UBC and HKU forge law school alliance

From Financial Post - Legal Post:

May 28, 2008

Earlier this month the University of British Columbia and the University of Hong Kong established a new joint legal education program. The Faculties of Law at UBC and HKU will each accept up to five students per year, starting in 2009. All students enrolled in the program will be able to earn the law degrees required -- subject to admission and completion of the professional course requirements -- for law practice in both jurisdictions.

Read the whole article here.

This sounds like a really cool program. Wow!

I really liked reading the last few posts on the Canadian law school blog, Lawyer Like

It's interesting to hear the emotion the poster has about finally getting through law school. Good for you!!!

A little heavier reading for while you are in class

Whether you are in your undergraduate classes or law school classes (although y'all are on summer break now), you might be interested in The Court. An initiative of Osgoode Hall Law School, The Court is a site where scholars, practitioners and other interested citizens can discuss the recent work of the Supreme Court of Canada.

From their About Us section:

"Student editors under the direction of a faculty supervisor solicit and write brief comments or informative notes about cases that the Supreme Court is scheduled to hear or has decided within the last two years or so. As well, we publish commentary on other aspects of the work of the Supreme Court. Readers are invited to submit responses to the commentary, engendering a lively exchange about current issues facing the SCC. We also encourage interested readers to apply to become “Friends of The Court” and submit commentary for publication.

In addition to the central blogging aspect, The Court offers resources about the Supreme Court and aims to become the premier online location for information about Canada’s highest court. We are constantly improving our collection and welcome suggestions and offers of relevant material."

I have read it for a while, and find it very interesting and enlightening, even though I am not that big on case law (i.e. it's not a personal hobby of mine to read it). Summaries are a lawyer's friend, although the really good lawyers seem to be the ones who can stand to read case law all night long, and quote it the next day in court :).

Oh, and I just noticed that the Editor-in-Chief is James Stribopoulos, Assistant Professor, Osgoode Hall Law School, one of my favourite law professors (he taught me Criminal in first year law school at the University of Alberta Faculty of Law).

New law school a step closer to reality

Law society gives Lakehead preliminary approval.

Law Times - May 5, 2008

Northern Ontario has inched closer to having its own law school after the Law Society of Upper Canada gave preliminary approval last week to a bid from Lakehead University.
But, while the law society benchers voted overwhelmingly in support of the initiative by the Thunder Bay school, some voiced concerns and voted against it.

Read the whole article here.

Some of you have commented that you think that Canada doesn't need a new law school. Others have indicated that this new law school could fill a gap in the area that it is proposed for. What are your thoughts on it now?

I am of the opinion that there are plenty of law schools already, and that they should put their money into a new medical school, or rather into creating new spots at current medical schools. We are somewhat over-lawyered, and very under-doctored.

“How many lawyers does the province of Ontario need?” “Do you think we should be studying that?” Some very good and obvious questions were asked by Ontario Bencher Bob Aaron. Why would you even consider a new law school without finding out this key information?

Interestingly, the law society’s licensing and accreditation task force in January reported that the current demand for about 1,300 articling placements in Ontario is expected to grow to 1,730 — a 30 per cent jump — by next year. This is different than the information provided in a recent post here at Law Eh? (I can't remember the date).

The school would accept 55 students each year, with preference given to those from rural, northern, or aboriginal communities. Lakehead hopes to have the new faculty up and running by next year.

Wow, that's quick!

Native judge named to lead healing forum

See the news story at the National Post.

Justice Harry LaForme, a Mississauga Indian from Ontario, was appointed yesterday to head a federal truth and reconciliation commission exploring the legacy of abuse in Indian residential schools. A former commissioner of the Indian Commission of Ontario, he is a member of the Ontario Court of Appeal and was the first aboriginal to be appointed to an appellate court in the history of Canada.

I am so pleased to see this appointment and this commission. It is wonderful to have an aboriginal heading this, and one so well respected and well educated. I hope that it will give some of the survivors a sense of comfort and safety.

I am currently working on some residential school files, specifically with the Independent Assessment Process. It is proving to be extremely interesting. My grandmother went to a residential school, so I have a real empathy for these people.

Law firms do the math - outsourcing

I just read an interesting article at Financial Post published today. It was the 2nd part of a series, and is about the concept of outsourcing legal work to offshore companies (i.e. India). My eyes are opened so often in this career. Who would have thought that an Indian lawyer just outside of Mumbai could take on a legal task that me or my colleague here in Canada might be in charge of. If there is any truth to this article, I think that the lawyers in North America, the U.K. and Australia ought to make sure that they are doing their homework and that they are prepared to provide some added-value legal services, if they want to retain the kind of work that they so readily enjoy.

An interesting read.

Running low on lawyers?; Attracting attorneys to Peterborough a tough sell

Here's an interesting article on a subject dear to me: staying away from Big Law:

Posted By GALEN EAGLE

Peterborough Examiner - April 19, 2008

Coming out of law school, local lawyer David O'Neill could have done what most law grads do - move to Toronto.

The big money, the big firms, the big city is attracting a mass exodus of young lawyers from across the province at increasing rates.

Instead, the Peterborough native came home and joined a small firm. "Most of my classmates moved to Toronto," O'Neill said. "There are a lot more opportunities there and higher pays."

At 32, O'Neill is bucking the trend. He represents a minority of young lawyers who have chosen a smaller locale.

With the average age of Ontario's lawyers reaching 50 and most law school graduates heading to the Greater Toronto Area, communities such as Peterborough could be heading toward a lawyer crunch.

It's a tough sell telling people they need more lawyers.

Read the whole article here.

Law society should still teach ethics, say critics

By Nora Rock
The Lawyers Weekly
Toronto
April 18 2008

A Law Society of Upper Canada (LSUC) Bencher has said she is appalled by a proposed retreat by the LSUC from ethics teaching in the Bar Admissions program. “I think it is a retrograde step... We are doing the wrong thing. We are betraying the profession,” said Bencher Heather Ross at a recent conference on legal ethics.

An interesting article...read it here.

Revised proposal for LU law school being reviewed

From Thunder Bay's The Source:

Lakehead University's latest proposal for a new law school is now in the hands of officials in southern Ontario and they may have their final answer by the end of April.

Read the whole article here.

Results of the Yellow Pages Ads

Sorry for not posting lately. It's been over a month. But, here's some good news:

Last year, I had a small sized ad in the yellow pages. I only remember getting one telephone call from that ad. This year, we did the ads in my last posting. The Estates one was a 1/2 page and the divorce one was a small business card sized ad. We have received numerous telephone calls from both. We have been keeping track, and everybody we talk to seems to like the simplicity of the messages in the ads. We have gotten about 5 new clients from the estates ad, and about 4 new clients from the divorce ad. So far, the increased ad costs have been paid for and then some! I am very pleased about this. And, it has only been a month since the pages were released, so I hope for more in the future. I have also had a number of people call about separate legal issues (i.e. not estates or divorces), which I find really interesting.

