On February 12 and 13, some of the most committed Ozzies around put their talents together and put on a spectacular revue of the best legal humour in North York. This Editor attended the Thursday night performance, which is typically the rowdier event. The packed Moot Court room did not disappoint. Business Manager and performer Brendan Monahan reported before the show that there were no tickets...
In case you missed it, on Friday, January 31, the Osgoode Society for Corporate Governance (OSCG) organized a tour for Osgoode students to the Ontario Securities Commission (OSC). As the first tour of its kind, it was a unique opportunity to learn about the work of the OSC and potential career opportunities. Located conveniently beside the Eaton’s Centre, the OSC is Ontario’s main regulatory body...
A few weeks ago, Citlally Maciel wrote an article on these pages describing, among other things, the National Football League’s (NFL) history of condoning “acts of homophobia, bullying and discrimination” amongst its executives and players. No one could have predicted how timely this article would prove to be, as the league’s collective attitude towards tolerance, respect, and acceptance is...
Interested in combining a challenging job with travel in a fascinating foreign country? Why not follow in the footsteps of other Osgoode graduates who have taught law and legal English at the Southwest University of Political Science and Law in the city of Chongqing, located in the province of Sichuan, Peoples Republic of China? For the past tweleve years, Osgoode has sent between one and three...
Dear Editors, I recently became aware of the passing late last year of former Osgoode Hall Law School professor Michael Mandel. Many of the hagiographic obituaries, such as that in the Canadian Lawyer Magazine, portrayed one element of his impact on legal education at Canada’s largest law school. I attended Osgoode in the mid-1980s and had a different perspective on the quality of education...
There has been a lot of ink spilled over the fresh demise of Heenan Blaikie LLP. The legal landscape of downtown Toronto has been recently altered, as a well-known and prestigious mid-size firm unraveled before our very eyes. Every agonizing blow narrated, almost in real-time, by newspapers and legal blogs across Canada. For many of us in law school, this is the first time that we have borne...
It is an inescapable fact that our lives as lawyers will be guided in part by ethical considerations. For some of us, studying law is an opportunity to pursue social justice. For the rest of us, professional obligations require us to practice ethically and act in the public interest. And one issue that will affect all spheres of practice – from the lowly legal aid clinic to the high society Bay...
Calling all students, faculty, and staff! Over Reading Week, take a quick visit to your closet, a parent’s closet, a grandparent’s closet, to consider…is there is any professional attire in here that is no longer being worn? If so, the Osgoode Women’s Network (OWN) wants to help you find the perfect place to donate your gently used clothing. Dress for Success (DFS) is an international non-profit...
About fifteen minutes into Paranormal Activity: The Marked Ones, a presumably troubled man three rows behind me angrily exited the near-empty theatre at Carlton Cinema. I think he muttered “bullshit” before he left. He wasn’t done, though, returning shortly thereafter, only to leave again ten minutes later. This time he was even angrier, saying something like “Fucking home movies” before leaving...
The House of Commons has returned from its winter break, its inhabitants once again seeking to feed the fires of democracy with all manner of fuel. There are the logs: the big, meaty issues that represent the long-term interests of all Canadians. These are slow-burners: natural resource exploitation, income inequality, sovereign debt. Naturally, these have been absent from the front page since...
Kevin O’Leary’s recent comments on about how half the world living in poverty as “fantastic news” are disconcerting to say the least. According to O’Leary, “It gets them motivation to look up to the one percent and say I want to become one of those people. I am going to fight hard to get up to the top.” “I celebrate capitalism,” he said. You can see the video here. Let’s just take a work at what...
The Black Law Students’ Association would like to thank the Osgoode community for all their support in helping us achieve last semester’s goal for the LSAT Bursary Program. We are proud to announce that we are officially launching the LSAT Bursary Program this year and will be awarding three bursaries for our inaugural year. We’ve partnered with HarvardReady to support students in their...
Last October, an 89-year-old lady named Audrey Tobias was acquitted for not filing out her census form. As some of you may know, Ms. Tobias did not forget, but in fact, purposely decided not to complete the form. According to section 31 of the Statistics Act, it is an offence to “refuse or neglect” to fill out a census form or to return it by the date and in the form required, or to knowingly...
