Prof. Kent Roach writes "Colten Boushie’s family should be upset: Our jury selection procedure is not fair"

Wednesday, January 31, 2018

In a commentary in the Globe and Mail, Prof. Kent Roach argues that the ability of both the prosecution and the defence to exercise peremptory challenges of prospective jurors means the current method of jury selection in Canadian trials  is fundamentally unfair and makes it possible for lawyers to discriminate against Indigenous persons and others ("Colten Boushie’s family should be upset: Our jury selection procedure is not fair," January 20, 2018).

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Headnotes - Jan 29 2018

Announcements

Deans' Offices

Leadership Skills Program - Emotional Intelligence

Ignite Your Leadership Potential with Emotional Intelligence

Wednesday February 7th, 12:30 – 2:00

Presenter: Anne-Marie Sorrenti

The Emotional Quotient Inventory (EQi-2.0©) is a scientifically validated EI assessment used in organizations worldwide for leadership development, selection, retention, executive coaching and team effectiveness. Understanding your EI baseline, strengths, and potential leadership derailers will support your development into a successful professional with an enhanced ability to recognize, understand and manage emotions in yourself and others. 

To register, click here

Student Office

Welcome Day 2018 - Call for Volunteers

JD Volunteers (all years) needed for Welcome Day 2018

If you attended Welcome Day, then you may recall how instrumental it was for our newly admitted students to be able to identify, relate and connect with our senior students.  Your involvement is quite appreciated.

Meet and inspire the excited and eager potential incoming JD class. With your participation you will assist in expanding their awareness of the many areas of legal education, practice and service. You are invaluable to the students' understanding of the role of co-curricular and extra-curricular opportunities offered at the law school and their consequent benefits.

  • Event Date: Friday February 23rd (during Reading Week)
  • Venue: Jackman Law Building
  • Time Commitment:
    We will schedule you according to the amount of time you can commit to the event, indicate your hours of availability on the form
    • between 9am-6pm for the formal event
    • and 6-8pm for the post-event Pub Night at the Fox & Fiddle

To sign-up, please complete and submit the online volunteer form.

For catering purposes, it would be most helpful if you sign-up by the end of day, Wednesday January 31st.

Be the inspiration!

Regards,
Jerome Poon-Ting
Senior Recruitment,Admissions & Diversity Outreach Officer
jerome.poon.ting@utoronto.ca

 

Wellness Week

Join students, staff and faculty for a range of great events and activities during the law school's inaugural Wellness Week. Fun activities every day from February 5th to 9th.

See attached for more details.

Wellness Week is brought to you by the Student Health & Wellness Committee.

(Extra bonus: Participate in Wellness Week activities and win 2 free tickets to Law Follies!)

Academic supports at the law school

Dear students:

I am writing to remind you of the academic supports available at the law school.

Academic Success Program (ASP):The ASP connects 1L students with upper year Academic Advisors who provide one-on-one and small group assistance to those who would like academic support. Our upper year Academic Advisors are Dean’s list students who will provide course-specific advice about summarizing cases, preparing for class, studying for exams, and writing papers.

The ASP is a free and confidential service. 1L students can access the program as individuals or in small study groups. 45 minute sessions are available now.  To book an appointment, please email academic.support@utoronto.ca

Learning Strategist: Students in all years can book one-on-one sessions at the law school with a learning strategist from the university’s Academic Success Centre. Learning Strategists help students tackle challenges associated with heavy reading loads, the lure of procrastination, deadline crunches, and transitioning to a new discipline. To book an appointment, please email  kathleen.ogden@utoronto.ca

Writing Instructor: Students in all years can book one-on-one sessions at the law school with an academic writing instructor from the university’s Woodsworth College Writing Centre. Instructors assist students with general writing skills. During a session, an Instructor will read a work-in-progress and offer feedback on organization, documentation, grammar, structure and punctuation.  To book an appointment, please go to https://awc.wdw.utoronto.ca

 

For more information about all of these services, please go to our Academic Support webpage.

 

Both Assistant Dean Sara Faherty and I are available to meet with students who would like to discuss how they are doing academically. Please email me at alexis.archbold@utoronto.ca to book an appointment.

 

Best regards

Alexis

 

Alexis Archbold LL.B

Assistant Dean, J.D. Program

UofT Cup - Law students wanted to judge undergrad moot
UofT Cup Moot Judges Needed

 

Academic Events

Law and Economics Colloquium: Natalie Bau

Law & Economics Colloquium
presents

Natalie Bau
University of Toronto
Department of Economics 

Can Policy Crowd Out Culture 

Tuesday, January 30, 2018
4:10 – 5:45
Flavelle Building, Room 219
78 Queen’s Park 

Policies may change the returns to transmitting cultural norms to the next generation with the unintended consequence of changing cultural practices. I study cultural norms that determine whether boys or girls support their parents in their old age in Indonesia and Ghana. These norms play the dual role of increasing old age support while relieving incomplete contracting problems in educational investment between parents and children. Where these norms exist, parents invest more in the human capital of the child who is more likely to care for them in old age. In both Indonesia and Ghana, the entry and expansion of pension plans crowds out human capital investment in the children targeted by these norms. Moreover, consistent with a model where parents jointly choose whether to educate their children and whether to transmit the norm to the next generation, the pension plan also crowds out the practice of the norm. Thus, policy crowds out culture. 

