Business Advisory Committee

Dr. Bruce Curran

Associate Professor Curran is primarily focused on using empirical methods to study labour & employment law and dispute resolution. Dr Curran has developed and honed skills for innovative and high-quality scholarly research, and is also a member of the national Labour Law Casebook Group, a group of Professors from across Canada who have published the authoritative Canadian casebook for labour and employment law. In addition to his research abilities and extensive publishing record, Dr. Curran is an outstanding teacher and has received numerous awards for his teaching.

Dr. Michelle Gallant

Professor Gallant’s areas of teaching and research focus are on Taxation, Philanthropy of Law, International Law, Dispute Resolution, Money Laundering and Terrorist Finance. She has been a Commissioner of the Manitoba Law Reform Commission from 2012 to 2018, and was Deputy Commissioner of the Residential Tenancies Commission from 2008 to 2011, and most recently served on the national Emergencies Act Inquiry into the conduct of the Trudeau government during the COVID-19 crisis.

Dr. Katie Szilagyi

Dr. Katie Szilagyi is an Assistant Professor at the University of Manitoba’s Faculty of Law. Dr. Szilagyi studies the intersection of technology law and legal theory with artificial intelligence, tracing the impacts of predictive analytics and algorithmic decision-making on the organizing force of the Rule of Law. Her innovative research brings together her educational backgrounds in both engineering and law, as well as her experience in legal practice, applying foundational legal concepts like property, autonomy, consent, and privacy to emerging technological settings.

Dr. Akin Ogunranti

Dr. Akinwumi (Akin) Ogunranti is an Assistant Professor of Law at the University of Manitoba. He earned his LLB from the University of Ilorin, was called to the Nigerian Bar, and practiced law for three years before completing his LLM and Ph.D. at Dalhousie University’s Schulich School of Law. His research focuses on business and human rights, corporate accountability, climate, and global governance.

Before joining Robson Hall, he taught at Schulich Law as an Assistant Professor and Crawford Fellow, offering courses in contracts, business and human rights, legal ethics, and professional responsibility. Akin has received numerous awards, including the Schulich and Crawford Fellowships, and in 2024 was appointed to the International Law Association’s Committee on Business and Human Rights. He is licensed (non-practicing) in Manitoba, Nova Scotia, and Nigeria, and is a member of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators and the Association of Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialists.

Professor Darcy MacPherson

Professor MacPherson is the Research Director of the Marcel A. Desautels Centre for Private Enterprise and the Law. He has taught and researched in areas of corporate law, secured transactions and partnerships. His research has been cited by the Supreme Court of Canada and numerous Courts of Appeal across the country. He is currently supervising

five LL.M. students in areas of business Law. He is also responsible for the original creation of Robson Hall team in four different appellate mooting competitions, and for three different for-credit judicial clerking experiences at various Manitoba courts.

Dr. Laura Reimer, Business Advisory Committee Chair

Dr. Laura Reimer chairs the Business Advisory Committee and as Director of Program Development for the Faculty of Law, is also the Program Development Director of the Marcel A. Desautels Centre for Private Enterprise and the Law. With deep experience in private enterprise, business development, and academic teaching and research, Laura brings much to her leadership role at the Desautels Centre. She was an Assistant Professor of Public Administration and Public Policy at the University of Winnipeg where she was awarded the prestigious Clifford J. Robson Memorial Award for Teaching Excellence. Upon completion of her Ph D, Laura held a program development/teaching post-doctoral fellowship at the University of North Carolina Greensboro. Her research interests explore the intersection of theory and practice, and her expertise merges conflict transformation practices with policy, governance, and leadership. She is the author or co-editor of seven books.

Dr. Richard Jochelson 

Dr. Richard Jochelson is the Dean of Law at the University of Manitoba. He holds a Ph.D. in Law from Osgoode Hall, an LL.M. from the University of Toronto, and both an LL.B. (Gold Medal) and B.Sc. (with Distinction) from the University of Calgary. After clerking at the Alberta Court of Appeal and Court of Queen’s Bench and practicing at a major Canadian law firm, he taught criminal law for a decade at the University of Winnipeg before joining Robson Hall in 2016.

As an educator, Dr. Jochelson is known for his student-centred pedagogy, universal design, and innovative use of technology, earning recognition such as a Student Teacher Recognition Award in 2018. He has published over 70 scholarly works, including numerous peer-reviewed articles and more than 15 co-authored or edited books. His research spans police powers, the regulation of sexuality, socio-legal pedagogy, and issues of justice and equality, with work cited by appellate and Supreme Court decisions. He has also led multiple SSHRC-funded research teams and co-founded Robsoncrim.com, a national criminal law research network and leading contributor to the Manitoba Law Journal.