Today, with mixed emotions, the Canadian Centre for Professional Legal Education (CPLED) Board of Directors announces that Dr. Kara Mitchelmore, CPLED Chief Executive Officer (CEO), has formally stepped down from her role. As you may be aware, Dr. Mitchelmore has been on a leave of absence since last year.

“Throughout her tenure with CPLED, Dr. Mitchelmore achieved significant growth and incredible success, and we owe much to her leadership, vision, and dedication. She has been a driving force behind the organization’s success and has inspired her staff to commit to unwavering excellence,” says Don Thompson, KC, Board Chair.

Under Dr. Mitchelmore’s leadership, CPLED was reimagined and launched a new innovative Bar admission program, the Practice Readiness Education Program (PREP), achieving the target launch date during a global pandemic and within budget. CPLED expanded its participating provinces to include Nova Scotia and launched the Legal Research and Writing (LRW) course across Canada. The Board of Directors is deeply grateful for all Dr. Mitchelmore has done for CPLED and will miss her wisdom, insights, and leadership.

The CPLED Board of Directors has decided that Liza Worthington will be CPLED’s new CEO, effective immediately. Liza has served as Acting CEO for the past year and has shown exceptional leadership. She brings a wealth of institutional knowledge, having served as Operations Manager with CPLED since 2018.

Liza is a specialist in leading and delivering professional education programs. Her prior experience includes overseeing undergraduate, graduate, and continuous professional development programs at the University of Calgary’s Department of Family Medicine and the pre-certification programs at Chartered Professional Accountants (CPA) Alberta and Certified Management Accountants (CMA) Alberta. She is a Fellow of the CPA and CMA and received her MBA from Heriot-Watt University in 2021. Liza is a Board member of YMCA Calgary. We are confident that Liza will continue to propel CPLED forward.

About CPLED

The Canadian Centre for Professional Legal Education (CPLED) is a non-profit organization that provides the training needed before being called to the Bars of Alberta, Manitoba, Nova Scotia, and Saskatchewan. The CPLED Board of Directors includes representatives from the four respective provincial law societies and leaders within the legal and education professions.