Angela Bain represents the law school and the nation at the UN Human Rights Council Osgoode is known by many to have an excellent international law program. From courses in international human rights law and international trade regulation to the International and Transnational Law Intensive Program (ITLIP), Osgoode provides concrete means for interested students to engage in the theoretical and...
This month, Osgoode began a strategic planning phase. The strategic plan sets out the big-picture goals and direction of the law school for the next three years, and student participation in this plan is highly encouraged. In response to this call for participation, a number of Osgoode students have formed a working group made of 1L, 2L and 3L students, with the intention to encourage Osgoode to...
Oh, you wanted a twist?! Come on Osgoode! Let’s get sickening! *insert deathdrop* Get ready for the return of the Wendy Babcock Drag Show, organized by the Osgoode OUTLaws. This annual, drag-extravaganza continues to celebrate the diversity and expression of Osgoode’s LGBT2QA student body. In loving memory to Wendy Babcock, all proceeds will be donated to the Wendy Babcock Scholarship. We are...
Osgoode students and professors discuss their experiences of clerking in Canada Dreaming of becoming a Supreme Court judge? You might be suffering delusions of grandeur. Or, you might need to pursue a judicial clerkship. For members of the legal world, it is almost undeniable that clerkships, particularly at the highest court level, carry cachet and intrigue. Part of the intrigue relates to what...
A look into the fierce activist and namesake of OUTLaws’ annual drag show CW: suicide, death, mental health, violence against sex workers, violence of child welfare When asked about the highlights of Osgoode, many cite the Wendy Babcock Drag Show, a night of performances by fantastic Toronto drag queens and fun. In the past, the show has been known to be a night to remember, a creation of a...
A comment on Canada v Vavilov On December 19, the Supreme Court of Canada released its judgement in Canada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration) v Vavilov (Vavilov), upholding a decision by the Federal Court of Appeal and confirming Toronto-born resident Alexander Vavilov’s status as a Canadian citizen. Mr. Vavilov, 25, and brother Timothy, 29, saw their parents indicted nine years...
Protests against CAA/NRC and lessons from Modi’s India When India gained independence from her British oppressors in 1947, she vowed to remain secular, in contrast to neighbouring Pakistan, who chose to be a theocratic state. On December 12, 2019, India’s long-standing and cherished ideal of being a secular state suffered a massive blow when the Narendra Modi-led government passed the Citizenship...
How Ontario’s new legal aid bill will impact Parkdale Last June, the province of Ontario implemented its funding cuts to Legal Aid Ontario (LAO), impacting different sectors of the legal community. LAO provides funding to over 73 community legal clinics; one of them being Parkdale Community Legal Services (PCLS). Ontario cut LAO’s budget by $133 million in 2019 and had planned to further...
Tireless advocate rose awareness on anti-trans violence in Toronto The Osgoode community remembers and mourns for Julie Berman, 51, a transgender rights advocate in Toronto who was tragically assaulted and killed on December 27th, 2019. Berman is remembered as a fierce and tireless advocate and trans-rights activist who spent over thirty years raising awareness of anti-trans violence in...
Hello Osgoode! Grades release is a tumultuous time for students for a whole host of reasons. Whether you are deciding on what to do with your summer, choosing whether to do the 1L recruit, or wondering about clerkships to clinics, OPSC wanted to remind you that we’re here to help you navigate all of that no matter where your grades are. We’ll be sharing stories from alumni throughout...
It is a new year and time for a fresh start! On behalf of the Osgoode Women’s Network (OWN) Executive Committee, we wish to give you a few pieces of advice to kickstart this new year: Remember that balance is key. Try not to forget about your friends, family, and the hobbies that you love. Taking the time to recharge will only benefit you.Reach out if you need help! Whether it’s connecting with...
Industry, regulation, and lawyering Every time you are using your phone to pay, check a bank statement online or transfer money through an app, you are using FinTech. Short for “financial technology”, FinTech includes any innovation and automation in the use of financial services. The technology helps business owners, companies, and consumers to better manage their finances by...