Natalie Bau is an assistant professor at the University of Toronto, a CEPR research affiliate, and a CIFAR Azrieli Global Scholar. She is interested in development and education economics with a special emphasis on the industrial organization of education markets. 

For more colloquium information, please contact Nadia Gulezko at n.gulezko@utoronto.ca

LGBTQ+ Workshop - Prof. Alon Harel, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem

In this workshop, Prof Alon Harel will discuss the state and recent developments of LGBTQ+ Rights in Israel.

Prof. Harel is the Phillip and Estelle Mizock Chair in Administrative and Criminal Law at The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, and the editor of LGBT Rights in Israel: Gender Identity, Sexual Orientation and the Law .

When: February 8, 4.10-5.10pm

Where: Falconer Hall, FA 4

Workshop: Regulating in the Dark: Mapping the Encryption Debate

Regulating in the Dark: Mapping the Encryption Debate

 

Law enforcement and national security agencies in many different states argue that strong encryption in making the internet “go dark” and that they need ways to bypass this encryption in order to investigate crime and prevent terrorism attacks. Proposals to bypass the effects of encryption often include mandating the creation of “back doors” such as through different ways of managing access to types of “master keys” but can also include compelled disclosure of passwords or keys from suspects (raising concerns regarding the right against self-incrimination). Often such proposals are short on details, such as Public Safety Canada’s recent discussion as part of its 2016 National Security consultation. The tech industry, security experts, and civil liberties groups have largely responded that encryption bypasses pose too great a danger to cybersecurity and fundamental rights. 

Click here for details.

The event is free but registration is required. Click here to register

Critical Analysis of Law Workshop: Vanessa Ogle

CRITICAL ANALYSIS OF LAW WORKSHOP
presents

Vanessa Ogle
University of California, Berkeley,
 History Department

Legalizing the Offshore World

Tuesday, February 6, 2018
12:30 – 2:00
Solarium, Falconer Hall
84 Queen’s Park
 

Vanessa Ogle received an MA from the Free University of Berlin and completed a PhD at Harvard University from 2005-2011. From 2011-2017, she taught modern European history at the University of Pennsylvania as an assistant and associate professor. In fall 2017, she joined the history department at UC Berkeley as associate professor in late modern European history. From 2013-2014 she spent a fellowship year at the Institute for Advanced Study (School of Social Science), Princeton, NJ, and in 2016-2017, she was a fellow at the Davis Center at Princeton University. Her first book, The Global Transformation of Time 1870-1950 was published with Harvard University Press in October 2015.
 

For more workshop information, please contact Nadia Gulezko at n.gulezko@utoronto.ca

Tsinghua – Toronto – Hong Kong Law Conference: Legal Research, Pedagogy and Practice in the 21st Century

Friday, February 2 - 8:30 am to Saturday, February 3, 2018 - 1:00pm
Location: Jackman Law Building, 78 Queen’s Park, room J140

Now in its sixth year, the conference brings together faculty from the law schools of Tsinghua University, the University of Toronto and the University of Hong Kong to explore legal issues from Chinese and North American perspectives. This year, speakers will address questions relating to the history, theory and practice of international law; the law of trade, investment and development; environmental and climate change law; intellectual property, artificial intelligence and technology law; constitutional law and public law.

See the conference web page for the program and registration.

For more information, contact associatedean.law@utoronto.ca

Health Law, Policy and Ethics Seminar: Louise Bernier and Catherine Regis

Faculty of Law Health Law, Ethics & Policy Seminar Series

Presents

A Relational Autonomy Perspective on Advance Medical Directives for End-of-Life Care

Catherine Régis, Associate Professor, Université de Montréal.

Louise Bernier, Associate Professor, Université de Sherbrooke

 

Commentator: Harvey Schipper

Professor of Medicine & Adjunct Professor of Law, University of Toronto  

 

Thursday, February 1, 2018
12:30 – 2:00
Solarium (Room FA2), Falconer Hall - 84 Queen’s Park

 

The landscape of end-of-life care has dramatically changed in Canada recently. In Québec, one important change results from the newly established Advanced Medical Directives (AMD) Regime for end-of-life care. This Regime is based on the postulate that it promotes autonomy; yet, the authors will argue that it has failed to fully achieve such a goal. First, crucial elements required to obtain a free and informed consent are evacuated from the Regime, therefore weakening its legal value. Second, the Quebec Regime promotes a limited view of autonomy, which needs to further include considerations for relational autonomy. Suggestions will be made to improve the current Regime, which is an essential step before we move forward with AMD for medical aid in dying (presently excluded).

Catherine Régis is an associate professor at University of Montreal’s Faculty of Law and chairholder at the Canada Research Chair in Collaborative Culture in Health Law and Policy.

Louise Bernier is professor of Health Law and head of the Law and Health Science Program at the Law Faculty of Sherbrooke University.

A light lunch will be served.


We will start promptly at 12.30 so in order to take your lunch, please come on time.

