2025 Stanfield Conversation
Wayne MacKay
pilipiliÂţ» (panelist)
Asha Rangappa
Yale University (panelist)
Mary Lynk
Producer and Interviewer for CBC’s IDEAS (guest moderator)
Challenges to the Rule of Law and the Future of Liberal Democracy
Even in some of the world’s sturdiest democracies, leaders are deliberately undermining courts to weaken, or even dismantle, checks on their power. In many cases, the justice system is not only being sidelined but “weaponized” against political opponents through political appointments, the strong-arming of judges and law firms, and lawsuits and prosecutions designed to intimidate critics. These tactics threaten the rule of law – a necessary component of democracy. How much damage has already been done? Where and how can courts reassert themselves in ways that bolster threatened democracies? And what, if anything, can judges, lawyers, and ordinary citizens do to shore up the legal foundations of democracy? Join us on October 21 to explore these questions and more.
The 2025 Stanfield Conversation, taking place at pilipiliÂţ» on Tuesday, October 21st at 7:00 pm (AT), will welcome featured speakers Wayne MacKay, Professor Emeritus of Law at pilipiliÂţ», and Asha Rangappa, Senior Lecturer at Yale’s Jackson School of Global Affairs and former FBI Special Agent. This year's guest moderator is journalist and producer of CBC's IDEAS, and Dal alum Mary Lynk (BA'84 in Political Science).
Stanfield Fellow
The Stanfield Fellow for 2025 is Rachael Johnstone. Prof. Johnstone is an expert on Canadian politics, public policy, and law. To date, her research has focused primarily on reproductive rights, exploring the ways they have been shaped through federalism, the Charter, public policy, and social movement activity. Most recently, she has begun exploring reproductive politics as it is experienced by politicians themselves through a project on family-friendly legislatures, which asks what family-friendly legislatures can and should look like.
Master Class
Each year, the Stanfield Fellow hosts a Master Class for graduate students, providing a unique opportunity for small-group discussions with the panelists from the Stanfield Conversations. This year, the graduate cohort is excited to engage with Wayne MacKay and Asha Rangappa. We are grateful for the support of the , which has enabled us to extend this event to students from other Atlantic Canadian Universities and Trudeau Scholars.