The College of Law Multimedia Moot Court Room Opens

Posted September 23, 2002


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - September 20, 2002 2002-09-15-LA

The College of Law Multimedia Moot Court Room Opens

President Peter MacKinnon and Acting Dean Daniel Ish officially re-opened
the College of Law Moot Court Room this evening. Provincial Justice
Minister Chris Axworthy and Chancellor of the University of Saskatchewan,
Tom Molloy, were also in attendance for the ribbon-cutting ceremony.

The Moot Court Room underwent extensive renovations last summer to transform
it from a regular amphitheatre-style lecture hall into a multimedia teaching
(smart classroom) and video conferencing (distributed learning) facility.

The total cost of the project was $512,000. The Law Foundation of
Saskatchewan provided $245,000 for the purchase of the equipment. The
upgrade of the electrical system and physical changes were provided by the
University of Saskatchewan.

The Law Foundation's involvement in this project is an aspect of its
generous on-going financial support for the College. Harry Dahlem, chair of
the Law Foundation, says the group is "very pleased to have played a key
role in assisting the College to bring to its students the benefits of new
pedagogical technology."

"The study and teaching of law has changed dramatically in the last ten
years," said Acting Dean Ish. "Most legal sources are now in digital format
and are available on the Internet. Teaching materials for several law
school courses are accessible by students only through computers."

The new equipment will allow faculty members to bring into the classroom a
wide range of legal materials from many sources, enriching students'
learning experience. The video conferencing equipment allows the College to
participate in arrangements with other legal institutions where the same
course can be offered by an instructor simultaneously at several
institutions.

The wireless transmission capability allows students direct access to the
Internet using laptop computers.

"Today, lawyers are networked through the PC on their desk and are linked to
outside resources through the Internet," said Minister Axworthy. "Lawyers
and legal researchers use legal databases as well as other on-line resources
to do work that once required an extensive law library. It is important that
law students are able to gain experience with these new technologies."

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For further information, please contact:

Tarissa Carmichael
College of Law
University of Saskatchewan
Phone: (306) 966-5898
Email: tarissa.carmichael@usask.ca