For more information about this workshop, please contact Nadia Gulezko at n.gulezko@utoronto.ca

Legal Theory Workshop: David Enoch

 LEGAL THEORY WORKSHOP

presents

David Enoch
Hebrew University
Faculty of Law and Dept. of Philosophy 

Against Utopianism:  Noncompliance and Multiple Agents

Friday, February 2, 2018
12:30 - 2:00
Room 219, Flavelle Building
78 Queen's Park

A light lunch will be provided. 

To be added to the paper distribution list, please contact Nadia Gulezko at n.gulezko@utoronto.ca.  For further information, please contact Professor Larissa Katz (larissa.katz@utoronto.ca) and Professor Sophia Moreau (sr.moreau@utoronto.ca). 

Student Activities

Social Enterprise and the Income Tax Act

Though there is no clear consensus on its meaning, one thing is clear, social enterprise is becoming more important across Canada. While some provinces are experimenting with social enterprise specific legislation, most operate under the general framework of tax and corporate statutes. Nick Pasquino and Ryma Nasrallah of Borden Ladner Gervais will explore and explain how the Income Tax Act fits into all this, how it enables and inhibits charities, nonprofits, and businesses in carrying out social enterprise, and what all this means for us.

January 29th, 2018
12:30-2:00 PM
J130

Presented by...

The Tax Law Society and the Charity Law Interest Group

Law Follies!

Join us at the Opera House on Thursday February 8 for everything from high-brow legal humour to poop jokes. After party (with DJ!) to follow immediately after the show, at the Opera House!

Doors open at 7 pm.

Please note: The Opera House is open only to those aged 19+, with the exception of minors accompanied by a parent. Please bring government issued ID.

Ticket Sales:

Ticket numbers are limited so get yours soon! Purchase tickets online here:

https://www.tickettailor.com/events/lawfollies2018

A limited number of tickets will also be reserved for cash sale in the Jackman Hall Atrium:
- January 29 - February 1 at 12:30-2:00 pm
- February 5 - 8. at 12:30-2:00 pm

Ticket Prices:
- U of T Law Students: $10
- Guests: $15

* A small service fee will apply to tickets purchased online.

Ticket prices are discounted $5 off of last year's price, thanks to generous sponsorship from BLG!

If you require accessible seating, please email elizabeth.creelman@mail.utoronto.ca with the subject line "Law Follies Accessible Seating".

Labour Law Film Club Presents: Pride (2014)

All are invited to join the Labour Law Film Club (Lily, Justin, Kaelan, and Prof Langille) for the first film of the semester: Pride (2014). 

Based on a true story, the film depicts a group of queer activists who raised money to help families affected by the British Miner's Strike in 1984. This historically unique alliance would become Lesbians and Gays Support the Miners, a group that worked to build solidarity and raise money for impoverished strikers. The film is also very fun and interesting!

 

When: Tuesday, January 30th at 7pm 

Where: Flavelle 219 (The John WIlliss Classroom)

Snacks, commentary, and camaraderie will be provided. 

Blue J Legal Lunch & Learn
Blue J logo

Looking for a 1L summer job? Interested in hearing about cool new legal innovations? Do you want to learn about artificial intelligence and the law? 

Come find out more at our Lunch & Learn with Blue J Legal. CEO Professor Alarie will discuss some of the predictive tax foresight tools developed by Blue J. Blue J supplements the legal research process by using common law data to predict case outcomes. Professor Alarie will also be discussing employment opportunities for the upcoming 2018 summer. 

Lunch will be served!

 

Date: Thursday, February 1st 

Time: 12:30

Location: J125

 

 

Health & Wellness Art Show - Call for Submissions!

Dear students

As part of the upcoming Wellness Week, the Student Health & Wellness Committee is calling for submissions for the second annual Mental Health Awareness Art Installation Project. This year, the Project hopes to showcase ways in which students, staff and faculty pursue mental health, wellness and joy. In particular, the Project hopes to highlight the ways in which the students, staff and faculty of the law school pursue and find joy. The goal of this project is to show our community what joy looks like and feels like to each of us. Joy and wellness means something different to everybody and we are asking students, staff, and faculty to share a snap shot of it means to them. This snapshot can be in the form of a painting, a recipe of a favorite treat, a favorite song lyric, an essay, a line of prose, or a photograph of someone special.

We ask that submissions stick to 5’x5’ dimensions. The submissions can be made to Yukimi Henry either in person at Flavelle Room 210 or by email to yukimi.henry@utoronto.ca. Submissions will be displayed anonymously unless specifically requested. The submissions will be displayed at the law school from February 5, 2018 to February 8, 2018. The Mental Health Awareness Art Installation Project will also include mental health awareness messages.

In addition, on Monday February 5, 2018 at lunchtime, the Faculty’s artist-in-residence, Tanya Murdoch, will lead two different interactive art exercises which will give students the opportunity to partake in a quick empathy exercise and to contribute to a larger community mural.

