Justice Cromwell’s departure will test the Liberal government’s call for transparency Justice Thomas Albert Cromwell: “Being a judge is both a great privilege and an onerous responsibility” The news that Justice Cromwell had announced he will retire from the Supreme Court of Canada (SCC) on 1 September of this year—twelve years before the mandatory retirement age of 75—seemed to come out of...
Bringing Awareness to the ‘Gap’ A brief look at how stereotypes, myths & seduction affect the application of law in sexual assault cases By Jessica Zita Law has power in constructing knowledge and ideology, yet it functions in dynamic tension with social structure and systems that affect its operation. –Ruthy Lazar If the outpouring of dialogue inspired by Ghomeshi indicates anything, it is...
Before starting law school, I diligently researched what it was like to enter law school as a mature student. I found pitifully few accounts from those that had succeeded in the role, and many that just dropped off without a concrete indicator of where their journey ended. As I near the end of my three years at Osgoode, I can offer evidence (just what every law student needs) that success as a...
I have a problem. Okay, I have lots of problems, but this article is going to focus on just one of them. I’m an information junkie. Sometimes, that leads me to learn about beliefs, attitudes and behaviours that are downright disturbing. Call it a morbid fascination with the deranged, or a waste of time for someone who almost certainly has better things to do. In any case, I’ve habitually gazed...
Alarming Attrition Rates for Women in Criminal Law I once commented to one of my Criminal Procedure professors that the Crown’s office seems like a better place for women who want to practice criminal law. My professor, who is a female Ontario Court of Justice judge and former defence attorney, responded that if all the women who want to practice criminal law end up working for the Crown, the...
Yes means yes and ask again anyway As awkward a subject as it may be, I want to discuss the Jian Ghomeshi trial. Since I’m about as subtle as a cinder block thrown through a plate glass window, I guess I’ll start with something that’s been particularly contentious: Marie Henein’s impassioned defence of Mr. Ghomeshi, and her often brutal approach to examining the complainants. I know a number of...
250 years of ineffective forest management doesn’t mean that we can’t get it right in the future A study published in last week’s issue of Science, a prestigious scientific journal,seemed to uncover another negative consequence of the human footprint: 250 years of forest management in Europe didn’t remove carbon from the planet, but added to it. The three European authors of this study simulated...
Awkward Confessions from a Mostly-Reformed Dope Fiend Justin Trudeau’s plan to legalize marijuana possession has created quite the stir in the last year or so, and frankly, it’s about time we unscheduled the stuff. I don’t actually have much of a dog in this particular fight. I’m not going to be a blatant liar and say I don’t ever partake, but to say legalization would have any impact on my day...
What the X-Files Reboot Tells us About the Persistence of the Gendered Wage Gap Bradley Cooper made headlines last autumn when he vowed to do more to address the gendered wage gap by working with his female co-stars to negotiate for equal pay for lead roles in films. His remarks came in response to Jennifer Lawrence’s public statements earlier in the month, which expressed both her frustration at...
A Make or Break Moment for Sanity in Politics 2016 looks like it’s going to be a pretty weird year for politics; if current trends continue, it’s only going to get weirder. Canada’s mostly avoided the worst of the lunacy that seems to be taking hold of the United States, but between Kevin O’Leary thinking about running for the federal Conservative leadership and Doug Ford salivating at the...
Over $2.3 million in bursary money distributed in the Fall process One of the first real deadlines Osgoode students face at the beginning of the school year is not an academic one; rather, it is the deadline to submit one’s bursary application. As students are acutely aware, law school is expensive and many look to Osgoode’s financial aid to offset some of the cost. On average, bursary applicants...
Adjunct Professors: carrying the majority of the teaching load, at a fraction of the cost Hallway conversations at Osgoode follow a typical pattern in the early weeks of the semester: “Good to see you,” “how are things?” “What courses are you in?” The answer to the last question can be up-in-the-air as students try to arrange the perfect schedule. This leads to inquiries about the professors...
