Environmental Sustainability in the Sustainable Development Goals International discussions on environmental sustainability has increased since the unanimous passing of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in September. Given the SDG’s broad approach to addressing the connection between international development and the environment, countries are looking for opportunities to discuss realistic...
Everyday Legal Problems Survey In order to explore the nature and extent of self-reported legal problems by Canadian adults eighteen years of age and older, the Canadian Forum on Civil Justice (CFCJ), located at Osgoode Hall Law School, conducted a national legal problems survey. The logic underlying the decision to pursue this research is that a legal problem does not begin when first contact is...
The Canadian Forum on Civil Justice (CFCJ) at Osgoode Hall Law School has been dedicated to access to justice research and advocacy since it first opened its doors seventeen years ago. In keeping with this mandate, CFCJ Senior Research Fellow, Dr. Albert Currie, recently released an evaluation report on the Halton Community Legal Services’ (HCLS) Legal Health Check-Up (LHC) pilot project; an...
CANADA ELECTS TRUDEAU Today is a historic day for Canada, ourselves, and the world. Yes, the release of the new Star Wars trailer will most certainly be marked in history second only to the release of the movie itself. However, a “secondary” piece of news occurred yesterday which does demand a bit of attention, at least until 18 December 2015. As it turns out, Canada has a new Prime Minister...
When is a War Crime not a War Crime? On 15 October, international medical humanitarian organization Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF)—better known in the English-speaking world as Doctors Without Borders—launched a petition to encourage the United States to consent to an independent investigation into the American bombing of a hospital in Afghanistan. On 3 October, American airstrikes targeted the...
Current Students Host Oz Applicants Osgoode Hall’s Black Law Students Association (BLSA) hosted their annual Opportunity Day event on Saturday 17 October. BLSA members welcomed nearly sixty event participants, most of whom are people of colour, and all of whom are planning to apply to law school within the next year or two. “Opportunity Day is a chance for current undergraduates, high school...
Let the Complainant-Whacking Commence Correction: This article was intended for publication in Volume 89, Issue 4. On 2 October 2015, Jian Ghomeshi, flanked by his lawyers and surrounded by police, entered Old City Hall where he plead not guilty to four counts of sexual assault and one count of choking. The plea should come as no surprise; Ghomeshi published a Facebook post shortly after the...
Where do we actually stand on this issue? Canada likes to pride itself for being progressive on refugee issues, but is it really as kind and open to refugees as we would like to believe? The saddening story of Alan Kurdi has raised some doubts about Canada’s self-image. Tima Kurdi had attempted to sponsor her brother Mohammed and his family to come to Canada, but did not have enough money to...
The Canadian Forum on Civil Justice (CFCJ) is a national non-profit organization that is dedicated to access to justice research and advocacy. The CFCJ was founded in 1998 and moved to Osgoode Hall Law School at York University in 2011. Earlier this year the CFCJ launched the Access to Justice Research Network (AJRN), an interactive online platform that invites the discussion and dissemination of...
The Stories Behind Law From 10 September to 13 September, approximately forty students and faculty members from Osgoode Hall Law School traveled to Neyaashiinigmiing (Cape Croker), about four hours north of Toronto. Professor Andrée Boiselle worked with John Borrows, his daughter Lindsay Borrows, and their community, the Chippewas of Nawash, to organize the camp and welcome us to...
Will an iconic piece of Toronto architecture turn into a shopping centre? Last year in Professor Berger’s criminal law class, a few friends and I went down to Old City Hall for the afternoon to watch bail court for an assignment. A few of us had never entered the building before, so we were pretty excited to see what it looked like, and since the facade of the Old City Hall is pretty remarkable...
As many people have already heard, Russia has joined the war in Syria, where Russian warplanes have carried out airstrikes on opponents of President Bashar al-Assad. This recent addition to the four year civil war in Syria has added new elements, which continue to further the suffering for many civilians. Russia claimed that they are targeting the Islamic State (IS) and “other terrorists” when on...