Help us to create something special that illustrates how each of us find joy in our own ways. We look forward to your submissions

Yukimi

 

Yukimi Henry LLB, MSW, RSW

Manager, Academic/Personal Counselling and Wellness

Centres, Legal Clinics, and Special Programs

IHRP & HRW - Panel Discussion: The Darker Side of Digital: Human Rights Implications of Technology in Canada and Abroad

Registration Required:  http://bit.ly/2imQESp - through Eventbrite

Please see the Save the Date Poster (pdf)

Moderator: Stephen Northfield: Digital Director, Human Rights Watch, Twitter: @snorthfield45
 
Panelists:

  • Lisa Austin: Professor, Chair in Law and Technology, Faculty of Law, U of T, Twitter: @Lisa_M_Austin

  • Lex Gill: Research Fellow, The Citizen Lab;  and Advocate, National Security Program, CCLA, Twitter: @lex_is 

  • Felix Horne: Senior Researcher, Horn of Africa, Human Rights Watch, Twitter: @FelixHorne1

Rapid advances in technology offer human rights activists’ tremendous opportunities. We can now collect new, and richer data than ever before; gather information in dangerous or hard-to-access places and have greater capacity to project our findings and influence key decision makers and media.

But there’s a darker side to the technology revolution.
 
Commercial spyware and malware tools are being used to track and disrupt the activities of human rights defenders. Privacy is under assault by governments who gather massive amounts of metadata on their citizens – and those in other countries. Technology is being used by some to spread toxic ideologies, disrupt democracy and distort the truth.
 
Please join us for a panel of experts to discuss human rights implications in Canada and abroad. 

For more information, contact ihrp.law@utoronto.ca

 

Jan 31st Asper Centre Constitutional Roundtable with Akis Psygkas

Constitutional Roundtable Presents 

Athanasios (Akis) Psygkas

Lecturer in Law
University of Bristol Law School

on

Wednesday, January 31, 2018
12:30 – 2:00
Solarium (Room FA2), Falconer Hall
84 Queen’s Park

"The hydraulics of constitutional claims: Four models of democratic constitutionalism and same-sex marriage"

Who makes constitutional claims? The paper argues that on both sides of the Atlantic a multiplicity of constitutional actors outside the courts participate in the elaboration of constitutional principles. I map out these constitutional actors by using as a case study the legal recognition of same-sex marriage in the United States, Spain, the United Kingdom, and Ireland. In all four country cases, there are common functional demands for democratic involvement in shaping constitutional meaning. Even though these demands may take various institutional and procedural forms owing to diverse political, institutional, and cultural contexts, I argue that the same overarching hydraulics effect is at play across jurisdictions. When social movements are shut out of one forum, they channel their constitutional claims through different institutional avenues.

The four systems represent distinctive models of formal recognition of same-sex marriage, with different actors taking the lead and having the final say on this contested issue. However, I explain that in all four cases we can detect the voices of multiple actors, including notably the people themselves, in a process of legal contestation around and interpretation of fundamental constitutional principles. These voices can take different forms, and the paper proposes institutional, historical, political, and cultural factors that may account for this. Thus, the paper tells a story of legal development arising from inclusive interpretive communities in the context of a democratic constitutional theory. This facilitates dynamic constitutional interpretation that reflects evolving political and social demands instead of top-down delivery of constitutional meaning.

------------

Athanasios (Akis) Psygkas is lecturer in law at the University of Bristol in the UK and currently a visiting scholar at the University of Toronto. His research interests include comparative public law, regulation, and global governance. His latest book, entitled “From the ‘Democratic Deficit’ to a ‘Democratic Surplus’: Constructing Administrative Democracy in Europe” (Oxford University Press, 2017), examines the impact of EU law on the adoption of participatory regulatory processes in the member states.

Akis received J.S.D. and LL.M. degrees from Yale Law School, where he was a Fulbright scholar, and an LL.B. and LL.M. in Public Law and Political Science from the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki (Greece). He has held fellowships at the European University Institute in Florence, the Institut d’Etudes Politiques (Sciences Po) in Paris, and Yale. He has been managing the Comparative Administrative Law Blog over the past seven years.

  Light lunch provided

For further details, please contact tal.schreier@utoronto.ca

Career Development Office and Employment Opportunities

Summer research assistance - Prof. Waddams

Professor Stephen Waddams and Justice Robert Sharpe are looking for assistance in updating their books on Injunctions and Specific Performance, and Damages, and Professor Waddams in preparing for publication a book on Sanctity of ContractsPlease apply by February 28, by letter, including details of academic record, to Professor Waddams (paper copy, please, to the law school) and simultaneously to The Hon. Justice R. J. Sharpe, e-mail: robert.sharpe@oca-cao.ca.  

Max Planck Summer Research Fellows: Call for Applications

The Max Planck Institute for the Study of Religious and Ethnic Diversity (MPI-MMG) in collaboration with the University of Toronto Faculty of Law, are offering a unique research opportunity for UofT law students to spend six weeks in Germany conducting supervised research assistance during the summer months, under the guidance of Prof. Ayelet Shachar and Prof. Ran Hirschl. The research projects will focus on topics of citizenship and immigration; law and religion; and comparative constitutionalism.

The Max Planck Summer Research Fellowship will cover a return (economy) flight ticket from Toronto to Frankfurt, accommodation for the duration of the fellowship, and compensation for 25 hours of research assistance per week. The research fellow will receive an office and library privileges at the Max Planck Institute, located in the scenic university town of Göttingen, which holds the world’s highest ratio of Nobel Prize laureates to residents, and served as home to renowned figures such as Carl Friedrich Gauss, the Grimm Brothers, Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz, Robert Oppenheimer, Max Weber, and Jürgen Habermas, among others.  