New Yellowpages Ad for Letourneau Law

The 2008 Yellow Pages came out today. My firm tried something totally different this year. We focussed our advertising on two areas of law. The ads are below:


My wife came up with the slogan below. I thought it was pretty funny, and my test subjects thought so too.



We tried to make the message really simple, with lots of white space, and a very clear message. We wanted to stand out from the other ads, which tend to be busy.

Let me know what you think. Thanks. I'll let you know if they prove to be successful or not.

This is one of the really fun parts about a personal practice - it's one big experiment, day after day.

New residence planned for Osgoode students

Written by Renata Valz, Production Associate, Excalibur online

Wednesday, 5 March 2008

Some students protest residence relocation

York University will be implementing a housing initiative next academic year that will provide a dedicated residence community for Osgoode students.

The new initiative came after Patrick Monahan, dean of Osgoode Hall Law School, did a tour of six American law schools in the fall as part of a renovation plan for Osgoode.

“In the process of those meetings, we realized that a number of law schools had their own residence facilities for law students,” Monahan said.“We were told that this had proven to be a very attractive option for the students and that it had increased the acceptance rate of students accepting offers that were made by the school.”

Upon the dean’s return, he and his team investigated whether a dedicated law school residence would be feasible.

According to Monahan, consultation with students proved favourable.

“The students felt it would be a very desirable option.”

Read the whole article here.

New courtroom drama worth a look

As played by JuliannaMargulies in the newcourtroom drama Canterbury's Law , Elizabeth Canterbury is impulsive, impetuous and struggling with substance abuse and turmoil in her personal life. She burned through law school in recordtime, awhiz kidwith a bright future in front of her. Now, though, hardened by experience and disillusionment, she feels that future slipping away.

Canterbury's Law has terrific style. It's fast, fast, fast - jumping from frenzied image to frenzied image. There aremore moments in the first fiveminutes than there are inan entire hour of other courtroom dramas.

Anybody seen this new show? Read more about it in the Calgary Herald here.

Behold, UofT's new law school

When Toronto architect Siamak Hariri was looking for inspiration in designing a law school, he visited the esteemed campuses of Yale and Harvard, along with Columbia University and New York University, some of the top legal institutions in the U.S.

The research bore fruit, as his design was picked over two other firms today, in the bid to build the University of Toronto’s new $60-million law school.

Read the whole article here.

Boy passes law school exam

An eight-year-old boy with dreams of becoming a judge has passed a law school entrance exam, shocking Brazil's legal profession and prompting a federal investigation.

This is a really sweet little article that makes you wonder :).

Updated online CANS / outlines

I haven't kept up as well as I should in tracking down law school outlines or CANS. Here's what I know about. I also have a bunch that I collected during my law school years, and I am happy to email them to you upon request.

UVic Law Student Resources—Student Outlines

http://outlines.law.uvic.ca/

Lots of first year and upper year CANS, updated yearly

Queen’s Law Students Outlines Site

http://qsilver.queensu.ca/~lss/outlines/

This was by far the most comprehensive site, with the best quality CANS, in my opinion. However, as of this second edition, it can no longer be found on the Internet. You may want to do some work to track it down, because it was so great when I was in law school

University of Calgary—Women in Law

CANS—http://www.fp.ucalgary.ca/womeninlaw/

A large selection of first, second and third year CANS

UBC Law Students’ Association CANS

http://faculty.law.ubc.ca/cans/

CANS used to be provided on an as-is basis. This was a very good site. However, as of this edition it no longer exists. Perhaps you can track it down with some work

Ed Chan—Outlines

http://www.edchan.ca/outlines.htm

Intended for University of Manitoba Students, but some very useful CANS for every law student

Melanie’s Law Notes http://www.geocities.com/melanie_lawnotes/

A few good sets of notes here

If you have any further sources, please let me know so that I can post them here.

A Sweet Class-Action v. Chocolate

I heard about this case on CBC the other day, and was really interested to hear the interview with Tony Merchant. Did anyone else listen to that interview? He sure made class action suits sound glamorous, essential and the greatest tool towards social justice.

Taken from Law is Cool:

Eaten chocolate since February, 2004?

Chances are you have. And that might make you eligible for this class-action lawsuit against chocolate manufacturers.

Juroviesky and Ricci filed an action in the Ontario Superior Court of Justice for violations of the Competition Act and provincial consumer protection acts against major chocolate producers.

CNW Group states,

The suit claims that the Defendants conspired to inflate the price of
their products by 5% or more at least three times during the Class Period, in
violation of a variety of statutes including the Competition Act, and the
various provincial Consumer Protection Acts. Chocolate sales in Canada in 2007 were approximately $1.4 Billion.

Call for Canadian Law School Blogs

Calling all Canadian Law School Blogs. Are you a current or prospective Canadian law student who blogs? Check out our current blogrole to see if you are listed. If you aren't, please send me your link and I would be happy to add it to Law, Eh? Canadian Law School. Also, if you are aware of any dead blogs on our blogrole, please let me know so that I can keep that list current.

Current blogrole:

• A New Chapter
• Advocatus Diaboli
• Ali Writes
• Blog of the Narrows
• Canons of Destruction
• Duty to Consult
• grass diaries
• La pub et le droit
• Law Eh? Canadian Law School
• Law is Cool
• Law Target
• Law, Love & Life
• lawyerlike
• Lisa Hutch - The Trials
• Motion to Recess
• nottawa
• Queen's Law Life
• Sliced Bread #2
• The Canadian Law School Blog
• The Canadian Law School Experience
• The Co-Co Banana
• The Distillery
• The Grass is Always Greener
• The Law Years
• The New Step
• Thinking Out Load
• Tinkerbell Syndrome
• What I Think

Staying Healthy as a Lawyer

Thank goodness for weekends! Lately, I have been pushing hard, trying to make everything work at the firm, trying to become accredited as a mediator and arbitrator, trying to keep my publishing house on track (we just signed 3 new authors), and coping with having four children. At work , we are trying to focus our practice towards 2 or 3 areas, rather than being a general practice. It's really paying off, especially as we forge strong relationships with business partners. We are also opening up a mediation/arbitration/coaching centre in our law office, and that is really exciting. The world is my oyster, so to speak.

However, all of this takes its toll. I went out for supper a couple weeks ago with some classmates. They seemed genuinely tired of the lawyer life. Long hours, high demands, boredom, difficulty with senior lawyers, etc. My demands are not quite the same. I do have stress, the requirement of a steep learning curve, high customer service expectations, and the challenge of keeping a full staff.

I thought I would comment on how I cope with the stress.

I work as little as possible. For me, that means a 40-50 hour work week, usually closer to the former. I learned early on in my practice that anything more for me, personally, brings with it too high a cost, to health, to mind and to my relationships. When I am at work, I try to work really hard, really fast, and really smart.

