Program of Research Contracts on Canadian Bijuralism

2007-2008

INFORMATION DOCUMENT

Introduction
Background
Terms and conditions of the program
Research topics
How to apply

Introduction

The Program of Research Contracts on Canadian Bijuralism was established in 2000 to assist the Department of Justice Canada in legislative revision pertaining to the coexistence in the federal context of the civil law and common law legal traditions. The purpose of this program is also to promote the development of expertise in Canadian bijuralism among law students and to contribute to the dissemination of knowledge on the subject through the publication of legal texts.

The program is open to law students who have an undergraduate law degree in civil law or common law from a Canadian university and are, at the time of application, enrolled full-time in graduate studies or are enrolled full-time in a Canadian university in the final year of studies in an undergraduate program leading to an undergraduate law degree in the other legal tradition. The program is also open to undergraduate law students from a Canadian university, who are, at the time of application, enrolled full-time in the final year of studies in a program leading to a degree in both civil law and common law.

The value of each research contract is $5,000, plus an additional amount of up to a maximum of $500 to cover allowable related expenses.

Students wishing to submit a research proposal must do so on or before January 31, 2007.

Background

Following the enactment by the Quebec National Assembly of the Civil Code of Québec in 1990, the Department of Justice Canada adopted the Policy for Applying the Civil Code of Québec to Federal Government Activities in 1993. The purpose of this Policy was to take into account the changes introduced with the new Civil Code, which came into force in 1994, the specificity of Quebec’s civil law as well as of its institutions and concepts. Subsequently, the Department of Justice approved in 1995 the Policy on Legislative Bijuralism, which was intended to provide Canadians with federal legislative texts that respect, in each linguistic version, the common law and civil law. Finally, the Cabinet Directive on Law-Making requires that federal laws and regulations respect both the common law and civil law, in both official languages.

To further these policies, a legislative revision process with respect to bijuralism has been established. First, omnibus bills and regulations are put forward. To this day, two bills have been adopted and are in force: the Federal Law-Civil Law Harmonization Act, No. 1 (S.C. 2001, c. 4, which came into force on June 1, 2001) and the Federal Law-Civil Law Harmonization Act, No. 2 (S.C. 2004, c. 25, which came into force on December 15, 2004). Secondly, government initiated bills and regulations, whether general in nature or relating to tax issues, are subjected to a thorough bijural revision. For more information on the work of the Department of Justice on bijuralism in Canada, please consult the Canadian Legislative Bijuralism Site (www.bijurilex.gc.ca).

Terms and conditions of the program

Eligibility criteria

Candidates are, at the time of application:

• law graduates who have received their degree - in civil law or common law - from a Canadian university and are enrolled full-time in graduate studies; or
• law graduates who have received their degree - in civil law or common law - from a Canadian university and are enrolled full-time in a Canadian university in the final year of studies in an undergraduate law program leading to a degree in the other legal tradition; or
• are undergraduate law students from a Canadian university enrolled full-time in the final year of studies in a program leading to a degree in both civil law and common law.

Value of research contracts

Each research contract awarded by the Department of Justice Canada consists of:

• $5,000 per contract to conduct research and write an article that is fit for publication; and
• a maximum of $500 per contract for allowable related expenses (upon production of receipts). 

The number of contracts awarded will be determined by the Department of Justice, depending on the quality of the applications received and available financial resources.  The Department reserves the right not to award any contracts for a given edition.

Selection 

A selection committee will review the applications received and select candidates based on the submitted required documents, also taking in consideration the following criteria:

• the quality of the presentation of the application, in particular the quality of language, structure of ideas and clarity of the objectives;
• the relevance of the research proposal for the Department of Justice Canada, in particular the contribution of the research to the development of knowledge on Canadian bijuralism;
• the merit of the candidate, based on the academic records for the law degree, and the Masters degree (where applicable), research experience, the candidate's publications, scholarships, prizes and awards, and references.

Obligations of the contracting parties pursuant to the selection 

Successful candidates undertake to

• submit, to the satisfaction of the Department of Justice Canada, a detailed outline of the research and a research timetable;
• modify the proposal as requested by the Department of Justice Canada, as the case may be, so as to present the detailed outline of the research and the research reports according to the terms and conditions of the contract;
• submit periodic research progress reports together with bibliographies;
• submit a preliminary research report;
• take into consideration the Department's comments and modify the preliminary research report accordingly;
• produce, to the satisfaction of the Department of Justice Canada and according to the contractual timetable, an original research report, the final version consisting of at least 50 pages. The quality of the report is to be such that it could be published in a legal journal or other publication;
• provide a summary of the research report of approximately two pages;
• provide paper and electronic copies (Microsoft Word format) of all the documents as soon as they are completed;
• comply with deadlines set out in the contract;
• submit all relevant receipts for reimbursement of allowable administrative expenses, such as photocopies, faxes and telephone calls; and
• as required, be available for meetings in Ottawa or conference calls with Department of Justice Canada officials.

The Department of Justice Canada agrees to

• finalize contractual offers within a reasonable time once the successful candidates are notified of the selection committee's decision;
• provide the necessary support and supervision for the successful completion of the research project; and
• pay the amounts according to the terms of the contract.

Note regarding copyright: According to the terms and conditions of contracts entered into by the Department of Justice Canada, intellectual property rights are vested in the contracting party (the successful candidate), subject to a non-exclusive licence granted to the Department to use, copy, translate and publish the research report on any support or medium.

Research Topics  

Each research project carried out under the program must contribute to a better understanding of issues relating to the coexistence of the civil law and the common law in Canada, to the relationship between federal law and the laws of the various provinces and, generally, to the identification of problems related to Canadian bijuralism.

Candidates may submit a research proposal on a topic of his or her choice that promotes the development of expertise in Canadian bijuralism.

It should be noted that a number of topics have already been the subject of research contracts or have been addressed in publications. Unless a new aspect of a topic can be developed, these topics cannot be chosen under the Program of Research Contracts on Canadian Bijuralism, 2007-2008 .  We invite students wishing to submit a research proposal to consult the web site www.bijurilex.gc.ca or contact us to determine whether a topic has already been the subject of a research project or discussed elsewhere. In all cases, the relevance of the research proposal for the Department of Justice will be evaluated at the time of submission.

Students wishing to submit a research proposal may also choose from the following topics that have been pre-identified by the Department of Justice Canada as being of particular interest. To this end, candidates can choose from the following topics:

It is understood that the Department of Justice reserves the right to modify any proposal, to specify the terms of the research project and to offer a research contract on this basis.

How to apply

Candidates wishing to apply for a research contract must complete the attached Application Form (PDF,) - Program of Research Contracts on Canadian Bijuralism, 2007-2008. The application form must be submitted along with the following documents:

• a resume;
• written confirmation of registration at university;
• an official transcript of academic records for the law degree, and the Masters degree (where applicable);
• two letters of reference in the attached form;
• a printed detailed research proposal including the objective of the research (maximum of 2 pages), accompanied by a preliminary bibliography and a summary of about 12 lines.

The Application Form and the required documents must be sent on or before January 31, 2007 to:

Program of Research Contracts on Canadian Bijuralism  
Department of Justice Canada
275 Sparks Street, St. Andrew's Tower, 7^th floor
Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0H8    

Letters of reference must be sent directly by the person providing the references to the above mentioned address no later than on February 9, 2007.

For further information, contact Marie-Claude Gaudreault at 613-946-8951 or by e-mail at pcrbc-prccb@justice.gc.ca.