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CategoryOpinion

‘Cause You’re Hot, Then You’re Cold, China’s Yes, Then It’s No’ Why the Cold War Remnants are Finally Falling Apart

By Sarah Attardo

January 17, 2018

7 Min read

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Katy Perry’s classic hit song is one that remains very polarizing – you either hate it or love it. If you are on the side of the former, you know how that song sticks. It goes on and on, forever repeating the chorus as you desperately resist the urge to sing the tune. For those who love the tune, keep reading, because I am certain you will enjoy the read despite our conflicting views. Dear...

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Paralegals may be Able to Represent Clients in Family Law Matters in the Future

By Kenneth Hildebrand

January 17, 2018

3 Min read

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The commitment to include paralegals is a response to a report from former Ontario court Chief Justice Annemarie Bonkalo. Significantly, the report noted that 57% of Ontarians did not have legal representation in family law matters. This statistic should be shocking, but anyone who has paid limited attention to the world of family law should not be surprised. Many people cannot afford a lawyer...

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Preparing for the Worst: Government Agencies Prepare for Nuclear Disaster

By Jerico Espinas

January 17, 2018

4 Min read

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Should we be preparing ourselves for nuclear emergency after the increasingly antagonistic (and absurd) exchanges between Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un? Some government agencies are starting to prepare for the worst through training and drills that have not been relevant since the Cold War. On January 2nd, after returning from a vacation in Mar-a-Lago, Donald Trump resumed Tweeting...

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They’re Just Grades

By Nancy Carlson

December 21, 2017

3 Min read

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(Editor’s Note: Normally, we wouldn’t publish such personal information, but the author was quite insistent that we attach the provided transcript, because the article wouldn’t make sense without it. We try our best to respect the wishes of authors, especially then they are making a good point and are utterly right.) I was thinking one of the best ways to talk about grades was...

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Don’t Feed the Troll

By

December 21, 2017

5 Min read

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A Not Particularly Eloquent or Highbrow Analysis on Jordan Peterson’s Appeal We should be grateful to people who use epithets like “social justice warrior” or “cuck.” Such people are essentially saying in a word or acronym, “I am an asshole; please disregard everything I have to say.” Once upon a time, you would have to piece together a history of objectionable statements and opinions to...

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The Anti-Multiculturalist Background to Bouchard-Taylor’s Report and Recommendations

November 23, 2017

7 Min read

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I read Joanne D’Souza’s opinion on Bill 62 passed by the Quebec government in the Obiter Dicta. I disagree with her analysis of the bill, but more importantly, I do not believe that Bouchard-Taylor’s report should serve as a guide for the Quebec society. Fundamentally, however, Joanne is right that the State should not dictate what an individual should wear. Having grown up in Quebec and being a...

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Five Legal Drugs in Serious Need of Better Regulation

By

November 23, 2017

9 Min read

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(Editor’s Note: Obiter does not usually publish anonymous articles, but in this case, identifying the author might be detrimental to his/her career prospects, and the message is one of some social and/or legal importance. You can probably guess the author’s identity anyway.) Full disclosure time: over a decade ago, I was a teenage reprobate. When I returned to university in my early...

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Because Fake News is the Best News

By Sarah Attardo

November 8, 2017

4 Min read

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The Struggle of Environmentalism in the Crippling Reign of a Troompa Loompa Imagine that it is a sunny morning – fresh out of bed you make yourself a cup of joe, and as you wait for it to brew, you go on your beloved news channel or app only to see that once again there is turmoil in the world. It has become so commonplace to see the ridicule many have of the antics of one incompetent leader...

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Lessons in Access to Justice from a Confiscated Fork

By Angela Yenssen

October 25, 2017

8 Min read

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Reflections on Self-Represented Litigants (SRL) Awareness Day at Osgoode On October 4, 2017, the Osgoode Mediation Clinic (OMC) welcomed eight self-represented litigants (SRLs) to Osgoode for SRL Awareness Day. SRL Awareness Day occurred at several Ontario law schools under the leadership of the National Self-Represented Litigants Project (NSRLP). The NSRLP is funded by the Law Foundation...

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A Cautionary Celebration: Nuclear Weapons and ICAN’s Nobel Peace Prize

By Jerico Espinas

In News, Opinion

October 25, 2017

5 Min read

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“We live in a world where the risk of nuclear weapons being used is greater than it has been for a long time.” Berit Reiss-Andersen, the leader of the Norwegian Nobel Committee, made this statement to justify giving the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN) the Nobel Peace Prize in early October. ICAN officially launched in Vienna in 2007 after its start in Australia...

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Gender Issues in the Locker Room

By

October 25, 2017

7 Min read

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Is it “locker room talk” if it happens in the bar after the game? I’m seriously asking, because sometimes, the conversation gets more candid in the allegedly public setting of the local watering hole. You know, the place you go to after your beer league hockey game, where conversations are frequently interrupted by shouts of “come on Andersen, that was a clean shot from the point! How did you...

