Giving to Queen's
Queen's University SitemapRobert Wallace Best Fund in Law
![[Andrew Best and Neelam Singh]](qubs/BestsAndSingh2011.JPG "Andrew and Neelam")
Exchange award donor Andrew Best
(middle), Law '81, and his wife Dr. Maithili
Wilson, Sc '81, meet Neelam Singh in
Kingston on April 9, 2011.
Photo by Brianna Butchart.
A new award that helps to bring law students from India and South Africa to Queen’s has created unique cultural exchange experiences as well as the opportunity to study the finer points of law from a global perspective. The Robert Wallace Best Fund provides financial support for law students in India and South Africa to study at Queen’s – but it also offers an incomparable opportunity for Queen’s students to gain valuable knowledge from their international peers.
Andrew Best (Law ’81) created the Robert Wallace Best Fund in honour of his father (a Sci ’50 graduate) as a way to enhance the exchange of ideas on campus and to encourage relationships between Queen’s and schools in India and South Africa. Although Queen’s law students often go on exchange, students from partnering institutions can find it challenging to manage a reciprocal visit.
Neelam Singh, a student at the Jindal Global Law School in Delhi and the first recipient of the award, attended class at Queen’s from January – April 2011 to study various subjects including family law, her main area of interest. “My experience at Queen’s was very enriching,” she says. “I got the opportunity to understand a new culture and had the privilege of studying with some of the best professors. Without this financial support, it would not have been possible for me to come to Queen’s .”
Singh also added value back to the Queen’s campus by providing a comparative perspective within the classroom. “She introduced our Advanced Family Law class to a very different system in India, where different family and succession laws apply to each religious group,” says Professor Martha Bailey.
Singh will now have the opportunity to play host – as part of the exchange, five Queen’s students will be joining her on the Jindal campus in 2011/12. One of those students, Amrita Singh, Law ’12, is looking forward to studying in a part of the world that is experiencing exceptional growth. “Neelam was an excellent ambassador for Jindal,” she says. “I hope that I can be as excellent an ambassador for Queen’s .”