I manage my time like a freak! Every morning, I review my week's goals (which I set out on Monday morning). I review my daily affirmations (I have 7 goals that I repeat to myself 3 times each day). I then do up my daily task list, reviewing the previous day's list and accomplishments. I then prioritize that list. Then, I set aside some time to check and respond to emails, to return phone messages, and to get updates or update my staff. Once I am satisfied that the day is set out properly, I start to attack my list. I try to avoid interruptions, using my staff to screen calls, mail, faxes, etc. I try not to move down the list until the top priority items are completed. If I think that an item is just not going to happen, I make a note on my list, and then move on. I review the list at the end of each day (giving myself a grade out of 5), and then try to leave work at work.

I treat staff like gold, or at least the best that I can. Only my wife is more important to my success when compared to my legal assistants/paralegals. They make my world go round. I offer bonusses, flexibility, encouragement, and I share my thoughts, feelings and expectations with them as much as possible.

I do yoga. My wife is a yoga instructor, so that is a huge bonus. I attend her class once as week, and try to incorporate stretching, and some meditation throughout the week.

I sleep! Hardly ever less than 7 hours per night. More often closer to 8. I should try to get to bed earlier, but it's hard with kids.

I exercise. At least 3 times a week, I hit the gym, strap on the running shoes, or do some other form of rigorous activity.

I practice my faith. I go to church regularly. I volunteer regularly. I read uplifting articles, books, and scriptures regularly. I read scriptures and pray with my family every day. I meditate on the larger picture often, praying at least three times each day.

I eat really well. My wife is a fantastic cook. Different members of our family have different food sensitivites or allergies, so we don't eat much wheat, milk or sugar. My kids can't eat sugar, so I eat less as a result. We eat a lot of whole grains, fruits, vegetables, etc. We eat few saturated fats or "other" foods. We all take our vitamins each day.

I am a very motivated person, not unlike most in the legal profession. Please don't think that my comments above are meant to make me look like like a perfected being. I am by no means near perfection. These things have developed over time. I have failed at each of them on many occassions. However, my intention is to master these things so that I can maintain my health, my career, my sanity, and my family over the next 2-3 decades. My friends do often ask me how I accomplish so much with so many challenges and so little time. It is through this formation of habits, through an attempt towards self-mastery, that I find the energy, the drive, and the love for my life.

The above habits may be beneficial to you as you prepare for law school, as you push your way through law school, or as you establish yourself as a lawyer. I wish you the best of luck.

If there is something that you do to help you cope, please let all of us know. We can all stand to learn something new, positive and helpful.

Law firm looks for lawyers with sales experience

From Financial Post
Posted: February 21, 2008, 12:23 PM by Jim Middlemiss

Practice Management, Mitch Kowalski

Larry Bodine has an interesting piece about law firm Scholefield Associates, which is seeking a new associate with a sales background for client development. In other words a “sales attorney.”

The firm’s website describes the job opening as follows:

"This is an unprecedented opportunity for the right individual with an outgoing and dynamic personality. If you see yourself more as a rainmaker than you do a litigator, we are interested in your future with us. You will be working under the direction of the firm's business development manager, and be a key player in the firm’s client development and legal marketing activities. We are looking for professionals with experience technical sales, sales engineering, legal marketing, or executive level business development. Previous experience or knowledge of the construction industry is a major plus.

"You will be the first point of contact for prospective clients, so a good first impression is important. You will not let your law school education go to waste as you must be admitted to practice in California, and may be expected to advise clients and attend hearings.

“We are not your typical law firm,”partner, Pam Scholefield, told Bodine, “so we’re not going to follow archaic unwritten rules that say a young attorney’s primary role can’t be a rainmaker.”

Mitch Kowalski
www.mekdds.com

Premier law schools to export talent abroad

Thinking of applying for an international lawyer job? You won't just be competing against law school graduates from your country of choice. International firms are looking everywhere now to land top recruits.

Read this interesting article from The Economic Times - The India Times called "Premier law schools to export talent abroad"

Producer shows no concern over ‘misogyny’

Written by Valary Thompson, Sports Editor

Wednesday, 20 February 2008

Some Osgoode students protest lack of apology

Some female students are angered and offended by an Osgoode variety show that featured scenes they are calling misogynistic.

According to the associate dean of Osgoode Hall Law School, Robert Wai, Mock Trial is an annual event that generates funds for charity groups. This year, the event was titled Habitat for Insanity and raised funds for the Jane/Finch Community and Family Centre. The variety show took place during reading week on Feb. 15 in Moot Courtroom.

Each year’s show is different, but shares a common theme of comedy.

“It’s kind of a variety show, but also [has] a lot of skits about the law school [and] law school life, almost like a parody or follies,” Wai said.

But despite the show’s comedic tone, second-year Osgoode student Alyssa Brierley is not laughing. This is due to scenes she believed were sexually provocative and degrading to women.

Read the whole article here.

This brings back memories of "Law Show" at the University of Alberta. I never could figure out what all the fuss was about - a bunch of law students making fun of their professors and themselves. Students would put huge numbers of hours into producing this show. I never participated, but apparently it was a great bonding and networking experience. I don't feel too sad about missing out. Most law schools have a similar activity group, usually with the intention of raising funds for a charity.

Let's ditch the battle of experts in court, and just get the facts

Technical expertise should not come with a viewpoint

James Morton, Freelance

Published: Friday, February 08

TORONTO - Expert witnesses seem a lot less expert these days.

Last week in Ontario we were reminded daily of the miscarriages of justice caused by forensic pathologist Charles Smith -- the many parents and caregivers charged and some found guilty of murdering children, the scores of lives ruined, and families destroyed.

And in August, the Ontario Court of Appeal said that one of its main reasons for acquitting Steven Truscott had to do with the testimony of John Penistan, the pathologist in that long-ago case of rape and murder. Dr. Penistan's official autopsy report stated that 12-year-old Lynne Harper had died soon after Steven Truscott had been seen giving her a ride on his bike, at a time when he would have been by far the most likely killer.

An interesting little editorial on some pertinent law. What do you think about what Mr. Morton has said?

University of British Columbia set to begin construction on Faculty of Law building in 2009

Here's some exciting law school news:

PATRICIA WILLIAMS
Feb. 15, 2008

Construction is expected to get under way in 2009 on a new Faculty of Law building on the Vancouver campus of the University of British Columbia.

Designed by the Toronto-based firm of Diamond + Schmitt Architects, the 13,500-square-metre facility is intended to meet the needs of a new generation of law students and legal researchers.

Situated adjacent to the Chan Centre for the Performing Arts and framing one of two principal gates into the campus, the building will replace the existing school, currently housed in two aging structures...

The new building provides space for more than 50 faculty members, 600 undergraduate and 100 graduate students. It includes contemporary classroom designs, more student service spaces, a moot court, a larger Law Library and new research spaces...

