UCalgary Law welcome new director of foreign-trained lawyers program

The Faculty of Law is pleased to welcome Dr. Kellinde Wrightson, PhD, to the law school, as the new Director of the Foreign-Trained Lawyers Program and Associate Professor. In her role, Kellinde will oversee the new program for internationally-trained lawyers on their journey to earning accreditation to practice law in Canada. 

Kellinde is an Australian-Canadian award-winning scholar, lawyer and published novelist. She holds a Bachelor of Arts with First Class Honours and the University Gold Medal as well as a PhD in English Literature from the University of Sydney, Australia, and a Bachelor of Laws and a Graduate Diploma in Legal Practice from the University of Wollongong, Australia. Kellinde clerked at the Supreme Court of New South Wales, Australia, where she was appointed to the prestigious position of Researcher to the Chief Judge in the Equity Division. Kellinde has many years of experience as a university professor in Australia. She has published many articles in peer-reviewed international journals. She is the recipient of eighteen awards and accolades for excellence, including the Australian Bicentennial Award, Federation of University Women Award, Australian Research Council Post-doctoral Fellowship, British Library Centre for the Book Fellow, University of Sydney Fellow, Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity Writer Residency, and Guest Author at the Sydney Writers’ Festival.

Kellinde has lived and worked in Australia, England, France, Denmark, and Iceland before settling in Alberta. After completing the requalification process to practice law in Alberta, Kellinde was admitted to the Alberta Bar in 2018. For the past three years she has practiced civil litigation in a mid-sized Calgary firm before taking up the position of Director of the Foreign Trained Lawyers Program.

Kellinde is an enthusiastic skier. She learnt to ski after moving to Canada on the advice of a Canadian friend who recommended it as a tool for managing the winters. Kellinde took that advice and fell in love with the sport and the country. She qualified as a ski instructor two seasons after learning to ski and currently working towards her Level 2 qualification.