Upper year advice for applications, interviews, and morale In the annual law school life cycle, January marks the beginning of the 1L summer frenzy for Osgoode students looking to find work. While the east coast and the Ottawa intellectual property recruits for 1L happened in first semester, the beginning of this semester is when students begin applying for other opportunities, mostly in...
Initial Public Offerings are arguably one of the most exciting times for both investors and the firm itself. The step of bringing a company public is an incredible milestone, allowing businesses to access what is likely the largest pool of capital available to grow and expand. The year 2019 had no shortage of IPO drama, with several tech unicorns––a unicorn being a privately held company worth at...
A Note from the Editor in Chief: We are pleased to welcome Priyanka Sharma to Obiter’s Editorial Board, as our News Editor. Her previous experience with campus newspapers, and her enthusiasm for student journalism will make her an excellent addition to our team. What is news writing? For the Obiter, it’s many things. It means reporting on the impact of legal aid cuts to the Parkdale...
It’s been a great year for the Muslim Law Students’ Association (MLSA) so far! Our biggest achievement? Finally getting a pull-out banner. It’s huge, you will definitely see it around if you haven’t already. In all seriousness, we have had a lot of fun hosting a wide variety of events this fall, and are grateful for the support and response we have been receiving from students, fellow...
As Osgoode’s main contact with Canadian Lawyers for International Human Rights, CLAIHR Osgoode has been hard at work planning and collaborating on events related to International Human Rights. For our first event, CLAIHR is partnering up with U of T’s Love 146 for their fourth annual conference on Human Trafficking. This event will be held on November 21st at 6pm in Room 1101 of the Sanford...
Have you ever wanted to actually know how your friends are doing when they waste their time playing sports instead of studying? No? Well, you get to anyway! Whew, what a month it has been for Osgoode Intramurals. These law students continue to show that they know how to do more than just read cases. About a month ago we saw Osgoode unite in the annual slo-pitch tournament that happens right near...
The LSAT has changed forever Every student at Osgoode is well aware of the LSAT (Law School Admission Test). You know, the test that we all were anxious taking? If you can recall, the LSAT was comprised of five sections: two logical reasoning sections, one reading comprehension section, one logic games section, and one writing sample section. The grade assigned would be based on three...
On Tuesday, October 29, hundreds of protestors swarmed the Toronto Public Library in response to a controversial blogger who was hosting a speaking engagement. Megan Murphy, a self proclaimed feminist, had a sold out talk at the library that evening. However, Murphy’s views on transgender women have seriously offended the LGBTQ+ community. She argues that womanhood is...
The slogan “the personal is political” began with the second-wave feminist movement and was popularized by Carol Hanisch. It referred to the idea of ‘consciousness raising’, where women would gather together to discuss the problems within their homes and marriages in order to realize that these problems were universal. Whereas in the 1960s, the phrase was designed to draw attention to...
As a lover of video games, I have always been enamoured by the earliest days of gaming. I grew up with an aging Nintendo Entertainment System in my household – the old grey-and-black box one would use to play the classics of the late 1980’s like Super Mario Bros. or the original Legend of Zelda – and have ever-since had a passion for retro games and gaming. However, until very...
On Wednesday, October 16, 2019, The Osgoode Women’s Network (OWN) held its annual career panel. Every year, OWN invites a diverse panel of lawyers who identify as women to Osgoode Hall Law School to share their journey and experiences practicing law. The panel touches upon various topics, including: entering the profession, what it is like being a woman in law, work-life balance, and overcoming...
On the Occasion of Remembrance Day Originally published in the Fall 1945 issue of Obiter Dicta (Vol. 19.1), this was the cover story, announcing the end of World War 2. Attributed to “R. Wilson,” this article came from a future Queen’s Counsel, who just returned from service with the Navy. Mr. Wilson passed away April 30, 1979. At the time of Publication, Robert M. Sedgewick was the Editor, and R...
How the Criminal Justice System Fails the Mentally Ill On December 4th, 2016, Soleiman Faqiri was taken into temporary custody at the Central East Correctional Centre in Lindsay, Ontario. A judge had ordered his transfer to a mental health facility, the Ontario Shores Centre for Mental Health. However, on December 15th, he was found dead in his cell. “It was horrible,” his brother, Yusuf Faqiri...