Read more here.

QUICK TO FIGHT QUICKLAW

The Law Page

BAR TALK

February 13, 2008

Canada's law schools are rebelling against a demand by QuickLaw that law students pay $50 each next fall, or an estimated $500,000 annually across Canada, for access to its digital repository of case law, statutes and other legal research. In a letter to QuickLaw, an association of Canadian law librarians estimated the charges would be devastating to annual library budgets.

Patrick Monahan, dean of Osgoode Hall Law School, said he is steaming mad about the fee and will move to another digital service if QuickLaw doesn't back down. He said the fee "violates the spirit of partnership of QuickLaw," which was founded in 1973 by a Queens University law professor in collaboration with students and law faculties. QuickLaw was purchased by U.S.-based LexisNexis Canada in 2002.

Hasselback: the merits of JD over LLB

Posted: February 13, 2008, 3:17 PM by Drew Hasselback Legal News, Drew Hasselback, Law schools

The law school of the University of Western Ontario has written alumni to solicit their views on whether they support changing the designation of the university's law degree to J.D. from LL.B...

Read Hasselback's reasons for switching here. His reasons are really funny. It's great to keep this debate alive. I am personally waiting for the day that U of A writes me to offer me the option of trading my LL.B. degree in for a J.D.

What do you think?

Law students bring black youth together with role models

Aim to increase minority law school enrolment
Feb 11/08
by Maria Saros Leung (email)

In the corridor of the Faculty of Law’s Flavelle House hangs a photo of Ivy Lawrence Maynier, the first woman of colour to graduate from the faculty in 1945.

With few black students and lawyers to look up to, the trail Maynier blazed would have been a lonely one. Today, Moya Teklu and Renee Smith, co-chairs of the U of T chapter of the Black Law Students’ Association (BLSA), are making black youth feel empowered to choose law as a career path by connecting them with black lawyers and judges.

See Yourself Here was born out of a lunchtime brainstorming session between Teklu and Smith. The one-day open house held Jan. 19 brought together young black high school and undergraduate students with black legal professionals as a way of encouraging black youth to pursue professional studies at the Faculty of Law.

Read more.

Law society report pushes for end to licensing course

By Thomas Claridge
Toronto
February 15 2008

A “consultation report” by a Law Society of Upper Canada (LSUC) task force has recommended scrapping a four-week licensing course that two years ago replaced the law society’s four-month-long Bar Admission Course (BAC).

The Licensing and Accreditation Task Force was appointed last spring with a mandate to make recommendations in three areas: the most effective means by which competency requirements for call to the Bar of Ontario could be achieved; the criteria for approving law degrees, and the impact of rising numbers of law graduates on the viability of the current licensing process.

The report was submitted to the law society’s January Convocation, which approved its dissemination to the profession, law schools and legal organizations to obtain feedback on its findings concerning the licensing process and the related articling process.

Headed by former LSUC treasurer Vern Krishna, the four-member task force noted in its report that the current Skills and Professional Responsibility Program began as a five-week instructional program but was reduced by Convocation to a four-week instructional program in 2007 “after the candidate evaluations indicated a perceived repetitiveness within the learning modules.”

At present, the candidates get 3.5 hours of instruction per day, for four weeks, for a total of 12 instructional days, six assessment days and one reassessment day for those who require it. Attendance is mandatory, and the law society has set aside two full days to conduct each of three assessments during the program.

The task force found that with 1,400 candidates in the process last year, assessments were limited to 15 or 20 minutes plus five to 10 minutes of performance feedback on each activity. The total time spent in and out of class on program requirements was 60 hours.

The report warned that present trends indicate that by 2009 the number of law students wanting to enter the profession will reach 1,730 — an increase of about 30 per cent from last year...

Read the whole article at The Lawyer's Weekly.

University of Alberta Faculty of Law Graduate Buys Edmonton Oilers

I had forgotten that Daryl Katz was a graduate of the University of Alberta Faculty of Law. This little article from TSN.ca gives a brief bio. It was announced today that he bought the Edmonton Oilers for $200 million.

"Katz, who grew up in Edmonton, attended law school at the University of Alberta and built his family's local business into a multi-billion dollar empire in less than a decade.

"As for his reasons for wanting to buy the Oilers, Katz says... 'I was born in Edmonton, I live in Edmonton and I grew up here with the Oilers during the glory years. I want to own the Oilers because they are Edmonton's hockey team and because I think there is an opportunity, through the Oilers, to do great things for the city.'"

That's pretty cool. I wonder if he really is a "wonderful Edmontonian," as Gretzky is quoted as saying. Gretzky goes on to say, "I know he cares about the city and I think he would be a tremendous owner for the Edmonton Oilers."

He has also committed to contributing $100 million for the building of a new stadium, which should be a good thing for that city.

Canadian lawyers at an advantage in overseas firms

Awareness of cultures leads to success on global legal stage
Margaret McCaffery, Financial Post Published: Wednesday, February 06, 2008

With London surpassing New York in the number of IPOs in 2007, it's no surprise that U.K.-based law firms are hunting for legal talent beyond their shores.

U.K. recruitment of Canadians began in earnest in 1994. Conventional wisdom had it that the chosen lawyers didn't stand a chance of making partner in the massive U.K.-based international firms, where high leverage between partners and associates makes it tough for lawyers to achieve partner status.

Nonetheless, a number of Canadian recruits are bucking the odds and not only achieving partnership status, but playing a prominent role in the success of international law firms.

Great article (continued here). I have three Canadian colleagues who have pursued work outside of Canada and are really enjoying their experience. Perhaps this is another answer to my recent post about the huge influx of law graduates. How's that for a solution? Import lawyers from other jurisdictions, and export our own law graduates. Balance is good, eh?

Bond University - from yesterday's post

Yesterday's post included information that an Australian University accepts 70 Canadian law students each year. The university is Bond University. They have an FAQ for Canadian students. I am hoping that they don't mind that I copy that FAQ here (if they do, they can feel free to write me), but I think it would be very beneficial for those applicants who either cannot get accepted, or choose not to apply to Canadian Law Schools:

Faculty of Law - International Perspective

FAQ'S for Students from Canada

What is the difference between the LLB and the JD?

The LLB and the JD are both professionally recognised degrees. The JD is restricted to graduate entrants; the LLB has no such restriction.
Law has traditionally been taken as a first degree in Australia and ‘LLB’ is the traditional label for that degree. However a number of universities have recently introduced 'JD' degrees for graduate students.

The compulsory law units for the two Bond degrees are the same and students in these units are taught together.

The LLB comprises 32 subjects in total, 19 compulsory law units and 4 compulsory non-law units.

The JD comprises 24 subjects in total, all being law units , with 19 of the units being compulsory. Electives for the JD are taken from the LLM list rather than the LLB list.

