I thought that I had an invincible immune system. I managed to last the past few years without getting COVID, despite my run-ins with people close to me contracting it. But whenever I did hear about others having COVID, I was told that they had ‘mild’ symptoms or that while it was terrible while it lasted, it was short-lived, lasting only a week. I stayed up to date with my vaccines, but I was...
Advertisement As law students, we have inevitably been thrown into the various neatly organised and spelt out fact patterns in cases. However, the real world functions far differently from that. In a way, courts act as a source of authority over what actually happened, regardless of the veracity of what is stated in judgments. I write this to urge you to think critically about your role as future...
The journey to the midpoint of my law school career at Osgoode has been far from linear, marked by traumas of both unforeseen violence and childhood trauma that have undoubtedly shaped my perspective. A random act of violence in 2017 nearly cost me my life, an event that profoundly altered my trajectory and introduced me to living with a disability. This, coupled with adverse childhood...
The Vital Role of Family Court Support Workers November is Woman Abuse Prevention Month and with the goals of education and awareness in mind, it is important to acknowledge the legal resources available for survivors in Ontario. The family court process is rarely a pleasant experience, especially when there is a history of domestic violence between litigants. For this reason, Family Court...
It should go without saying that affordability issues in Canada are on the rise, leaving many Canadians struggling to just get by. Not only is it difficult to find an affordable place to live, but it is also difficult to buy groceries or go out and to eat. Meanwhile, grocery store corporations such as Loblaw Companies Ltd. and Metro Inc. have continued to enjoy a rise in profits during the third...
Retraumatizing victims of abuse in court occurs less frequently because of trauma-informed litigation, but it must be eliminated if we want to realize the justice we claim to pursue in the Canadian legal system. If I must be honest, I was preparing to write about Osgoode’s neglect of social justice-related legal work. Even though that conversation is important, I believe this topic is also in...
As a 3L, I’m acutely aware of how fast approaching the “real life” working world is. Soon enough, all of us law students will reach the end of our law school journey and move on to the real world, where most of us will dedicate most of our lives working as attorneys for a firm, or maybe even start our own. Maybe some of us will leave the legal field altogether, or not even bother to try to become...
If you’re reading this, you probably thought you would never have to think about the LSAT ever again. But what you didn’t account for was that the LSAT, like most things in this profession, is constantly changing. Additionally, opinionated students don’t know how to keep their thoughts to themselves. Well, I apologize, but I think this short piece is worth a quick read. The Law...
*Disclaimer: there is no sugar-coating in this article. This is the real deal. We don’t carry our experiences well in law school. Perhaps the good ones— yes— but the mediocre ones, not so much. Don’t worry, I’m not here to give you a depressing story about this three-year journey from a jaded 3L. Quite the contrary. I want to show you that law school can be an enjoyable experience (who would have...
Around a year ago, I developed a surprising taste for a specific band’s sound that I otherwise never thought I would have enjoyed. What’s all the more peculiar is that this particular band is still very much part of the super-genre I listen to: Rock ‘n roll. Rock is the bread and butter of my musical taste—or “dad rock” to be specific (even if disparaging). Even those outsiders to the genre would...
Some forms of legal research routinely take place in the legal profession. For example, research into the facts of a dispute, prior rulings, relevant regulations, and precedent often informs legal strategy and generally precedes the presentation of a case or position. Legal research databases that facilitate everyday access to primary and secondary sources of law are staples of today’s law...
Liberal democracy as the synthesis The Vanguard of Illiberalism Buckles With the dawn of a new decade, it appeared that the sun of the liberal democratic order was finally setting, and the phoenix of populism was rising. Then came 2022. The failure of the Freedom Convoy It began in Canada, with the Freedom Convoy protests in early February. What was supposed to be a revolutionary moment of...
The importance of highlighting Black mental health in law school In 2017, I was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), moderate depression, and general anxiety disorder. I was at the beginning of my second year of my undergraduate studies, and I felt like a failure in my life. The people closest to me thought I was exaggerating; “How could I get PTSD when I had not been to war...
The growth of “side hustle” culture and the desire to monetize hobbies What is the value of a hobby? Ask yourself that question and think about the way you frame your answer. If your first instinct is something along the lines of “it brings happiness or fulfillment” or “it satiates the feeling of ennui in my life,” then you will find yourself met with an exasperated sigh from judgmental on...
In June 2016, the federal government passed legislation that allows adults to request medical assistance in dying (MAID). On 2 February 2023, the federal government introduced legislation to extend the temporary exclusion of eligibility where a person’s sole medical condition is a mental illness for an additional year. In other words, people solely suffering from mental illness will be able to...
I was going to review the Economic Constitution of Canada—but I forgot. I guess I watched too many episodes, mooting, and of course, the grand prize, 1L. So that will be coming in the next issue. Instead, I will focus on something controversial that hopefully angers you, excites you, or at the very least causes some chaos. I say that we as a society have become in many ways undeserving of...
Car-window smashing in Hamilton: A microcosm of archaic approaches to community problem solving At the risk of sounding like a familiar graphic t-shirt or hoodie: Hamilton is my home. I moved to the city in 2017, drawn to the blackened, flaming chimneys that straddle Nikola Tesla Boulevard, and line the shore of the harbour. Though the sight of the factories touched a deep-seated awe for human...
The present intrigue around AI and its potentially detrimental effects on the future In 1984, pop culture staple The Terminator was released in theatres to what I would imagine was largely fanfare and positive reception premised on its interesting concepts of what the future may look like. The chiseled frame of Schwarzenegger enacting sweet violence against another sentient robot touches on a key...
The events of 2022 have served to vindicate Francis Fukuyama and his now famous dictum on history Revisiting the End of History “What we may be witnessing is not just the end of the Cold War, or the passing of a particular period of post-war history, but the end of history as such … That is, the end point of mankind’s ideological evolution and the...
Since coming to law school, I have been rejected more times than ever before. Like many of my classmates, I participated in this year’s 1L Toronto Recruit. This recruit is typically described as a small recruit for Toronto Big Law firms, and I knew my chances were slim. A typical firm may only choose to interview and then hire a handful of extremely qualified candidates from all of Canada’s law...
The normalization of prenups Written on behalf of the Osgoode Family Law Association. As 1L students studying contract law for the first time, we immediately took notice of the intersection between contracts and family law in discussions surrounding the court’s general avoidance of enforcing agreements within the private sphere. Namely, general verbal agreements are typically deemed promissory...
History and beyond The resurgence of isolationism in the United States is significantly intensified by a small group of Trump loyalists within the GOP (Republican Party) in recent years. The reality of American isolationism is a complex paradox that never actually departs from the fringes of the foreign policy debate. However, while the debate is always in the air, isolationism is never...
With the recent arrest and looming trial of the Tate brothers, what better time than now to evaluate how we got to the point where people (virtually) shout for the liberation of alleged human traffickers? For those unaware, a police raid of the Romanian residence of popular internet personality Andrew Tate and his brother, Tristan Tate, ended with the two in custody on human trafficking charges...
Note: For those readers looking for more information on the Jake Paul and David Dobrik apologies, please note that they discuss suicide and sexual assault, respectively. In a previous article, I briefly addressed my proclivity for YouTuber apology videos and while I do not engage with the content created by those mentioned in this article, I find their apologies fascinating. This is still an...
People weren’t wrong about the structured 2L recruit: It truly is as energy draining as everyone said it would be. I thought that people were exaggerating, but going through three days of interviews, especially as an introvert, has left me needing multiple days of straight up sleep. Stressful isn’t strong enough of a word to describe this process. People say that going through this process is...