

Senate Representation

1. All members of the Faculty Council except student members thereof shall be eligible to vote for the election or removal of members to Senate, provided, however, that no person is eligible to be elected to Senate who is not a full-time member of the Faculty of Law.
2. The Senate representative may be removed from office by a two-thirds majority vote of those present and voting at a duly called and constituted meeting of the Faculty Council.

Power to Recommend

The Faculty Council of Law has all the powers to recommend recognized by applicable Senate bylaws and rules, and specifically shall have the power to make such recommendations to such persons or bodies as it deems proper for promoting legal education and the advancement of law.

Powers to Act

The Faculty Council of Law has all the powers to act recognized by applicable Senate bylaws and rules, and specifically shall have power to appoint representatives to such other bodies concerned with legal education and law as it deems advisable.

Standing Rules

The Faculty Council may enact or amend its standing rule and procedures for conduct of the affairs of the Faculty by a majority vote of those members of the Faculty Council present and voting at the time the vote is called provided that five (5) days notice of the proposed standing rule or amendment has been given to all members of the Faculty Council prior to the meeting at which such enactment or amendment is to be made.

Historical note: Early versions and amendments of the bylaw are from:

September 1970.
Amended: February 1971; August 1976; May 1980; February 1983; September 1993; October 1994; April 9, 2001; June 28, 2001; October 11, 2001; August 29, 2006; March 25, 2011.
Amended by Senate: September 5, 1984; April 1, 1992; November 3, 1993; December 7, 1994; November 1, 1995.
Approved by Senate: April 3, 2024

Motions to LFC should include:

• Background information sufficient to permit members of LFC to engage in proper deliberation to make an informed decision;
• A statement of what policy objective the resolution is intended to achieve;
• A statement of whether or not the resolution needs to go to Senate;
• Definition of who is expected to implement the resolution if enacted;
• Recommended wording in the form a draft resolution of Law Faculty Council;
• Specification of the nature of the proposed LFC action, such as whether it is taking note, making a recommendation or enacting a binding rule.
• An indication of which stakeholders were consulted outside the committee.

Explanatory Note: In conjunction with the LFC bylaw approved by the University of Manitoba Senate on April 3, 2024, the Standing Rule contained herein provides guidance on the procedures of LFC. The Standing Rule is an internal document which is approved by LFC only, not Senate.

Per the LFC bylaw, this Standing Rule can be amended by LFC “by a majority vote of those members of the Faculty Council present and voting at the time the vote is called provided that five (5) days notice of the proposed standing rule or amendment has been given to all members of the Faculty Council prior to the meeting at which such enactment or amendment is to be made.”