Canadians who possess a first degree generally enrol for the JD. It is easy to switch between the degrees in the early semesters.

How much does it cost?

Fees are currently about AU$3,000 per subject (24 subjects). They are adjusted each year.
Residence fees vary depending on the level of accommodation.

Shared accommodation in the vicinity of the University is readily available.
Email: student_residences@bond.edu.au if you have questions.

What are the admission requirements and are there deadlines?

Bond does not operate with fixed cut-offs. That is partly due to its international character, with students coming from many different areas of the world and with different kinds of qualifications.

We seek to maintain the total numbers in the Faculty of Law within the range 600-700. Admission decisions are made on an overall assessment of the application, with prior academic performance being the primary consideration.

In common with other Australian universities, we do not use the LSAT.

There are no fixed deadlines for admission applications. We make our decisions on a ‘rolling’ basis, issuing offers to qualified applicants until all available spaces have been filled. You can apply up to one year in advance.

After I graduate, what do I have to do in order to be eligible to practice law in Canada?

To practice law in Canada, you will need to complete a Canadian bar admission course. To be eligible for a bar admission course in any of the common law provinces (ie excluding Quebec), you will need a Certificate of Qualification from the National Committee on Accreditation (the ‘NCA’) of the Federation of Law Societies of Canada.

The certificate will state that you have education and training equivalent to that of a Canadian law graduate. Application is made to the NCA at the end of your degree at Bond.
The NCA will review your record and prescribe a number of examinations in Canadian law. View the NCA's guidelines.

The NCA makes its decisions on an individual basis, taking account of academic performance. Decisions are made following submission of a final transcript of studies : the NCA will not issue advance rulings.

The major variables affecting NCA rulings include the amount of any pre-law undergraduate studies, the length of the law degree, the amount of any studies undertaken in a Canadian law school, and the marks obtained in the law degree.

Our experience has been that graduates with respectable academic records are commonly required to complete 8 examinations if they have four-year pre-law degrees; 10 examinations if they have three-year pre-law degrees; and 12 examinations if first degree programs have not been undertaken or have been partially completed.

However, many graduates have been required to complete fewer examinations.

How can I take the examinations in Canadian law?

There are two ways of taking these examinations.

You may seek admission to a Canadian law school for this purpose. Places are limited. However, the University of Manitoba Faculty of Law has agreed to try to accommodate Bond applicants.
Alternatively you may take ‘challenge exams’ set by the NCA.

At present the most popular route is the challenge exams. Constitutional Law, which is regularly prescribed by the NCA, can present a difficulty with proceeding via a Canadian law school: openings are mainly in the upper years but Constitutional Law is a first year course in most schools.

In order to overcome this problem, Bond has periodically offered Canadian Constitutional Law, taught by visiting professors from the University of Manitoba and with the course credited by both universities.

How much difference is there between Australian and Canadian law?

The principles and methodology of Australian and Canadian law are similar. The details of statutory provisions and case-law obviously differ but an Australian law degree provides a good basis for taking examinations in Canadian law.

Can I take some of the examinations by going on exchange to a Canadian law school?

Our Canadian students are permitted to credit one semester at a Canadian law school toward their Bond degrees (usually the elective component).

Some students apply directly to Canadian schools for admission as visiting ‘letter-of-permission’ students. In addition, we have a formal exchange program with the University of British Columbia..

Our experience has been that the NCA may make some reduction in its requirements for graduates who have undertaken exchange programs. However, the amount any reduction varies.

Can I transfer from Bond to a Canadian law school?

Some of our students have transferred to Canadian law schools in order to take Canadian degrees, receiving some credit for their studies at Bond.

Several have also managed to complete the requirements for their Bond degrees, receiving some credit for their studies in Canada, so that they have both Canadian and Australian degrees.
Admission to Canadian law schools as a transfer student is competitive. The most common destinations have been University of Toronto and Queen’s University.

Will I be able to stay in Australia and practice law there?

Australian immigration operates on a ‘points’ system. Some points are awarded for having an Australian degree but additional points are required. Several of our graduates have qualified and are working in Australia.

Inquiries about immigration should be directed to Australian Consulates in Canada.

How can I apply?

Students may apply on-line or through one of our Canadian agents:

KOM Consultants
905 3188200
info@komconsultants.com

AustraLearn Canada
1 888 637 4412
studyabroad@australearncanada.org

OzTREKK
1866 698 7355
info@oztrekk.com

This is HUGE! Abolishment of articling eyed

‘Freight train’ of law grads on horizon
Abolishment of articling eyed
By Robert Todd Publication Date: Monday, 04 February 2008

An amended version of a Jan. 24 motion from LSUC’s licensing and accreditation task force was approved following a lively discussion from benchers, after the release of a report expressing concern that the province’s firms will soon be unable to accommodate hundreds of lawyers seeking articling placements.

The combined pressure of increased intake at Ontario law schools, an influx of foreign-trained lawyers, and the prospect of up to three new law schools in the province could leave many students with nowhere to go following their third year of law school.

“This is a freight train coming down the track and we have to be thoughtful, creative, and mindful of the size of this train,” task force member and Bencher Laurie Pawlitza told Convocation. Pawlitza noted the task force’s findings that the current demand for approximately 1,300 articling spots is estimated to rise to 1,730 by 2009 — a 30 per cent increase.

“I urge Convocation to think about the difference between being unable now to place about 50 students, and being unable to place about 300 students, 400 students,” she said.

This article (read the whole article here) has all kinds of really cool information that I had no idea about...such as an Australian law school that accepts up to 70 Canadian law students each year...had I only known!!

Please, provide your comments on this very interesting issue. Imagine...abolishing the articling year for Canadian law school graduates.

Hillary Clinton’s years at Yale Law School shaped her

By MATT STEARNS

McClatchy Newspapers

NEW HAVEN, Conn. | All that Hillary Rodham Clinton would become — all that still inspires her allies and enemies — emerged during her years roaming the Gothic buildings of Yale Law School.

She helped edit a journal that included cartoon police-pigs and that published a self-aggrandizing essay by a Black Panther who had been convicted of murder. Yet she also helped calm a politically inflamed campus.

She nurtured an interest in using the law to aid the needy — especially children — that remains integral to her politics, but which opponents use to pummel her values.

She projected an intelligence that impressed many but that could be cool and intimidating.

She met fellow student Bill Clinton and developed the first stirrings of a unique partnership that has already made American history — and that she hopes will make more.

Read more.

Landry does it again at Montrealer's constitutional law conference

By P.A. Sévigny, The Suburban

With some overblown rhetoric worthy of his now infamous description of the Canadian flag as a “red rag”, former provincial premier and PQ leader Bernard Landry did it again during a recent Quebec City constitutional law conference.

