Alain Roussy

Alain Roussy is an associate professor in the French Common Law Program in the Common Law Section of the University of Ottawa’s Faculty of Law.  In recent years, he held various positions as part of the Faculty’s leadership team, first as Vice-Dean of the French Common Law Program (2020-2021), then as interim Dean of the Faculty (2021-2022) and as Vice-Dean Governance (2022) before returning as Vice-Dean of the French Common Law Program (2022-2023).  In 2017-2019, he also acted as the first director of pratiquO, the Faculty's French-language continuing professional development centre.

He completed his undergraduate studies (B.Sc., 1998) and legal studies (LL.B., 2002, French Common Law Program) at the University of Ottawa.  He completed his articles as a law clerk at the Supreme Court of Canada with the Honourable Justice Ian Binnie and was then called to the bar as a member of the Law Society of Ontario in 2003.  

He subsequently joined Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP in Toronto as a lawyer practising business law.  In 2005, he joined Heenan Blaikie LLP in Toronto where he practised in litigation and labour law.  In 2008, he became in-house legal counsel at the University of Ottawa handling a wide range of legal matters for the University.  He completed his master (LL.M.) in 2012 at the University of Ottawa and joined the Faculty of Law as a professor in January 2013.  

In 2016, he received two fellowships: the Fall 2016 National Institute for Teaching Ethics and Professionalism (NIFTEP) Fellowship and the 2016-2017 Ontario Bar Association (OBA) Foundation Chief Justice of Ontario Fellowship in Legal Ethics and Professionalism Research.  From 2016 to 2022 he was a member of the board of directors of the Canadian Association for Legal Ethics (CALE). 

He is the proud recipient of a 2016-2017 Excellence in Teaching Award at the Faculty of Law as well as the Order of Merit from the Association des juristes d’expression française de l’Ontario (AJEFO) in 2023.

The main focus of his research is on professional responsibility and legal ethics.

• Responsabilité professionnelle (CML3776)
• La responsabilité professionnelle et les enjeux de la pratique de droit (CML4545)
• Compétences et habiletés juridiques (CML1611)
• Compétences et habiletés juridiques (CML1511)
• Délits civils (CML1637)
• Délits civils (CML4542)
• Torts (CML4342)
• Insolvabilité et faillite (CML3712)

• Canadian Bar Association Conference, "From BigLaw to NewLaw", March 2021, online
• Association des juristes d’expression française de l’Ontario (AJEFO), Conference on Professional Responsibility, December 2020, online
• Association des juristes d’expression française de l’Ontario (AJEFO) Annual Conference, June 2019, Sudbury
• Conference of the French Network of Ontario Community Legal Clinics, June 2019, Ottawa
• pratiquO Conference in Calgary on Family Law and the Practice of Law in French, June 2019
• Summer School in International Humanitarian Law, University of Ottawa's Human Rights Research and Education Centre, Ottawa, May 2019
• Annual Conference of Southwestern Ontario Community Legal Clinics, May 2019, London, Ont.
• Law Society / AJEFO / pratiquO Conference on Official Languages in the Courts, March 2019, Toronto
• Association des juristes d’expression française de l’Ontario (AJEFO) Annual Conference, June 2018, Moncton
• Summer School in International Humanitarian Law, University of Ottawa's Human Rights Research and Education Centre, Ottawa, May 2018
• Annual Conference of Southwestern Ontario Community Legal Clinics, May 2018, London, Ont.
• pratiquO Conference on Professional Responsibility, March 2018, Ottawa
• Annual Continuing Legal Education Conference, Office of the Judge Advocate General (JAG), February 2018, Ottawa
• CALE (Canadian Association for Legal Ethics) Conference, October 2017, Halifax
• Northern Ontario Colloquium 2017, October 2017, Sudbury
• French Counsel Network, Ontario government, October 2017, Toronto
• Association des juristes d’expression française de l’Ontario (AJEFO) Annual Conference, June 2017, Ottawa
• Summer School in International Humanitarian Law, University of Ottawa's Human Rights Research and Education Centre, Ottawa, May 2017
• Annual Regroupement étudiant de common law en français (RÉCLEF) Conference, March 2017, Ottawa
• The Rules of Professional Conduct and Language Rights Symposium, March 2017, Ottawa
• Annual Continuing Legal Education Conference, Office of the Judge Advocate General (JAG), March 2017, Ottawa
• Conference of the Professional Responsibility Service of the Department of Justice, February 2017, Montreal
• CALE (Canadian Association for Legal Ethics) Conference, October 2016, Edmonton
• Fall 2016 Workshop of the National Institute for Teaching Ethics and Professionalism (NIFTEP), October 2016, Macon, Georgia (U.S.)
• International Legal Ethics Conference 2016 (ILEC 2016), July 2016, New York
• North American Consortium on Legal Education (NACLE), March 2016, Monterrey, Mexico
• Annual Continuing Legal Education Conference, Office of the Judge Advocate General (JAG), March 2016, Ottawa
• Cavanagh LLP / Regroupement étudiant de common law en français (RÉCLEF) Conference, February 2016, Ottawa
• CALE (Canadian Association for Legal Ethics) Conference, October 2015, Montreal
• Annual Institute of Family Law, County of Carleton Law Association, May 2015, Montebello, Quebec
• CALE (Canadian Association for Legal Ethics) Conference, October 2014, London, Ontario
• Annual Continuing Legal Education Conference, Office of the Judge Advocate General (JAG), October 2014, Ottawa (written material)
• Agents of Parliament Conference, September 2014, Ottawa
• Canadian Association of Law Teachers Conference, June 2014, Winnipeg, Manitoba
• National Military Law Conference, Canadian Bar Association, June 2014, Ottawa
• CALE (Canadian Association for Legal Ethics) Conference, October 2013, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan
• Association des juristes d’expression française de l’Ontario (AJEFO) Annual Conference, October 2013, Ottawa