PD Learnings Roundtable 2025

Certificate of Law from Queen’s University – Jen Walker – County of Carleton Law Association

Jennifer shared her experience completing a part-time online Certificate in Law program at Queen’s University, which consists of four courses including an Introduction to Canadian Law course and three electives. She found the program valuable for improving her understanding of law, despite the time management challenges of balancing work and studies. The program costs $1,134 per course, and Jennifer noted that the Scholarships and Awards Committee recently awarded scholarships to librarians taking the introductory course.
More information at: Queen’s Certificate in Law | online Canadian courses from a law school

AALL – Jo-Ann McQuillan – Peel Law Association

Jo-Ann shared her experience attending the AALL conference in Portland, highlighting the city’s contrasts between natural beauty and homelessness. She presented key takeaways from sessions focusing on evaluating and learning from failures and the importance of communication in leadership roles. Jo-Ann encouraged attendees to adopt these failure evaluation methods and maintain a positive attitude towards learning from mistakes.
She continued by highlighting sessions on project management tools like Airtable and Smartsheet, which may be overkill for smaller libraries, and creative library tour ideas, such as the Louisiana Supreme Court’s “Tour for Kids” and the DC Court of Appeals’ mascot, Libby. She emphasized the importance of tailoring tours to different audiences and being enthusiastic.
Jo-Ann also discussed strategies for managing unfinished tasks, including making plans, offloading information, and leveraging the Zeigarnik effect, and recommended time management tools and techniques. She concluded by urging librarians to advocate against cutbacks and prioritize self-care to maintain productivity and well-being.
See Jo-Ann’s PowerPoint.

BIALL – Ciara Ward – Northumberland Law Association

Ciara shared her experience attending the BIALL conference, noting similarities between British and American legal education and research skills training. She highlighted a session on self-advocacy by Ciara Murray, which emphasized personal growth and overcoming imposter syndrome. Ciara also mentioned potential future joint programming between CALL’s Professional Development Committee and BIALL. When asked about future conference attendance, Ciara indicated she would choose based on offerings, comparing BIALL and AALL as similar in terms of size, sessions, and cost, in spite of its farther distance. BIALL will be in Edinburgh next year.

Legal Terminology Course – Luisa Yepes – York Region Law Association

Luisa shared her experience with a part-time online legal course offered by Mohawk College, which covers various areas of law over 13 weeks with flexible, self-directed learning. The course, which costs $382, includes readings, discussion assignments, and two quizzes plus a final exam, allowing students to work at their own pace during work hours or personal time. Luisa found the course particularly valuable for expanding her legal knowledge and understanding of legal terminology, which helps her in her role as a library assistant, and would recommend it for both new professionals and experienced librarians seeking to refresh their knowledge in different legal areas.
More information at: LAWS10005 Legal Terminology | Mohawk College

CALL Conference Highlight – Michelle Gerrits – Lambton Law Association

Michelle attended several informative sessions at CALL 2025, including one on Canadian Immigration Law which explored historical immigration patterns, current policies and the laws related to immigration. She attended a session on the Erosion of the Rule of Law in the U.S. and Its Impacts on Canada, highlighting recent political events in the US and its impact on the separation of powers and implications for Canada. She indicated that she attended a great session led my Beth Beattie on Mental Health Challenges in the Legal Profession but indicated that there are many opportunities to hear those stories through the LSO CPD Mental Health Summit, and our upcoming Learn with LIRN Conference. Another session attended was about Disability Law in Canadian Law, noting the historical and current issues faced by disabled individuals and the need for accessibility in various institutions in Canada. The presenter talked about her own experience which led to research via historical newspaper accounts of discrimination for the disabled, to current events. One Ontario advocate noted is David Lepofsky – Wikipedia. Michelle concluded by discussing the accessibility challenges within her own courthouse and the progress made in certain areas, such as the installation of a flashing light system for hearing-impaired individuals, but the failure in others where there are no push-button doors, except the front-door to assist those with mobility issues.