In conversation with Adam Knauff, Wade Poziomka, and Camille Labchuk Adam Knauff is an ethical vegan and a firefighter who has been employed with Ontario’s Ministry of Natural Resources for over a decade. In July 2017, Adam was deployed to Williams Lake, British Columbia. Meals at the base camp were provided by a company contracted by the Ministry. He relied on vegan meals from the Ministry, and...
Learning About to Learn From It’s no surprise that a Supreme Court Justice has a lot to teach an audience of eager law students, but the Honourable Justice Iacobucci showed that there is much more to learn about the law and Canada by listening to the stories of how we all came to be. In an event hosted by the Canadian Italian Association of Osgoode (CIAO), an Osgoode club whose goal is to empower...
What Happened at OWN’s Biggest Event of the Year? On Tuesday February, 25, 2020, the Osgoode Women’s Network (“OWN”) held its seventh annual “OWN Your Career,” event, the Network’s culminating event of the school year, at the Gladstone Hotel. This evening was designed for two main purposes: to provide a chance for Osgoode’s women-identifying students to network and make new connections with women...
Soon Osgoode will be abuzz with the L&L spring elections. You’ll hear candidates making their best pitch as to why they should represent the student body; you’ll see posters of candidates around the building; you’ll be diligently watching the all-candidates debate (which is probably even more popular than the US presidential debate). You may be wondering to yourself now whether you should...
On the importance of an anti-oppression lens in ELGC and beyond Last month, 1L students kicked off their Winter semester with two weeks of Osgoode’s mandatory course, Ethical Lawyering in a Global Community. Known to most as ELGC, the course aims to orient new law students to professional norms and ethical issues faced by lawyers. The course was introduced to Osgoode in 2006 and covers topics...
The Osgoode Chapter of the Canadian Lawyers for International Human Rights (CLAIHR) is hosting its first networking event of the semester and it is one you do not want to miss! The theme will be Transnational Corporations and Social Responsibility. Those who are passionate or interested in human rights, Indigenous, environmental, public interest, or international law are encouraged to attend...
Heads up Osgoode! The Competition Law Society (TCLS) is hosting an exciting contest after reading week! We will be calling for short submissions––it can literally be as short as a Facebook post––about a hot competition related issue that you have come across! What kind of issues would be considered relevant to competition law, you might ask? Here are some examples of topics that you...
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...