It is a widely held belief that addiction and pleasure make for poor bed fellows. Addicts are portrayed as wretched and joyless creatures: they are pale-faced and sunken-eyed hungry ghosts, stalking the urban landscape, wholly preoccupied with the addiction before them, deriving no pleasure from its fleeting abeyance. The architects of this paradigm are the medical authorities, who tell us that...
Food Adventure #5 Happy 2014 Osgoode! Having abandoned our New Year’s diet resolutions in favour of something more realistic (flossing?), we’re ready to re-engage with the city’s best (student budget-priced) lunch spots for the benefit of Canada’s legal community! This week features Luke facing down the terrifying dual-headed hydra of travelling to Toronto’s West End and (gasp!) shared...
What are the costs of providing civil justice to Canadians? What are the costs of not providing access to civil justice for Canadians? These two questions are at the heart of one of the exciting projects underway at the Canadian Forum on Civil Justice (CFCJ). “The Cost of Justice: Weighing the Cost of Fair and Effective Resolution to Legal Problems” is a 5-year, SSHRC funded, interdisciplinary...
Growing up, I was always told to treat others the way I wished to be treated. What no one every really mentioned, though, is that I should also treat myself the way I wish to be treated. I’m always quick to offer friends and even strangers compliments, but I rarely offer one to myself. The sad truth is that I easily believe negative comments from others, probably because I actively engage in...
York University has been caught in a firestorm over its decision to side with a male student over his wish to be excused from a group project because of his claim that his religious beliefs prevented him from working with women. This case has again reignited the age-old debate between secularism and religious values and between inclusiveness and diversity, debates that university administrations...
It’s late. 1 AM on a Saturday, actually. I’m tired and stressed and alone. I’m thinking about money. I should be thinking about Torts, but yeah, I’m thinking about money. I’m also looking at my Facebook chat list and I’m realizing that a lot of my friends are online too. They’re also tired. And yes, I’d bet that they’re thinking about money. And maybe feeling alone too. This is true, I...
AS THE winter weeks drudge on – somewhat confusingly, might we add, what with a polar vortex and spring-weather preview within the span of a week – your friendly neighborhood EICs are feeling thankful to have found respite from the January blues in all the usual places. And what might those be, you ask? Have we joined the New Year’s resolution train and gone on a health kick? No. Do we suddenly...
To be honest, I am not a fan of football. I have tried getting into it, but I just do not have the attention span necessary to sit through even one entire game, let alone an entire season. In fact, being a true fan requires more than watching one’s favourite team play. One must also watch all the other teams play to know how they compare to one’s favourite team. The idea behind this...
Hot on the heels of his “I’m not Rob Ford” political campaign, polls are indicating that the other guy has an early lead on Rob Ford in the upcoming mayoral election in Toronto. Campaign critics have lauded the other guy’s campaign strategy, with some even suggesting that it may inspire a similar cultural zeitgeist as Obama’s equally memorable “Hope” campaign. We approached Torontonians to get a...
Happy Winter Semester Osgoode! On behalf of Legal and Lit, I hope you all had a very cheerful winter holiday season. Looking back on the fall term, I am reminded of the privilege it has been to serve you as L&L President. I have been learning a lot along the way and look forward to redoubling my efforts this semester to bring to fruition, in collaboration with my colleagues on the Legal and...
Did you know that almost 12 million Canadians will face at least one legal problem in a given three-year period? Or that taking just a two-day civil action to trial costs between $13,500 and $37,200? Canadians today are losing their access to justice as the costs of legal services and length of legal proceedings climb steadily upwards. The Canadian Forum of Civil Justice is starting a new segment...
If you have Facebook, you’ve done it. If you’ve procrastinated, you’ve done it. I can say with confidence that nearly everyone who reads this article has fallen prey to clickbait at least once. I certainly have. But I’m finished; no more. Clickbait, as far as I can tell, has run its course. Teshkeel Media Group bought Cracked magazine in 2005. The company moved the flagging publication, which Sol...