Excellent research, writing, and communication skills are required. Previous editorial experience in student run journals or other professional domains is a plus. Communication will be in English; no mastery of German is required. The fellowship may be combined with a German language training course (costs not covered by the fellowship), and/or with time spent on students’ own research projects or intellectual endeavors. The Max Planck Summer Research Fellowship will be offered on the following dates:

Session 1: May 14 – June 22, 2018

Session 2: June 18 – July 27, 2018

Session 3: July 23 – August 30, 2018

Kindly identify which of these three sessions you are applying for.

Please send your CV, cover letter, a copy of your transcripts, and a brief academic writing sample (not a case note) to nancy.bueler@utoronto.ca by January 31, 2018.

Financial Aid, Scholarships, and Awards

Reminder - Interest Payment Deadline - February 9

Dear students,

 

This is a reminder that the deadline for submitting your Scotiabank or TD Line of Credit bank statement (or other bank statements) in order to receive your interest payment is February 9, 2018. Please submit your January 2018 Line of Credit bank statement to the Financial Aid Office by the stated deadline, so that we can process your interest payments.

 

Our office is located in the Student Services Hub in the Jackman Law Building, Room 301.

 

Best regards,

 

Financial Aid Office
University of Toronto
Faculty of Law

Journals, Research, and Scholarship

Journal of Law and Equality - Call for Associate Editors

New year, new you? Try us on for size!

The Journal of Law & Equality (JLE) is looking for Associate Editors for the remainder of this academic year.

The JLE is a peer reviewed, student-run journal at the University of Toronto, Faculty of Law. Our mandate is to promote critical and informed debate on issues of equality, with a special emphasis on the Canadian context. Prior journal experience is not required, and all are welcome to join us!

Associate editors will work with members of the senior board to assist in bringing works we hope to publish up to snuff. This will involve editing and research work, all of which you will be instructed on by Senior Editors beforehand. It’s an exciting and immersive way to work on your research and writing skills, while dealing with interesting and current issues in equality law!

To apply, please submit your a brief statement of interest to editors.jle@gmail.com with "Associate Editor Application" as the subject line. Feel free as well to contact us with any questions about the position or application process.

Bookstore

Bookstore

The Bookstore is located in 78 Queen’s Park, Room P125, Level One. 

Hours for the week of January 29th, 2018 

                                  Monday:         9:30 a.m. – 3:30 p.m.

                                  Tuesday:                CLOSED

                                  Wednesday:   9:30 a.m. – 3:30 p.m.

                                  Thursday:       9:30 a.m. – 2:30 p.m.

                                  Friday:                    CLOSED 

For updated information, please remember to visit the Faculty of Law Bookstore website at:  

http://www.law.utoronto.ca/student-life/bookstore

External Announcements: Events

Hart House Global Commons
2017-18 Hart House Global Commons

The 2017-18 Hart House Global Commons is an international dialogue exploring ways we can engage in our communities and work towards peaceful pluralism. Join students and guests from Canada, Colombia, South Africa, and the U.S.A., to share lived experiences, stories, and lessons learned on this path towards working together, through difference, to build better societies.

Session 2: The Opportunities and Challenges of Diverse Communities
February 1, 2018, 10 am-12 pm (EST)
Scene Setter: Janice Mcmillan, Global Citizenship Programme, University of Cape Town
Moderator: Azeezah Kanji

Session 3: Personal Strategies for Promoting Peaceful Pluralism
March 1, 2018, 9 am-12 pm (EST)
Scene Setter: Rima Berns-McGown
Workshop Facilitator: Amelia Merrick, University of Toronto
Moderator: Azeezah Kanji

Find out more

Jan 30: Ethics of AI in Context: The Future of Automated Healthcare (w/ Frank Rudzicz)

Frank Rudzicz, The Future of Automated Healthcare

As artificial intelligence and software tools for medical diagnosis are increasingly used within the healthcare system generally, it will be important that these tools are used ethically. This talk will cover recent advances in machine learning in healthcare, current approaches to ethics in healthcare, likely changes to regulation to allow for increased use of AI, and new challenges, both technical and societal, that will arise given those changes.

Frank Rudzicz
University Health Network & Computer Science
University of Toronto

04:00 PM - 06:00 PM
Centre for Ethics, University of Toronto
Rm 200, Larkin Building

Jan 30: Ethics of AI Film Series: Blade Runner (w/ Mark Kingwell)

 

Tue, Jan 30, 2018
06:00 PM - 08:00 PM
Centre for Ethics, University of Toronto
200 Larkin

Feb 5: The Police Man’s Burden: Emotional Labor, Masculinity and the Ethics of Force (w/ Jennifer Carlson, Arizona)