Osgoode Women’s Network raises $3,760 “OWN Ran for the Cure and raised $3,760! The OWN Executive would like to extend a HUGE thank you to everyone who participated in some way, shape or form with this year’s CIBC Run for the Cure 2015. As a student club at Osgoode, we were able to raise $3,760, which surpasses last year’s fundraising efforts by over $1,000! $317 was raised from the...
In what’s shaping up to be the biggest auto industry shake-up of the decade, Volkswagen’s (VW) emissions scandal has—by this point —obliterated over 30 billion USD of the company’s shares, and forced CEO Martin Winterkorn to resign. In late September, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) revealed that VW cars being sold in the US were rigged with stealth software that allowed the cars to...
A look at this month’s most pointless appeals In less than twenty-four hours, appeals were announced in two cases that made massive headlines both in Canada and the US. After the Federal Court of Appeal held that the ban against wearing niqabs during citizenship ceremonies is unlawful, the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration announced on 18 September 2015 that they would appeal this decision...
Learning from the Interim Federal Health Program Canada is currently witnessing a revitalized interest in the plight of refugees, starting in early September when the tragic photos of the Kurdi family’s attempt to escape Syria were widely published in the news and shared on social media. Since then, a large number of different non-government organizations, activist groups, and public...
On 5 September 2015, news broke of threats directed against “women and feminists” at the University of Toronto. It was right before the weekend, and on the weekends, I do my studying at UofT. My thought process was as follows: should I risk my personal safety when I can simply study elsewhere? My poor mother! If I go to Robarts, there are lots of good hiding places and several exits, so I have a...
NEARLY 350 OFFICERS DISCIPLINED The police have high expectations placed upon them, as they are ideally a group of protectors, defenders, and enforcement of the law. While the majority of police may still meet these high expectations, a Toronto Star investigation recently uncovered some “hidden truths” in how the minority of police officers who do act badly are being disciplined and reprimanded...
Moving Forward After the TRC Report Over the past summer, the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) put forth ninety-nine recommendations to address the ongoing historical violence Indigenous people face. Issues addressed include the continuing legacy of the residential school system, missing and murdered Indigenous women, and the attempt to restore relations between Indigenous people and...
Can Public Opinion Change Canada’s Refugee Laws? On 2 September 2015, the bodies of brothers Alan (3) and Galib (5) Kurdi washed up on a beach in southern Turkey. The boys drowned alongside their mother Rehan after the boat carrying them and eight other Syrian refugees capsized on its way from Turkey to Greece. Photos of Alan Kurdi’s body lying facedown in the surf are now ubiquitous in the...
A Health Injustice for Congolese The humanitarian aid organization, Médecins Sans Frontiers (MSF), reports the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is currently fighting its largest measles epidemic since 2011. This past year, MSF reported over 30,000 measles cases and over 320 deaths in the DRC, with numbers steadily increasing due to a lackluster response from local and international communities...
Being a summer caseworker at Parkdale Community Legal Services (“PCLS”) has historically brought with it experiences and opportunities that are interesting, exciting, and challenging. Students are expected to carry at least 20 active files and taught necessary lawyering skills, while also dedicating time to community legal work and campaigns for systemic change. This summer, my experience at PCLS...
THE ROLE OF LAWYERS IN THE DUFFY SCANDAL A recent analysis of Twitter data found that Stephen Harper’s name was mentioned more times in connection with the Mike Duffy trial than the economy. This does not bode well for Mr. Harper, considering his campaign message has been centred on the Conservative Party’s economic record. It is clear that the trial of former Senator Mike Duffy has eclipsed the...
Last September, I was fortunate to be offered the opportunity to speak at the 2nd annual Pay It Forward legal networking event. At the time, I was working on my first business, the Legal Information Network of Canada, and just starting to solidify my career path. I was contacted by event founders Rena Sangha and Pawan Sahi and asked to talk about my experience growing a legal start-up and my...
Being a summer caseworker at Parkdale Community Legal Services (“PCLS”) has historically brought with it experiences and opportunities that are interesting, exciting, and challenging. Students are expected to carry at least twenty active files and taught necessary lawyering skills, while also dedicating time to community legal work and campaigns for systemic change. This summer, my experience at...