The month of February began tumultuously amidst reports of the Myanmarese military detaining members of the civilian government and declaring control of the country. Though it is too soon to say anything definitively, it appears that the democratic transition initiated roughly a decade ago has come to an end. This is not the first time that the military has overthrown a civilian government in...
Recruit season is upon us. This year’s 2L class is facing additional stress due to the pandemic and will be navigating the first-ever virtual recruit process. As I stare at the Excel spreadsheet I made with the list of employers, application requirements, practice information, and contacts, I can’t help but wonder when this will end. For some odd reason, the time from January – April always...
This year has presented untold challenges for students. At a time when business is anything but usual, we are forced to carry on as if it were. Certain of ourselves, though the world is uncertain of itself. If our reality is a simulation, as some have suggested, it is as if the attendant slipped and unwittingly engaged the red button on the switchboard reading ‘expert mode’. Whereas yesterday’s...
Last year’s seemingly-unending American presidential election is in the rear-view mirror. After months of baseless claims by the Trump campaign with respect to voting irregularities, President Joe Biden’s inauguration took place in January—in a ceremony marked by masked faces and viral mittens. There is plenty to dissect in the aftermath of the November 3 election: the relative successes of...
Donald Trump has been a controversial and polarizing figure for years, with his venture into American politics only serving to exacerbate this fact. He has been able to strike a chord with many Americans, drawing crowds to rallies and inciting demonstrations by supporters. Curiously, support for the self-proclaimed ‘America-First’ politician has not been limited to the United States. For whatever...
Reader be warned, Bridgerton spoilers below. Shonda Rhimes, the brilliant creator of highly successful Grey’s Anatomy and How to Get Away with Murder, partnered with Netflix to create what has now become the platforms most watched series, Bridgerton. The show is based on a series of eight romance novels by Julia Quinn, with the first novel written in 2000. Season one has been watched by...
On December 16 2020, HBO released a documentary titled The Art of Political Murder. The film is an in-depth look at the investigation that took place after the brutal assassination of Guatemalan Catholic Bishop Juan José Gerardi Conedera, who fought for justice and accountability after the end of the Guatemalan Civil War. He was murdered in 1998, shortly after presenting a report which identified...
A Poem Who is Lady Justice? With her strong stance and steady glare. Does she hear me calling out, Asking whether she really even cares? What is law, anyways? A question for the ages. As old as time, yet remains unanswered, Even though she is debated and squashed in never ending mazes. Maybe law is a thing? Or better yet; a person, maybe places? Is law all of the above, a...
An Osgoode and U of T Law student go head-to-head on the topic of friendships Point: By Lara Zarum (1L, Osgoode) I figured it would be easy to write about why it’s important to have friends outside of law school, considering I have no friends in law school. Friends? In this economy? At the moment, my closest friend is my dog. We didn’t ask to start law school in the middle of a pandemic. We...
It is the most prestigious race in history, yet considering its importance, the America’s Cup is transpiring in New Zealand with remarkably little media attention. Known as “The Billionaire Death Race,” the America’s Cup was first contested in 1851 when the yacht America, racing for the New York Yacht Club, sailed to the Royal Yacht Squadron on the Isle of Wight. There, on the 22nd of August in...
Thomas Tuchel’s mid-season appointment comes as no surprise at Stamford Bridge When Frank Lampard began his second full season in charge of Chelsea FC, many supporters assumed that he would be allowed at least the full season to show signs of progress before the board sought a replacement. However, given the massive expenditure that the club underwent this summer to bring in Timo Werner, Kai...
In our last issue of the 2019-2020 academic year, I wrote a note on how the COVID-19 pandemic would, beyond its obvious devastation, leave the world a better place. This time last term, I wrote about the ways in which our world needed to change, and how it seemed like it would. I wasn’t the first, nor the last, but it was the only thing important enough to start the year off by saying. What the...
Understandably, there is a sea of conflicting information going around about the safety, efficacy, and reliability of all of the available COVID-19 vaccine candidates. Much of that uncertainty stems from the novel scientific methods being used to generate immunity in two of the current contenders being administered and bought on the public market. In an effort to clarify some of the complex...
