Experiential learning

Upper-year students may also receive academic credit for experiential learning activities. These include our clinical program, the UNB Law Journal, our competitive mooting program and our internship program.

Clinical opportunities

UNB Law offers clinical opportunities for either a one or two-course credit. Students receive classroom instruction in community lawyering and placements with community organizations. These organizations include:

• New Brunswick Legal Aid
• Office of the Child and Youth Advocate
• Student Legal Information Centre
• Public Legal Education and Information Service

Other organizations may be added before the beginning of next term.

These courses provide students with an opportunity to promote access to justice. The students will develop client-oriented research and advocacy skills by working with supervising counsel to provide legal services to clients of approved UNB Law community partners.

Students will participate in providing client and community legal services such as intake, client interviews, providing legal information, conducting legal research, drafting of documents and assisting supervising counsel in the representation of clients in court or before administrative decision-makers. 

Mooting programs 

First-year mooting

Each first-year student participates in a moot court as part of the Legal Research and Advocacy course. The mooting component of the course involves four students, two representing the appellant and two representing the respondent. Problems are assigned and each team submits a written factum on which they will rely for their oral presentations. Each moot is judged by a bench of three individuals, usually a practitioner, a law professor and a third-year law student.

The William Henry Harrison Moot Court Competition

This moot commemorates the distinguished legal and military career of William Henry Harrison, dean of the faculty (1947-55) and judge of the New Brunswick Supreme Court (1935-1958). Students who receive the top grades in the oral advocacy component of the first-year mooting program will be invited to participate in the William Henry Harrison Moot held during the fall semester of second year.

Each student participating will receive a $250 prize and the two students who demonstrate the best oral advocacy skills during the competition will be presented with the Harrison Shield. The prize is funded by William Teed Q.C. ('78) in memory of his grandfather.

Competitive mooting 

UNB Law regularly participates in several national and international competitive moots for which students receive course credit. These competitive moots are available to upper-year students and include:

• Bowman Moot (Tax Law)
• Gale Cup Moot (Criminal Law, Charter of Right and Administrative Law)
• Jessup Moot (International Law)
• Kawaskimhon Moot (Indigenous Law Moot)
• Laskin Moot (Administrative and Constitutional Law)
• McKelvey/Sopinka Cup Moot (Trial Practice)
• Wilson Moot (Equality)

Internship program

Students may apply for a number of internship opportunities for which course credit is granted. Internship opportunities include:

• Judicial internship
• Attorney-general internship
• Public interest organization internship
• Public prosecutions internship

UNB Law Journal

Students may participate in the UNB Law Journal for course credit, either as an editor-in-chief or an associate editor.

First published in 1947, the University of New Brunswick Law Journal/Revue de droit de l'Université du Nouveau-Brunswick is one of the oldest student-run legal publications in Canada. The journal is an annual refereed publication devoted to the consideration of current legal issues, problems, and philosophies through the presentation of articles, research notes, comments and reviews.

Exchange programs

University of Maine School of Law exchange program

We participate in an exchange program with the University of Maine School of Law in Portland. The program offers opportunities for upper-year students from each school to enrich their legal education through resident study in another country.

You may complete one year of study at the exchange institution. Typically, our students involved in the program have spent one term at the University of Maine. While away, students pay the regular tuition at their home law school.

• University of Maine School of Law

International student exchange program

In recent years UNB and several overseas universities, particularly in Australia, have worked together to create a successful exchange program.

For more information on this program and the contacts see the international office.