During a heated and sometimes emotional debate about the 1982 repatriation of the British North America Act, Landry paralleled former Canadian prime minister Pierre Trudeau’s description of Canada’s new constitution to Adolf Hitler’s description of the “1,000-year Reich!” During a speech delivered to law students at the conference, Landry began the quarrel when he quotedthe late Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau as having said “This constitution will last 1,000 years.”

Read the whole article here.

Obama the Law Student

Here's a cool photo of Barack Obama in 1990 when he led the Harvard Law Review.

AMBRIDGE, Mass., Jan. 23 —

By JODI KANTOR

Published: January 28, 2007

The peers who elected Barack Obama as the first black president of the Harvard Law Review say he was a natural leader, an impressive student, a nice guy. But in the 1990 Revue — the graduating editors’ gleeful parody of their elite publication — they said quite a bit more.

“I was born in Oslo, Norway, the son of a Volvo factory worker and part-time ice fisherman,” a mock self-tribute begins. “My mother was a backup singer for Abba. They were good folks.” In Chicago, “I discovered I was black, and I have remained so ever since.”

After his election, the Faux-bama says, he united warring students into “a happy, cohesive folk,” while “empowering all the folks out there in America who didn’t know about me by giving a series of articulate and startlingly mature interviews to all the folks in the media.”

Read the whole interesting article here.

The Average Law Student...After Law School

I am amazed at how many lateral moves amongst former classmates that I have witnessed since graduating from law school. There seem to be very few of them who have remained at their original summer or articling firm. A few have gone overseas. Others have gone in-house. Many others have switched firms, or even gone solo. This after only 3 years! I had expected that many of them would have remained stuck in their articling firm, climbing the partnership ladder. This was the line that we were fed throughout law school, and this was the prevailing attitude during bar admission courses.

I think we are seeing a breakthrough in those prevailing attitudes, with new expectations. I'm not talking about the cliche Generation X or Generation Y attitudes. I am talking about expectations attached to opportunity. Opportunities about, and nobody seems to want to be left behind. A Canadian Law School degree is more than just a road towards a partnership at a major Canadian law firm. The borders are opening up, the 0pportunities to use a legal education in business, government, non-profit, military, and elsewhere are abundant.

Most of my friends are becoming their own man/woman. Law can be a pretty solitary career. There's lots of time to brood about greener pastures. I am letting go of that old addage that says that you should chew your cudd in one field until you can tell whether you like the cudd. That's not to say that I am ready to jump ship. For me, it's about focussing my practice areas, and broadening my skillset to include such things as mediation and arbitration. I am also remembering how much I love to build businesses, and am enjoying those amazing opportunities in running a law firm, a publishing business and an alternate dispute resolution business. It's really fun to grow.

What are you doing with your law degree?

Toronto lawyer fined in cheating scandal

Paid ‘thousands of dollars’ for papers By Robert Todd | Publication Date: Monday, 28 January 2008

A Toronto lawyer was recently fined $10,000 by the Law Society of Upper Canada for selling course work to a York University MBA student for “thousands of dollars.”

Shane Smith was reprimanded by a law society hearing panel last month for conduct unbecoming a student licensee. He was given one year to pay the fine and an additional $1,000 in costs.

According to an agreed statement of facts, Smith acted contrary to parts of the Law Society Act when, while he was an articling student, he “provided and sold papers, which he and another student member had researched and written, to M, who was then a student in the MBA program at York University’s graduate school of business, with the knowledge that the papers would be submitted to the graduate school of business as M’s work.”

The student who received the course work is not named in the statement of facts.
Smith, 31, who currently works for IBM Canada Ltd., was called to the bar in July 2004.

But while the LSUC decision pertains to Smith’s activities while he was articling and M was an MBA student, documents obtained by Law Times show the scandal reached back to their law school days...

Read the whole article here. It never ceases to amaze me what people will risk...their entire career sometimes.

Among the abortionists

Jonathan Kay: Among the abortionists Posted: January 28, 2008, 11:39 AM by Jonathan Kay
National Post: Full Comment

Abortion is the one subject on which otherwise tolerant, open-minded people cannot agree to disagree. If you truly believe that life begins at conception, then what happens in Canada’s abortion clinics and wards approximately 100,000 times every year is, quite literally, a species of genocide. If you take the opposite view — that a fetus is a component of its female host without legal rights or human identity — then your opponents will strike you as nothing but ignorant misogynists. That is why we have precious little “debate” on the subject of abortion. Instead, we have sloganeering by two distinct and mutually hostile ideological tribes.

On Friday, Canada’s pro-choice movement convened what could best be described as a convention of tribal elders — middle-aged and elderly champions of the movement, including Henry Morgentaler, whose victory in the Supreme Court of Canada served to dismantle the entire criminal-law regime surrounding abortion 20 years ago today.

The University of Toronto Law School’s “Symposium to Mark the 20th Anniversary of R. v. Morgentaler” was an odd event. On one hand, it was organized by, and sponsored by, the law school’s own faculty — and so took on the superficial trappings of a normal academic symposium. But since not one of the 15 abortion doctors, scholars, writers and politicians who spoke took a pro-life stand, or even dealt in any serious way with pro-life arguments, the event was actually more of a pro-choice pep rally. On the few occasions when the existence of a pro-life camp was even acknowledged, it was invariably dismissed as a cadre of retrograde zealots plotting to undermine the Charter of Rights and Freedoms...

Read the whole article here, and leave your comments. This is a really interesting topic.

More on the Macleans Rankings

The McGill student newspaper has a good commentary on the Macleans rankings, although they question not only the elements that went into those rankings but the merits of rankings themselves where there are so few law schools.

Most of the criticism that I have read focusses on two considerations: the ranking of faculty by Canadian citations only, and the ranking of students by Lexpert-ranked "elite" firm hiring. Both are, I think, valid criticisms that probably speak to an unfamiliarity with Canadian legal (and Canadian legal academic) culture.

Posted by Russ Brown on October 11, 2007 at 05:17 AM in Law School Issues | Read the entire post here

Faculty of Law | University of Alberta | Faculty Blog

Faculty of Law PhD Program Approved - University of Alberta Faculty of Law

http://www.law.ualberta.ca/News--Events/News.php?news_id=118

The University of Alberta Faculty of Law’s proposal to establish a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Law program was recently approved by Minister of Advanced Education and Technology Doug Horner, further enhancing the Faculty’s reputation as a top-tier national law school.

Prior to approval, the program proposal went through a rigorous process including an internal review where the program received overwhelming approval from the Faculty of Graduate Studies and Research Council, the Academic Standards Committee, and the Academic Planning Committee. The Campus Alberta Quality Council—an arms-length quality assurance agency that makes recommendations on applications from post-secondary institutions seeking to offer new degree programs in Alberta—then reviewed the proposal and made the recommendation to Minister Horner.

The PhD program will give candidates a unique opportunity to study select areas of law in considerable detail. Involved in a wide range of leading legal research, faculty members can supervise graduate students in many subject areas including the Faculty’s well-known strengths in health law, corporate/commercial law, public international law, aboriginal law, criminal law, and legal theory.