The Police Man’s Burden: Emotional Labor, Masculinity and the Ethics of Force

Use of force is central to police work, yet the contours of the use of force for American police have changed dramatically in recent years. First, police have become increasingly prepared to use force due to changes in training and equipment amid threats of mass shootings, domestic terrorism, and so forth. Second, police are increasingly policing contexts that are gun-rich and gun law-lax, with over 13 million people licensed to carry guns in the US. Third, police have increasingly faced public outcry related to the use of force, especially with regard to racial disparities in excessive force. In what contexts do police embrace, versus accept or even avoid, the use of force? Is police use of force equally ‘non-negotiable’ (see Bittner, 1973) across social settings? If not, why not—and to what ends? To explore these questions, this talk draws on interviews with nearly 80 police chiefs across Arizona, California, and Michigan. While policing scholarship has documented how “hard charger” masculinist approaches to policing mediates the central role of firearms in constituting “real” policework (see Herbert, 2001), I draw on the concept of ‘moral wages’ (see Kolb, 2014) to show how guns operate not just as means of violence but also as gendered tools of emotional management. Examining how police evaluate more versus less moralistic uses of force and at times even opt out of force, I show that police make ethical sense of the use of force by framing it as masculine carework. Further situating these findings within the divergent contexts of Arizona, California and Michigan (especially their respective gun cultures) reveals that the boundaries between police and broader society are more porous than often acknowledged: police sensibilities about legitimate force are patterned by more localized norms regarding the use of force as well as by the socio-legal regimes in which police are embedded.

Jennifer Carlson
University of Arizona
School of Sociology & School of Government and Public Policy

04:00 PM - 06:00 PM
Centre for Ethics, University of Toronto
200 Larkin 

Feb 13: Ethics of AI Film Series: Star Trek TNG (w/ Mark Kingwell)

 

 

Tue, Feb 13, 2018
06:00 PM - 08:00 PM
Centre for Ethics, University of Toronto
Rm 200, Larkin Building

Feb 14: Author Meets Critics: Connected by Commitment: Oppression and Our Responsibility to Undermine It (by Mara Marin)

Connected by Commitment: Oppression and Our Responsibility to Undermine It (Oxford 2017)

Mara Marin
Postdoctoral Affiliate, Centre for Ethics
University of Toronto

Commentators:
Shannon Dea
(Philosophy, University of Waterloo)
Kerry Rittich (Law, University of Toronto)
Meredith Schwartz (Philosophy, Ryerson University)
Torrey Shanks (Political Science, University of Toronto)

Saying that political and social oppression is a deeply unjust and widespread condition of life is not a terribly controversial statement. Likewise, theorists of justice frequently consider our obligation to not turn a blind eye to oppression. But what is our culpability in the endurance of oppression?

In this book, Mara Marin complicates the primary ways in which we make sense of human and political relationships and our obligations within them. Rather than thinking of relationships in terms of our intentions, Marin thinks of them as open-ended and subject to ongoing commitments. Commitments create open-ended expectations and vulnerabilities on the part of others, and therefore also obligations. By this rationale, our actions sustain oppressive or productive structures in virtue of their cumulative effects, not the intentions of the actors.When we violate our obligations we oppress others.

12:00 PM - 02:00 PM
Centre for Ethics, University of Toronto
Rm 200, Larkin Building 

Feb 6: Ethics of AI in Context: The Ethics of Agonistic Machine Learning (w/ Mireille Hildebrandt)

What do we mean when we say that machines learn? What is the difference that makes a difference between human learning and machine learning? In my talk I will discuss the nature of machine learning (ML), including a series of design decisions that inform ML research designs and the trade-offs they incorporate. I will argue that these trade-offs have real world implications that require the participation of those who will suffer or enjoy the consequences of real world ML applications. Building on Mouffe’s democratic theory and Rip’s constructive technology assessment, I will argue for agonistic or adversarial ML as the only viable way to ensure that ML contributes to human and societal flourishing.

Mireille Hildebrandt
Law and Technology, Vrije Universiteit Brussels
Computing & Information Sciences, Radboud University Nijmegen

 

Tue, Feb 6, 2018
04:00 PM - 06:00 PM
Centre for Ethics, University of Toronto
Rm 200, Larkin Building

Feb 27: New Perspectives on Mass Incarceration in the United States (w/ John Pfaff & Jonathan Simon)
The American incarceration rate has quintupled over the last generation, to the point where the United States now incarcerates over two million individuals. A wave of new empirical, sociological and legal scholarship has begun shed new light on the growth of mass incarceration. John Pfaff (Fordham) and Jonathan Simon (Berkeley) will discuss their groundbreaking research on the causes of mass incarceration, the response by the courts and proposals for reform going forward.
 
Panelists:
 
 
 
 

12:00 PM - 02:00 PM
Centre for Ethics, University of Toronto
Rm 200, Larkin Building 

Sean Columb - Tuesday January 30th, 2018 - 12:30pm to 2:00pm - Centre for Criminology & Sociolegal Studies Winter Speaker Series

Sean Columb, Liverpool Law School,University of Liverpool; visiting scholar, Centre for Criminology & Sociolegal Studies

 

Organ Markets and Organized Crime: Egypt Revisited

Due to their precarious status, undocumented migrants are being targeted for their organs. The link between migrant populations and organ sales is exacerbated by the current political climate across the Middle-East and North Africa. Migrant routes ranging across Lebanon, Egypt and Libya have become key sites for recruiting organ sellers, by networks of intermediaries with links to transplant centers and hospitals in Cairo, Egypt. Drawing on in-depth interviews with Sudanese migrants who have sold or arranged for the sale of kidneys in Cairo, this study examines the implications of current legal and policy measures in the Egyptian-Sudanese context. Recent findings (November, 2017) suggest that attempts to prohibit the commercial exchange of organs via the imposition or threat of criminal sanction has pushed the trade further underground and created an opportunity for organized crime to enter the market. While the threat of arrest has, ostensibly, led to fewer (reported) cases of organ commercialism, there has been an increase in organ ‘trafficking’, generating increased violence and exploitation. The core aim of this paper is to demonstrate how law and policy produces and constructs vulnerability to exploitation in organ markets, explicating the theoretical and practical implications of the prevailing law enforcement model in response to the organ trade.

