BEGIN:VCALENDAR VERSION:2.0 PRODID:-//132.216.98.100//NONSGML kigkonsult.se iCalcreator 2.20.4// BEGIN:VEVENT UID:20260403T103712EDT-77820o6G5v@132.216.98.100 DTSTAMP:20260403T143712Z DESCRIPTION:The life sentence represents the most serious sanction that Can adian courts impose. Reaching the fifty-year mark after their introduction as a mandatory sentence offers the opportunity to not only recall that th ey are not an inevitable feature of Canadian law but also to consider thei r continued significance\, particularly for those subject to them. Drawing together a number of important voices\, the 2026 Proulx Roundtable will t herefore focus on past experiences\, the current state\, and the future of life sentences in Canada.\n\nThe event\, hosted by ³ÉÈËVRÊÓƵ’s Fa culty of Law\, will take place on Thursday\, April 9\, 2026\, from 5:30pm to 7:15pm in the Maxwell Cohen Moot Court Room at 3644 Peel Street.\n\nOur Speakers\n\nNyki Kish works as the Co Executive Director of the Canadian Association of Elizabeth Fry Societies and sits as VP of the National Asso ciations Active in Criminal Justice. She is a Vanier Scholar PhD Candidate at the University of Victoria. Her sociological scholarship focuses on cr iminal and prison law\, legislative change processes\, and the Canadian li fe sentence.\n\nJohn W. Conroy was appointed Queen’s Counsel in 1996 and p ractices primarily in criminal law as well as in constitutional and admini strative law issues arising out of prison sentences. In addition to being active in Constitutional challenges reviving the ‘faint hope clause’\, he has been involved in prominent Charter challenges related to the Vancouver Supervised Injection Site and the prohibition against cannabis.\n\nFreema n is a community activist and person of learned experience. He is a lifer who has lived more than 30 years of incarceration.\n\nNora Demnati is a pr ison lawyer based in Montreal. She advocates for the rights of federally i ncarcerated people in Quebec\, and in other provinces. She represents an e ver-increasing number of racialized and Indigenous people and has develope d a keen interest in representing those serving long or life sentences. Sh e is the current president of the Canadian Prison Law Association.\n\nDebr a Parkes is a Professor and Chair in Feminist Legal Studies at Allard Scho ol of Law\, UBC\, where she teaches constitutional law\, prison law\, and feminist legal studies. Her scholarly work critically examines criminal an d carceral systems and she has published on issues related to gender and r acial (in)equality in those systems\, life sentences\, prisoners’ rights c laims\, and abolitionist lawyering.\n\nMichel Proulx Memorial Roundtable F und\n\nThe Roundtable is named after the Honourable Michel Proulx (1939-20 07)\, who devoted his life to the improvement of the criminal justice syst em and to the advancement of human rights in Canada. Called to the Quebec Bar in 1963\, he quickly became known as one of the finest criminal lawyer s nationwide. In 1989\, he was appointed to the Court of Appeal of Quebec. In 2006\, he was awarded the Prix de la Justice du Québec in light of his devotion to the improvement of justice in Quebec. Michel Proulx taught bo th Criminal Procedure and Evidence in Criminal Matters for over twenty yea rs as an adjunct professor at ³ÉÈËVRÊÓƵ’s Faculty of Law\, in addition to sup porting its international human rights programs\, and providing counsel an d encouragement to students\, teachers\, and deans. The Faculty of Law hos ts the Michel Proulx Roundtable Conferences in Criminal Law to honour his memory. The ³ÉÈËVRÊÓƵ community is grateful to the Proulx family for making t his event possible.\n DTSTART:20260409T213000Z DTEND:20260409T231500Z LOCATION:Moot Court Room at 3644 Peel Street SUMMARY:Life Sentences - Fifty Years of a New Era (1976-2026): The 2026 Pro ulx Roundtable URL:/law/fr/channels/event/life-sentences-fifty-years- new-era-1976-2026-2026-proulx-roundtable-372053 END:VEVENT END:VCALENDAR