More information on the program will be released shortly.

Answer expected next month on LU's law school proposal

Tb News Source
Web Posted: 1/24/2008 7:32:10 PM

Lakehead University has moved one step closer to establishing what could be the seventh law school in the province if their proposal for the former Port Arthur Collegiate Institute is successful.

LU has re-submitted its proposal to the Law Society of Upper Canada hoping to get approval for a new school that would house 150 students once it was fully operational.

Lakehead University President Fred Gilbert said Thursday the re-submission was requested by the Law Society which asked for more details on proposed course information. Gilbert says he expects the new proposal will be up for consideration in February.

An audit shows that close to $4 million worth of renovations is required at the PACI and if approval is granted, the school could be operational by fall of 2009.

David Asper founds Centre for Constitutional Rights with $7.5 million gift

Recent alumnus David Asper (LLM '07) has made a $7.5 million gift to the law school to establish the David Asper Centre for Constitutional Rights. David's gift is the largest contribution ever made by an individual to a law school in Canada. It will have a transformative effect on educational opportunities for students at our law school, and will play a vital role in articulating Canada's constitutional vision to the broader world.

Read the press release (PDF)

Read a brief biography of David Asper (PDF)

Watch the announcement of the gift at a special event held at the law school

This guy is amazing!

The need to change constantly

I never knew how important it would be to be flexible as a sole practitioner lawyer. The market is constantly changing. One day, there is a great need for litigation. The next, it is a strong real estate market. The next, people are dying, and everybody remembers that they need a will. The next, people are on fire to start up companies and need a lawyer to get them started. The next, companies are buying each other out, merging, or liquidating. The next day, forclosures are the big thing.

I am learning, with some time and effort, that it is impossible to keep up, and the the importance of choosing some key areas of focus. I have started to narrow my focus areas, and it is feeling good. I am attracting a broader client base as a result, and am able to provide better service to those key area clients.

At first, I was afraid that I would have to try to be everything to everybody, but I have learned that this is impossible, and not economically or chronologically feasible. It is too hard to start from scratch from one file to the next. I am appreciating the feeling of developing a particular expertise in the areas of real estate, wills and estates and divorce law. These are to become the bread and butter of our practice. I am also focussing a lot of time on mediation and arbitration training and marketing. Focus is good. Focus is safer. Focus is financially sound.

Law school for Seagram site?

Proposal being floated among RIM co-CEO, Laurier, UW

TheRecord.com
January 11, 2008
TAMSIN MCMAHON
RECORD STAFF
WATERLOO

The former Seagram lands in downtown Waterloo are being touted as a potential location for a proposed law school.

Jim Balsillie, co-chief executive officer of Research In Motion, has been in talks with both the University of Waterloo and Wilfrid Laurier University about a potential partnership to open a law school on the site at Erb and Caroline streets, said John English.

Read more...

Becoming a Mediator and Arbitrator

I'm sorry that I haven't posted in a while. Christmas kept me really busy with family committments.

Then, in the New Year, I decided to become accredited as a mediator and an arbitrator, so I have been really busy with that. It's an exciting new development in my legal career. I'll write more about it soon, as you may find it interesting or inspiring.

ADR (Alternative Dispute Resolution) has become a lot more mainstream in the last 15 years or so, and continues to make inroads with the public, the courts, and with lawyers. More on that later.

Law students: drop LLB for U.S.-style JD

From Western News

By Paul Mayne
Thursday, December 6, 2007

With an eye to international employment, Western Law students have voted overwhelmingly in favour of changing their degree from LL.B. to J.D. (Juris Doctor), matching similarly named degrees at U.S. universities.

The J.D. designation is typically regarded as a professional degree, requiring an undergraduate degree as well as a law degree. Outside of Canada, in countries such as the UK and Australia, it is possible to enter an LL.B. program directly from high school. Students feel J.D. would facilitate international employment...

Read more here, and give us your comments on this changeover that more schools are adopting these days. Thanks!

University of Toronto Law school gets a boost

Businessman and lawyer David Asper has donated $7.5-million to establish a centre for the study of constitutional rights in his name at the University of Toronto's faculty of law.

This was from the Globe and Mail site (click here). Unfortunately, you have to pay for the stupid article (I hate that! $5 for an article!), so I don't know the details. Anybody else out there know more? Please comment.

Law is Cool

I just came across a great Canadian Law School Blog and Podcast - Law is Cool (http://lawiscool.com/)

I'm going to copy directly from the About Page, because I was so impressed, and I'm sure they won't mind if I plug them a bit here:

Law Is Cool is a new blog and podcast addressing issues related to law school and the legal field with a Canadian focus.

The contents are intended for three broad audiences:

1) Current and potential law students

2) Graduates reviewing for their bar exam

3) Members of the general public interested in learning more about the law

Law Is Cool is intended to be an exciting and engaging resource for all three groups. This require your participation to make it happen. If you are a first year law student in Canada, feel free to contact us about joining the team.

The Team:

Omar Ha-Redeye has an educational background in nuclear medicine, health administration, and public relations. He has worked in all three fields for several years before deciding to pursue a law degree at the University of Western Ontario.

Thomas Wisdom is a political science major from the University of Toronto and a first year law student at Osgoode Hall.

Ken Saddington is an engineer from Queen’s University, and is starting Law at the University of Western Ontario.

Marie Winfield has a BS Engineering & Public Policy, BA French (Washington University in St. Louis) and an MA French Language & Literature (University of Pennsylvania). She is studying her first year of law at the McGill University in Montreal.

Vimal Baid is a first-year law student at the University of Saskatchewan.

Gail Geronimo studied psychology at York University and is in her first year of law at the University of Ottawa.

Rob Evans has a BAA in psychology from Kwantlen University College in Surrey, B.C. He is starting the LLB/JD joint program at the University of Windsor and University of Detroit Mercy.

Gerard Kennedy studied Canadian Studies, Political Science, Christianity and Culture at the University of Toronto, and is pursuing law at Queen’s Universiy.

Adrian Di Lullo studied political science at Carleton, and is starting law school at Queen’s University this year. Adrian is heading up the international conflict section with a focus on the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

Daniel Simard is in the joint LLB and Masters of Environmental Studies at Osgoode Hall and York University, and is currently in his first year of law.

Jacob Kaufman studied History and Economics at Queen’s University, and is currently a first-year law student at the University of Western Ontario.

Kashif Ahmed completed a Bachelor of Business Administration at the University of Regina, and is currently in his first year of law at the University of Saskatchewan.

Ajay Gajaria is a fourth-year political science major at the University of Western Ontario. He heads up the support team for the site.

I was really happy to see a publication of this kind. I have added it to my blogroll.

Please let me know if you know of a Law School Blog or Legal Blog that I have not mentioned, or that I don't include in the blogroll. Thanks!

