We’re delighted to share that Professor Karin Mickelson has been awarded the Jim Taylor, QC Faculty Scholar Award. The award honours Allard Law faculty who have consistently gone above and beyond, giving more than their fair share of time and energy to the Faculty.
Among her many contributions, Professor Mickelson is recognized as an exceptional mentor whose dedication to the law school and ongoing support have made all the difference to her students and faculty and staff colleagues.
“It is such an honour to receive this award,” says Professor Mickelson. “But it is also quite humbling when I think of my faculty and staff colleagues who work so hard, often behind the scenes, for the law school and our students. The award is a celebration of a collective enterprise as much as the individual, and I’m deeply grateful for this recognition.”
Professor Mickelson’s nominators describe her as a supportive, hard-working and generous colleague who has graciously shared her wisdom, counsel and institutional knowledge. She has also gone the extra mile to support her junior colleagues as they begin new, often demanding roles at Allard.
Allard Law professor and former Jessup Moot coach Dr. Sara Ghebremusse says that taking on the role of Jessup Moot coach initially seemed daunting, after Professor Mickelson’s 25 years in the role, but Professor Mickelson made the transition seamless. She has also remained “instrumental to the team’s success,” says Dr. Ghebremusse, and despite formally stepping down from the role in 2017, Professor Mickelson has continued to serve as a judge at practice sessions and to make time to discuss strategy and leadership.
“Karin is an incredibly kind mentor who has always been generous with her time,” says Dr. Ghebremusse. “She undertakes a lot of invisible labour, behind the scenes, to support junior colleagues. So much of the team’s success over the past five years is due to her wisdom and knowledge, which she has been more than willing to share.”
Following her term as Associate Dean, Graduate Studies and Professional Programs, Professor Mickelson again went above and beyond, providing crucial advice and support to Dr. Jocelyn Stacey as she stepped into the role. “Generosity infuses who Karin is as a person,” says Dr. Stacey. “She is a steadfast mentor of junior faculty, a stalwart supporter of staff and a dedicated teacher.”
In addition to her teaching and mentorship, Professor Mickelson has contributed to the law school community in countless ways since joining the Faculty in 1991. She also serves on UBC’s Graduate Curriculum Committee — which her nominators note is a hidden service obligation that can involve hundreds of pages of reading for the lengthy bi-weekly meetings. She also played a critical role in the creation of the law school’s Global South Visiting Scholar program in 2019 and volunteered her time again this past summer to support the development of this year’s program.
As her nominators put it, Professor Mickelson “epitomizes the supportive, hard-working, generous colleague that this award seeks to recognize,” and the law school is deeply grateful for her generosity of spirit and her ongoing dedication.
About the Jim Taylor, QC Faculty Scholar Award
The Jim Taylor, QC Faculty Scholar Award is currently supported by Harris & Co. in the memory of Jim Taylor, QC. Jim played an instrumental role in establishing this award, which provides a deserving Allard Law faculty member with a $5,000 research grant each year. Jim, who passed away in 2016, had close ties to the law school and was a beloved member of the UBC and local law communities. You can learn more about Jim on the Allard Law History Project website.