Most students at Osgoode know that once upon a time new law students were required to learn Latin. I heard this little bit of trivia in an Ethical Lawyering class during my first week. The point that my professor was trying to make was that the Law Society used to throw up all kinds of barriers to keep “certain people” out of the practice. The idea was absurd enough that my classmates...
Exploring the Paradox This article is not for everyone. If you are looking for an in-depth analysis of a Supreme Court case, or a cover on how to secure that Bay Street interview, move right along! If you are going to stay, however, keep in mind that most of the generalizations made here are meant to be illustrative of the greater point and, really, it’s not that serious. It has recently occurred...
Breaking Through I. Lay of the Land There are broader discussions about the need to take mental illness seriously in the legal profession, but in the din we may lose track of our peers for whom the topic is a lived reality. Rather than critiquing our system and proposing systemic solutions, I want to speak here about what resources there for those of us who are struggling and the concomitant...
The continued downfall of a charitable empire Having to live paycheck-to-paycheck is a harsh reality for many, and one of the scariest thoughts for a low-income worker is arriving to your job and seeing that it no longer exists. This happened on 17 January 2016 to the workers at Goodwill Toronto, when it closed sixteen stores and ten donation centres in the GTA, leaving 430 front line employees...
Do we have a Progressive New Prime Minister, or is it just a Honeymoon Period? From Syrian refugees to Indigenous relations to climate change, Canada’s new Liberal government’s policies have been a radical departure from the Harper government’s way of doing things – and these policies have got the international community talking. A new year, a new Prime Minister, a new start – but how long...
To say law school is a stressful environment would be both an understatement and a statement so ridiculously, blatantly obvious that you’d probably dislocate your jaw trying to say “duhhhhh” emphatically enough. I overheard someone say, “everyone in law school has an anxiety disorder: it’s called law school.” We end up balancing about 500 pages of readings a week with social and family...
The importance of a memorable judicial writing style Judge Gail Standish, a former intellectual property lawyer and current district judge in California, made headlines last week with her dismissal of a copyright claim against Taylor Swift’s “Shake it Off.” Swift was being sued for $42 million in damages by musician Jesse Braham, who claimed that the repetition of “players gonna play,” “haters...
Why OSAII Became Possible Thank you Osgoode for making social justice relevant and possible in today’s climate of corporate success, political correctness, and the social stratification. Thank you to the Osgoode staff, faculty, and the students for making the fight for what is right possible, supportive, and enjoyable. When I decided to apply for law school, it was after decades of being exposed...
Law and Technology The legal market is in an unprecedented state of flux. Over the next two decades, the way in which lawyers work will change radically. Entirely new ways of delivering legal services will emerge, new providers will enter the market, and the workings of our courts will be transformed. Unless they adapt, many traditional legal businesses will fail. On the other hand, a whole set...
When Rape Mythology Invades Judicial Reasons Justice Robin Camp is the latest example of the pernicious effects of rape mythology in the courtroom. His trial decision in the recent sexual assault case R. v. Wagar is replete with irrational and antiquated notions bereft of moral authority. The complainant, who was by all accounts incapable of giving consent, testified that she had repeatedly said...
Warning: Recent Changes to Facebook Privacy Settings May Have Made Your Old Posts Public Social media can be a powerful tool, but it also can be like that ex you keep going back to but you know you shouldn’t. For example, on those days when you have an essay to write, exams to study for, a laundry list of things to do, and you have spent hours on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat, etc. In...
A ranking of some Liberal campaign promises Justin Trudeau will have been sworn in as the twenty-third prime minister on 4 November, so it’s probably a good time to stop staring into his sweltering gaze and take a look at some of the Liberal campaign promises made throughout that extra-long campaign. Were the promises sincere, or simply cheap talk in an attempt to win an election? Although I have...
How the Curve Bleaches Out Intellectual Diversity and Entrenches Class Structure “In the wild struggle for existence,” writes Oscar Wilde, “we want to have something that endures, and so we fill our minds with rubbish and facts, in the silly hope of keeping our place.” The Picture of Dorian Gray was not intended as a commentary on the pursuit of legal education; yet it furnishes, albeit...