Jennifer Koshan

Jennifer Koshan

Positions

UCalgary Research Excellence Chair

University of Calgary

Professor

Faculty of Law

Contact information

Email

koshan@ucalgary.ca

Web presence

ABlawg

SSRN

Bluesky

Phone number

Office: 403.220.7329

Location

Office: MFH4311

Background

Educational Background

LLM University of British Columbia, 1997

LLB University of Calgary, 1988

BSc University of Calgary, 1985

Biography

Jennifer Koshan is a Professor in the Faculty of Law and Research Excellence Chair in Family Violence at the University of Calgary. Her research and teaching focus on equality and human rights and legal responses to gender-based violence (GBV). Professor Koshan’s publications on equality rights and GBV have been cited numerous times by the Supreme Court of Canada (most recently in Kruk and Dickson in 2024). In 2023, Professor Koshan and colleagues completed a major project funded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council, “Domestic Violence and Access to Justice Across Multiple Legal Systems.” This research collaboration is continuing with a case law review of the 2021 Divorce Act reforms, focusing on coercive control. Professor Koshan is also currently collaborating with a child and youth advocacy centre on a transdisciplinary project on trauma-informed approaches to justice in child abuse cases, funded by Mitacs and the Alberta Children’s Hospital Research Institute (ACHRI). She recently engaged in an interprofessional education project funded by the Taylor Institute with colleagues in the Faculties of Nursing and Social Work that developed virtual gaming simulation modules on GBV. Professor Koshan regularly works with the Women’s Legal Education and Action Fund (LEAF), National Association of Women and the Law (NAWL), National Judicial Institute, and The Equality Effect on equality rights and GBV litigation, law reform, and professional education curricula. 

Research

Areas of Research

Constitutional Law, Equality and Human Rights, State Responses to Interpersonal Violence, Feminist Legal Theory, Public Interest Advocacy

Courses

Course number Course title Semester
LAW 691 Gender-Based Violence and the Law Winter 2026

Awards

  • Lillian Ruby Clements Trailblazer Award, Alberta Civil Trial Lawyers Association . 2024
  • Ramon John Hnatyshyn Award, Canadian Bar Association . 2020
  • Distinguished Service Award (Legal Scholarship), Canadian Bar Association (Alberta Branch) and Law Society of Alberta. 2020
  • Great Supervisor Award, University of Calgary Faculty of Graduate Studies . 2019
  • PEAK Scholar, University of Calgary. 2018
  • Students' Union Teaching Award, Honourable Mention, University of Calgary. 2018
  • Women in Law Leadership Award, Association of Women Lawyers and The Counsel Network. 2016
  • Students' Union Teaching Award, Honourable Mention, University of Calgary. 2015
  • Academic Excellence Prize, Canadian Association of Law Teachers . 2013
  • Canadian Law Blogs Award for Best Law School / Law Professor Blog (shared), 2013
  • Canadian Law Blogs Award for Best Law School / Law Professor Blog (shared), 2012
  • Students' Union Teaching Excellence Award, University of Calgary. 2010
  • The University of Calgary Faculty Association (TUCFA) Community Service Award, 2004

Publications

  • “The Equality Rights”. Jennifer Koshan, William Black and Lynn Smith. in Errol Mendes and Stephane Bealuac, eds, The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, 6th ed, LexisNexis Canada. (2025)
  • “Section 15: Equality Rights”. Jennifer Koshan and Joshua Sealy-Harrington. in Asha Kaushal, Howard Kislowicz & Richard Moon, eds, The Canadian Constitutional Law Open Access Casebook – 2nd Edition, Can LII. (2025)
  • “Unhappy Families and Lying Wives: Myths and Stereotypes about Intimate Partner Violence”. Jennifer Koshan. in Rebecca Probert and Sharon Thompson, eds, Research Handbook on Marriage and Cohabitation, Edward Elgar Publishing. 385-398. (2024)
  • “Women’s Charter Equality at the Supreme Court of Canada: Surprising Losses or Anticipated Failures?”. Jennifer Koshan and Jonnette Watson Hamilton. in Kislowicz, Froc, and Moon, eds, The Surprising Constitution, UBC Press. 237-259. (2024)
  • Domestic Violence and Access to Justice Within and Across Intersecting Legal Systems. Jennifer Koshan, Janet Mosher, Wanda Wiegers, Wendy Chan, and Michaela Keet. 35:1 Can J Family Law Special Volume. 1-358. (2023)
  • Domestic Violence and Access to Justice: A Mapping of Relevant Laws, Policies and Justice System Components Across Canada . Jennifer Koshan, Janet Mosher and Wanda Wiegers. 2020 Can LII Docs 3160; 3rd edition. (2022)
  • “Chapter 23: Equality Rights”. Jennifer Koshan and Jonnette Watson Hamilton. The Constitutional Law Group, Canadian Constitutional Law (6th edition, Emond Montgomery). 1177-1270. (2022)
  • Rewriting Equality Part II: Women’s Court of Canada Judgments. Jennifer Koshan and Denise Reaume, editors. 30(2) Can J Women & the Law. 1-367. (2018)
  • “The Costs of Justice in Domestic Violence Cases: Mapping Canadian Law and Policy”. Jennifer Koshan, Janet Mosher and Wanda Wiegers. in Trevor Farrow & Les Jacobs, eds, The Justice Crisis: The Cost and Value of Accessing Law . (2020)
  • The Right to Say No: Marital Rape and Law Reform in Canada, Ghana, Kenya and Malawi. Melanie Randall, Jennifer Koshan and Patricia Nyaundi, eds. Hart Publishing. (2017)
  • "Farming the Constitution: The Illegality of Excluding Alberta Farmworkers from Labour and Employment Legislation". Jennifer Koshan et al. in S McDonald and B Barnetson (eds), Farm Workers in Western Canada: Injustices and Activism. (2016)

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