Date: Tuesday January 30th, 2018

Time: 12:30pm to 2:00pm

Location: Centre for Criminology & Sociolegal Studies - Ericson Seminar Room - 2nd floor Canadiana Gallery - 14 Queen's Park Crescent West

A light lunch will be served at 12:00 noon in the Lounge

The talk will begin at 12:30pm in the Ericson Seminar Room (room 265)

All are welcome to attend - RSVP in not required

(event poster & building map attached)

If you are a person with a disability and require accommodation, please contact Lori Wells at 416-978-3722 x226 or email lori.wells@utoronto.ca and we will do our best to make appropriate arrangements.

Faculty of Music winter concert season

The Faculty of Music is right next door to the law school and has an extensive program of events - see the attached program.

Most events are free and even ticketed concerts are now free for all UofT students with a valid tcard (space permitting).

The full listing of events is always available and up-to-date on the website: music.utoronto.ca and anyone can sign up for the monthly e-newsletter at http://bit.ly/UofTMusic-enews.

.

Refugee law conference – REGISTRATION NOW OPEN | CARL LobbyCon 2018

Are you a law student interested in refugee law? Are you interested in public interest advocacy? This opportunity is for you!

 

The Canadian Association of Refugee Lawyers (CARL) student chapters are pleased to announce CARL LobbyCon 2018 taking place February 25 and 26, 2018 in Ottawa. [Contact us in case of financial need – we might be able to help].

 

This is a unique opportunity for law students from across Canada to learn public interest advocacy skills and meet with Members of Parliament to push progressive refugee law reform based on CARL’s recommendations.

 

You do not need to have taken courses in immigration and refugee law. You will receive all the training and materials you will need!

 

You must be a law student and a member of CARL to participate (CARL membership is free for students). Lawyers and articling students practising in the area of refugee and immigration law are invited to participate as supervisors for meetings with MPs. Please contact carllobbycon@gmail.com if you are interested.

 

Registration is $20 and closes Friday, February 2. Please share widely to interested law students.

 

If you have any questions, please contact carllobbycon@gmail.com

 

Hope to see you there!

 

Sincerely,

CARL LobbyCon Team

Website: http://lobbycon.wordpress.com

Email: carllobbycon@gmail.com

Centre for Criminology & Sociolegal Studies: "Searching for Truth in the Transitional Justice Movement: Lesson from the Balkans and Colombia "

Book presentation:
Searching for Truth in the Transitional Justice Movement: Lesson from the Balkans and Colombia

 

Jamie Rowen, Assistant Professor of Legal Studies, Department of Political Science, UMass Amherst

 
Dr. Rowen's book, Searching for Truth in the Transitional Justice Movement (Cambridge University Press) focuses on the emergence of transitional justice as an idea in international and domestic scholarship, policy making, and advocacy, and efforts to make truth commissions in the Balkans, Colombia and the United States.

Date: Friday March 2nd, 2018
Time: 12:30-2:00pm
Location: Centre for Criminology & Sociolegal Studies, University of Toronto
14 Queen's Park Crescent West 2nd floor
Toronto, ON M5S 3K9
Ericson Room (room 265)

A light lunch will be served at 12:00 noon in the Lounge.

The talk will begin at 12:30pm in the Ericson Seminar Room (room 265)

Jan 29: The Quebec City Mosque Shooting: What Have We Learned?

On the evening of January 29, 2017, a University of Laval student entered a mosque in Quebec City after evening prayers, opening fire on the worshippers. In the end, he killed six, and wounded nineteen others. Although motivated by anti-Muslim animus, he was not charged with terrorism, but rather with first-degree murder. The massacre should have reminded Canadians that the election of Justin Trudeau did not usher in a new feel good era that spelled the end of anti-immigrant and anti-Muslim animus in Canada.

One year later, what has Canada learned from this attack? Did it learn anything, or has it been forgotten or minimized in an attempt to preserve a complacent view of Canada as a successful, multicultural state that has successfully integrated immigrants without triggering the rise of right-wing, xenophobic nationalism, as has occurred in the United States and elsewhere, including in Europe?

Panelists:

Christopher Cochrane
Political Science, University of Toronto

Mohammad Fadel
Law, University of Toronto

Jasmin Zine
Sociology, Wilfrid Laurier University 

Mon, Jan 29, 2018 
04:00 PM - 06:00 PM
Centre for Ethics, University of Toronto 
Rm 200, Larkin Building

Upcoming Event: The AI Revolution in Academia

2nd Annual Franklin Forum: The AI Revolution in Academia

Date: Wednesday, February 7, 2018

Time: 1PM-6PM

Location: Massey College Upper Library, 4 Devonshire Place, Toronto, ON M5S 2E1

Registration Link: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/2nd-annual-franklin-forum-the-ai-revolution-in-academia-tickets-42215951046

Artificial Intelligence promises to start a revolution in many aspects of society and academia. How will your research adapt and include such changes?