CanadianLawSchool.ca Revamped

I reworked www.CanadianLawSchool.ca today. I plan to post some more resources, cans, news, etc. on that site. You can also find more detailed information about my book, So, You Want to be a Lawyer, Eh? Law School in Canada (2nd Edition).

My book is now available on Amazon.ca at the lowest price available - $17.83 - 27% off of the retail price of $24.95. It is also available on Amazon.com, but you'll have to pay a bit more - $18.96 - 24% off retail.

I noticed the following on Amazon.ca:

#2 in	Books > Professional & Technical > Law > Specialties > Educational Law & Legislation
#2 in	Books > Law > Specialties > Educational Law & Legislation
#3 in	Books > Professional & Technical > Law > One-L > Legal Profession

Alternative Careers (nevermind legal)

I have been asked quite a few times about alternative legal careers. However, today, I came across a fairly long-running thread on Lawstudents.ca that asks the question, what would you be if you were not a lawyer. A great question! Most of the posts are nonsense, of course, but I think it is a question worth asking yourself if you are anywhere in the midst of becoming or acting as a lawyer.

In asking myself this question, I came up with the following list in order of most desirable at the top:

1. Professional writer - photographer;
2. Property Developer and Renovator;
3. Law professor;
4. English professor;
5. Publisher;
6. Librarian

That was a fun exercise, and provided for at least some loosening of the career strings. Please post your alternative careers here (no nonsense please - only legitimate careers). Thanks!

2nd Edition now available on Amazon.com

I noticed today that the 2nd Edition of So, You Want to be a Lawyer, Eh? is now available on Amazon.com. The "Inside the Book" feature and further information should be up on Amazon.com shortly.

Maclean's first-ever ranking of Canada's law school

It has been a while since I posted, and Macleans came out with a ranking for law schools in September. It isn't really their first ever ranking. They did a ranking a number of years ago.

It's really nice to have a ranking other than CanadianLawyer magazine. However, I don't think that Maclean's did a very good job at ranking. There is far too much emphasis on such things as number of articles published by professors, and the number of placements of students articling / clerking with the Supreme Court of Canada. In my mind these are not true reflections of the quality of education, or more important, the quality of job placements or students upon graduation.

I have commented more completely in the 2nd Edition of my book.

Have a read through the rankings, and especially the commentary. It's worth reading. I hope that the magazine continues to provide an annual ranking so that we might see some trends. As I have indicated previously, the CanadianLawyer rankings are all over the map over the past 6-7 years, and are not a reliable source at all. I am glad that Macleans has at least tried to be scientific in their approach.

Post your thoughts and comments here once you have read the rankings. We would all be interested in your thoughts.

A reward for hard work - and not giving up

ANTHONY REINHART
From Friday's Globe and Mail
E-mail Anthony Reinhart Read Bio Latest Columns
October 25, 2007 at 8:55 PM EDT

“Law school's really hard when you don't have the funds there to help you,” Ms. Williams, a second-year student at York University's Osgoode Hall Law School ...

A nice inspiring story. Read more.

Canadian law school in the works

Cassandra McKenna cordweekly.com Oct 03, 2007

Laurier has recently put forth a proposal to the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities to open the first Canadian law school in almost 30 years; proposal includes a unique co-op program. Read more.

U of C law school moves up application deadline by four months

Andrew Barbero Gauntlet News October 04, 2007

Are you an aspiring University of Calgary law student? Then you better have already written the LSAT. The U of C law school has moved their application deadline forward from Feb. to Nov. 1 starting this year. The move means potential law students must have written the law school admissions test no later than Sep. 29. "The main problem was we were behind compared to other schools in Canada," said U of C law school director of admission Keith Yamauchi. "When we sent offers out to students, they were turning us down because they had already accepted somewhere else." Read more.

U of T Faculty of Law getting ready to expand

The University of Toronto today revealed the three competing designs for its law school expansion to be built south of the ROM on Queen’s Park Circle.The $60-million project will add 100,000 square feet of classrooms, lecture halls and faculty offices to the historic buildings, something the dean said is sorely needed. Read more.

Back and Better than ever - 2nd Edition is finally ready!

I have received many inquiries about whether this blog is dead, or whether I am dead. I assure that neither rumour is true.

I have had to go "underground" for a couple of months in order to catch up with all of my law firm work, and to finish the 2nd Edition of So, You Want to be a Lawyer, Eh?.

The book is finally finished, and is now ready to order from the publisher (orders@writingonstone.ca) or the distributor (Sandhill Book Marketing - www.sandhillbooks.com). It will come up on Amazon.com, Amazon.ca and Chapters.ca shortly. If you order it directly from the publisher, you will get a 20% discount off of the retail price of $24.95.

Here's the description from the back cover:

So, You Want to be a Lawyer, Eh?
Law School in Canada

Every year, an estimated 10,000 to 15,000 people apply to Canadian law schools, vying for just over 2,000 coveted spots. The competition is even fiercer when applying for a law job. Adam Letourneau, BSc, BA, LLB, 2005 graduate of the University of Alberta Faculty of Law, former Editor-in-Chief of the Alberta Law Review and owner of Letourneau Law, Barristers & Solicitors, reveals in this second edition many insider tips on how to gain admittance to law school in Canada. He explores how to cope and succeed in law school and how to land a coveted law job post-graduation. Drawing upon personal experience and the experiences of numerous Canadian law school graduates, Letourneau shares insights on the LSAT, applying for law school, study strategies, summer jobs, the articling application process and much more. This book will save you hours of research, hours of study and tons of stress. This second edition includes new law school graduate comments, updated admissions information, what being a lawyer is really like, tips to avoid pitfalls and more, with over 13,000 additional words and three new chapters.

"As a future Canadian law student, I was frustrated with the lack of guide material available to Canadian law students...it was important to find a book like this that addresses the particular elements of Canadian Law School." --F. Voisin, Ontario

"So, You Want to Be a Lawyer, Eh? outlines the process and offers tips to improve your results in the application process, at law school and in finding an articling position. I will be attending law school next year and I am confident that this book will help me succeed." --Jaime, Ontario

"This book provides an honest and fair appraisal of the law school process, from applications to graduation. I was truly interested in a law school resource that took me `behind the scenes' and into the law school atmosphere, and this book met such an objective." --N. Peterson, Vancouver

"I have read a number of guidebooks on how to succeed at law school and this is by far one of the best." --Dan, Ontario

For more information go to www.CanadianLawSchool.ca

Part of the Writing on Stone Press Canadian Career Series.

You might also be interested in a couple other books that were released last month in the Writing on Stone Press Canadian Career Series:

So, You Want to be a Doctor, Eh? A Guidebook to Canadian Medical School by Dr. Anne Berndl, MD

So, You Want to be a Pilot, Eh? A Guidebook for Canadian Pilot Training by James Ball