PBSC Intern Experiences (Past)

2012

Emilie Lahaie
John Howard Society

The Callwood Fellowship gave me the opportunity to work with The John Howard Society of Toronto, an organization that assists men who have been in conflict with the law. My role with the Native Inmate Liaison Officer Program included assisting with programming for Aboriginal men incarcerated at the Metro West Detention Center. To say experiencing the realities of incarceration and the struggles our clients face upon release to find housing, a job and fight addictions was eye-opening would be an understatement. I did not truly understand the incredible challenges those with a criminal record face on a daily basis. I'm so grateful to have had the opportunity to contribute my work to this amazing organization.

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Emilie Lahaie (left) at the John Howard Society

2011 

Anna Cooper
Atira Women's Resource Society

"I join the chorus of past and present law students who say that you cannot underrate the importance of 'practical experience' during your time at law school.  Law in theory differs greatly from law on the ground and I found my experience with Atira reinvigorated and focused the rest of my degree…It was reassuring to find that my interest in legal research and argument was greatly invigorated by the existence of a real- life conundrum." 

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2010 

Justin Basinger
West Coast Environmental Law (WCEL)

"Working at WCEL was fantastic. In addition to sharpening my legal research and writing skills, I benefited tremendously from spending time with aboriginal, environmental, and natural resources lawyers in a professional context. I really enjoyed the variety and unpredictability of working at a legal NGO. I am very intrigued by the important role the law and lawyers can play in public interest coalitions, and how a legal approach to a complex problem can often be the best one (or the worst)."

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2009

Karenna Williams
Sour Springs Longhouse and the Haudenosaunee Standing Committee on Burials and Burial Regulations 

"My main focus this summer has been the repatriation of sacred false face masks from the Denver Museum of Natural History, the Denver Art Museum, and the Canadian Museum of Civilization.  In order to make a viable and effective claim for the return of the masks, I have been researching the use of the masks and their provenance, that is, how the institutions came to acquire them." 

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2008

Erin Hallock
Refugee Law Office of Legal Aid Ontario

"I have learned an amazing amount about the law by immersing myself in it and taking on new and challenging cases. With the supervision, support and feedback of those at the RLO, I have gained confidence in my abilities and come to many realizations about the prospects for my future as a lawyer."

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2007

Dwight Montgomery
June Callwood Program in Aboriginal Law Fellowship
Aboriginal Legal Services of Toronto

"Assisting the Tenant Rights worker, I have been meeting with clients and helping them directly. I've negotiated settlements with landlords, and attended meetings with tenants and hearings at the Landlord and Tenant Board. This has been an excellent opportunity to develop hands-on experience with people who have real and pressing problems."

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2006

Anna Rosenbluth
Centre for Equality Rights in Accommodation (CERA)

"Each time I was able to help a client enforce her rights and avoid having to enter into the long and at times frustrating human rights complaint process was rewarding." 

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2005

"Working with Mark and Krystyn, Lake Ontario Waterkeeper's President and Executive Director, has been tremendous. Perhaps most valuable of all, it has reinforced my belief that individually and collectively we can make a difference in this world and the study of law gives us invaluable tools with which to do so."

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2004

"My summer at the Refugee Law Office of Legal Aid Ontario has virtually cemented my intention to work in refugee and immigration law. My clients had tremendously varying backgrounds -- from those fleeing outright war, to those escaping from situations of domestic violence or state-sponsored homophobia. This variety really brought to light for me the current realities of refugee protection and the forces that motivate individuals to leave their countries of origin."

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