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Hugh Hefner and Not Growing Up

By

In Opinion, Uncategorized

October 11, 2017

6 Min read

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Hugh Hefner died on 27 September 2017, at the age of 91. It seemingly took all of five minutes for people to start arguing over whether he was a progressive icon or a glorified sleaze merchant. As a prospective lawyer, I naturally spent far too much time trying to explain to several people that the truth is somewhere between those two extremes. It was honestly surprising to see the magnitude of...

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Incarceration, Rehabilitation, Reintegration

By Deanna Cristovao

October 11, 2017

5 Min read

I

The ultimate goal of our corrections system is much more than just punitive There is a misconception, I think, that individuals convicted of crimes should remain behind bars indefinitely. Or, that these individuals should be forever marked with the stigma and second-hand citizenship of being criminals. Or, that they deserve nothing more than to pay for their crimes, and languish in prison...

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Why Should Law Students Care About International Human Rights?

By Ashley Yoojin Jung

October 11, 2017

5 Min read

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A look at recent developments in Saudi Arabia and why we need to care If you have recently tuned into the news headlines – or let’s face it, scrolled through Facebook – you will have noticed a big development for the international human rights movement. On Tuesday, September 26, Saudi Arabia finally lost their reputation as being the only country in the world to officially ban women from driving...

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WHAT IS FREEDOM?

By Rocco Scocco

September 27, 2017

8 Min read

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Philosophising by Osgoode’s Front Doors on a Sunny September Afternoon The front entrance of Osgoode Hall Law School is a regular sparring ring for minds to go head-to-head. Concrete blocks and the iconic Osgoode Hall plaque all make up a congregation space suited for busy minded law students to unwind and let their colours show. It’s the second week of school, and I sit with one of my old...

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With Privilege Comes Duty

By

In Editorial, Opinion

September 27, 2017

7 Min read

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White Privilege Exists: Do Something Good With It On 7 September 2017, a video emerged of a woman heckling NDP leadership hopeful Jagmeet Singh at an event in Brampton. Heckling is putting it mildly, since she spent about two minutes shouting at Mr. Singh from a distance of about four inches. When staffers and crowd members tried to calm her or otherwise dissuade her, she threatened to have them...

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Being a Lawyer is No Joke

In Features, Opinion, Uncategorized

September 27, 2017

9 Min read

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Nor is it a Gold Mine I recently had one of those experiences that always gets me lathered up for a fight: someone told a lawyer joke. Lawyer jokes really piss me off, especially the ones about killing lawyers or comparing them to slugs and slime. I take them personally. After all, I left the law after only nine years of practice because it was physically exhausting, emotionally gruelling, and...

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Bill 62, Muslim Women and the Niqab

By Joanne D'Souza

September 14, 2017

4 Min read

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Québec’s Bill 62 discriminates against a minority of a minority In 2016, the Québec government introduced Bill 62, An Act to foster adherence to State religious neutrality and, in particular, to provide a framework for religious accommodation requests in certain bodies. If passed, it will require personnel of public bodies to perform their jobs with their faces uncovered. Those receiving...

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Ways of Learning

By Ruth Rosenblood

March 17, 2017

5 Min read

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When I got pregnant the first time around, I was inundated with information. Mostly it was information intended to provide “expert help” on how to cope and how to incubate and raise the perfect human. I worked in a culturally diverse environment, but there was a lot of talk about expert advice. I followed the websites and a couple of books for a while but quickly realized that mostly they were...

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Between a 1L Summer Job and a Hard Place

March 17, 2017

5 Min read

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Why Osgoode Should Change Summer Clinical Employment Acceptance Deadlines It goes without saying that the 1L recruit process is incredibly competitive and stressful for applicants. While most of the issues students have with the process are due to the low availability of interview offers and even fewer employment offers, there’s one frustrating situation that the Osgoode administration...

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Gamefication

By Pedro de Abreu M. Campos

March 17, 2017

7 Min read

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1. Introduction One of the main contributions that technology can make to law is providing innovative ways of promoting access to justice. In this article, I will analyze one particular kind of technological solution to this problem: gamification of educative software. First, access to justice will be defined as a broad concept, including the idea of “law as a life skill.” Second, I...

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Eva Marszewski

By

March 17, 2017

6 Min read

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A Trail-Blazer in Alternatives to Conventional Lawyering We are surrounded by messages in law school about preparing for our future careers in law firms or government offices. Have you ever wondered if there is another possible path to take with your law degree? If so, you are not alone. Alternative Careers Week is happening at Osgoode from February 27 to March 3 to give students...

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People Who Got Cs and Lived to Tell the Tale

By

March 17, 2017

8 Min read

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Compiled by Ian Mason When you received your acceptance to law school, you were elated. The positive energy continued right through O-Week, when you met your new friends and colleagues, and began the path to becoming a lawyer. Your first semester was a grind, but you made it. Then grades came out, and maybe you feel like you didn’t make it at all. You might be feeling discouraged. You...

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The Distance between Law and Justice

By Sophie Chiasson

February 12, 2017

6 Min read

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Lessons from a Student at Parkdale Community Legal Services Amidst the student selection process for clinical and intensive programs at Osgoode last week, many of you have asked me about the Poverty Law Intensive at Parkdale Community Legal Services (PCLS). Being at Parkdale has been the best part of my law school experience. I started by completing a semester in the winter term, stayed on...

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