As the rise of self-directed retail investing increases with technological innovations and fintech, investors should remain increasingly critical of how their brokers are making their money. The saying, “If you’re not paying for the product, then you are the product” is as relevant as it has ever been in the age of commission free trading. In Canada the most prominent commission-free brokerage is...
On January 27th, Holocaust Remembrance Day, the JLSA is inviting students to attend our event dedicated to the commemoration of Holocaust victims and the education of the atrocities under the Nazi Regime. The event will feature introductory remarks from Dean Mary Condon and Associate Dean Karen Drake. Our event will also feature a speech on the importance of Holocaust Remembrance by Irwin Cotler...
On June 10, 2020, I participated in an online debate. It was organized by Ryerson University’s Centre for Free Expression (CFE) and the Canadian Civil Liberties Association (CCLA). The debate was entitled, “Fighting Anti-Semitism or Silencing Critics of Israel: What’s Behind the Push for Governments to Adopt the IHRA Definition of Anti-Semitism?”. The debate was purposefully produced in the...
The agriculture sector is one of the main three sources of greenhouse gas emissions, where cattle, sheep and goat production currently produces approximately half of that amount. Specifically in Canada, 10 per cent of our greenhouse gas emissions are from crop and livestock production. Despite this large share of our country’s emissions coming from this source, there has been relatively no...
The intersection of government procurement and subsidies presents a particularly complicated problem in regulating international trade. Government purchases account for ten to fifteen percent of national GDP (Gross Domestic Product) on average, and markedly higher for that of developing countries. In fact, government purchases may represent a significant contribution to developing countries’...
The concept of blind justice is fundamental to the ultimate aspirations of true justice itself: where all members of a given society are treated equally by the rules and laws of that society, irrespective of who one happens to be, and what position in society they happen to occupy. If we conceptualize our system of rules and laws as the concrete foundation on which the rest of our society is...
2020 is the year marked by the COVID-19 pandemic, the worst virus in modern history that pushed society, economies and communities to their breaking point. However, it must not be forgotten that while the pandemic was raging, so was the climate emergency. 2020 marked record-breaking wildfires from Australia to the west coast of the United States, the highest number of powerful Atlantic storms...
The minsky moment triggering the demise of US financial markets in 2008 stems from the fall of Lehman Brothers, underscoring unregulated risks associated with shadow banking. From 2008 to 2021, shadow banking increased at an unprecedented rate as investors and lenders bypass the scrutiny of traditional banking. The downsides, however, are the lack of safety nets in calculating actual risks...
The Nickel Boys never allows you to look away, to make excuses, or to close your eyes and pretend. Colson Whitehead describes the horrors endured by the titular “Nickel boys” students at the fictional reformatory school Nickel Academy in great detail. In doing so, he sheds a light on a dark period of American history and the abuse endured by the students of the real-life Dozier School for Boys...
Steven Soderbergh’s latest flatters to deceive With a cast as star-studded as it commands, Let Them All Talk should be great. However, the film ends up leaving one as cold as the Atlantic Ocean much of it is set on. Released December 10th, 2020 through HBO Max, Let Them All Talk (LTAT) sees Steven Soderbergh tap some of the most decorated talents in his bursting rolodex. The pieces should add up...
Last issue, I suggested that Haydn—whose music is generally recognized for its technical mastery and historical significance—is still not played or listened to enough. This time, I turn to another (relatively) underrated composer, Francis Poulenc (1899-1963). Now, I suspect even Poulenc aficionados would not try to present him as an innovator or a jack of all trades. He did not influence...
Mario Lofranco continues his essay on ending the stigma surrounding doping in Sports In the first part of this article series, I refuted the three common arguments for maintaining the prohibition on doping in sport: (1) naturalness; (2) unfair advantage; and (3) the spirit of sport. In this article, I discuss the most common argument in favour of the prohibition against doping – harm – and argue...