Join us on Feb 7th at Massey College to discuss how AI can transform academic research. Our panelists will explain the capabilities and limitations of AI approaches to analyze data and generate insight for STEM and social science research. We will explore what types of investigative problems can be tackled with AI techniques.

“Computers are useless, they can only give you answers.” ~ Pablo Picasso

As well, there is a growing concern about the outcomes and consequences of using AI. In our forum we will explore how to ask the right questions and discern meaningful results from the “black box” of AI. In addition we will address the growing issues of safe development and ethical deployment.

Confirmed speakers:

  • Brian Cantwell Smith, Professor of philosophy, University of Toronto
  • Arvind Gupta, Former president of UBC and current visiting professor in computer science, University of Toronto
  • Abhishek Gupta, AI ethics researcher, McGill University
  • Charu Jaiswal, Machine learning science at integrate.ai
  • Ludovic Rheault, Assistant professor in political science, University of Toronto
  • Jonathan Rose, Professor of electrical and computer engineering, University of Toronto

Free event, registration required. Light refreshments provided.

HOLD THE DATE: Friday April 6th, 2018 - Dr. Catherine Evans Talk - 12:30pm to 2:00pm - Centre for Criminology & Sociolegal Studies

"Female Killers and Criminal Responsibility in the Nineteenth-Century British Empire"

 

Dr. Catherine Evans, Assistant Professor of Criminology, Centre for Criminology & Sociolegal Studies, University of Toronto

 
In the late nineteenth century, a number of intellectual currents converged to produce a crisis in how Britons, in England and in the wider British empire, understood criminality and
its implications for common law doctrines premised on free will and the ideal of the autonomous, rational individual. These anxieties crystallized in what we might call ‘responsibility
cases’: high-profile criminal cases, usually involving homicide, in which judges, lawyers, medical men and members of the public tested the boundary between biology and agency.
I focus on a sub-group of defendants who only occasionally figured in such cases: women. Their cases were less likely to elicit the kind of jurisprudential and philosophical agonizing
that regularly marked those involving male defendants, despite the fact that women were believed to be particularly vulnerable to insanity. Using criminal cases from a variety of
imperial jurisdictions, this talk reintegrates violent women into the history of criminal responsibility and complicates our understandings of criminal law and personhood in the British world.

Date: Friday April 6th, 2018
Time: 12:30-2:00pm
Location: Centre for Criminology & Sociolegal Studies, University of Toronto
14 Queen's Park Crescent West 2nd floor
Toronto, ON M5S 3K9
Ericson Room (room 265)

A light lunch will be served at 12:00 noon in the Lounge.

The talk will begin at 12:30pm in the Ericson Seminar Room (room 265)
(event poster & building map attached)

If you are a person with a disability and require accommodation, please contact Lori Wells at 416-978-3722 x226 or email lori.wells@utoronto.ca and we will do our best to make appropriate arrangements.

External Announcements: Opportunities

Join the Canadian Bar Association National Section for International Law for free!

We would like to invite members of the Faculty of Law to join the National Section on International Law (NSIL) of the Canadian Bar Association (CBA)!

The NSIL addresses both private and public international law.

As a member, students will be able to:

            •           Attend our events and professional development opportunities

            •           Network with lawyers across Canada specializing in international law

            •           Submit an article

            •           Participate in panels on latest international law issues

            •           Read our latest news

            •           Access our submissions and resolutions

            •           Subscribe to our journal, Canadian International Lawyer

            •           Discover the work we are doing on the Anti-Corruption Team

            •           Upgrade your skills with the CBA Skilled Lawyer Series

            •           Visit CBA PracticeLink for practice tips and resources

In order to join us, students need to become a CBA member and then identify that they wish to join our section online. CBA Membership for students in your province is free.

Please see the attached flyer for more information.  

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us.

Looking forward to meeting you in the future!

2018 Green Ribbon Award Nominations Open

Nominations are now open for the Green Ribbon Awards –deadline is January 31st  

 

Do you know of any eco heroes on campus–individuals or groups–who are committed to environmental progress at U of T’s St. George campus?  What better way to recognize their efforts than by nominating them for a Green Ribbon Award!

 

Now in its 10th year, the Green Ribbon Awards have been recognizing the outstanding contributions and achievements of students, staff, faculty and external partners who have made our campus ‘greener’! As individuals, groups, departments or business partners, these green leaders have contributed to a sustainable culture on campus, and inspired others to adopt environmentally-conscious behaviours.

 

For more information on the Green Ribbon Awards, including past winners and the nominations page, please visit www.uoft.me/gra .

Feb 1 Deadline for St. Gallen Wings of Excellence Award, an all expenses paid conference in May 2018

AWARD FOR ALL EXPENSES PAID CONFERENCE IN SWITZERLAND - MAY 2018

Open to JD, LLM and SJD students

Would you like to share your vision of the future with world leaders such as
Dominic Barton, Professor Niall Ferguson, Kersti Kaljulaid, Christine Lagarde, or Jack Ma?

Discuss your ideas with the global elite, create an impact and enjoy an all-expenses-paid trip to Switzerland.

Seize the opportunity to qualify as one of 200 “Leaders of Tomorrow” for the 48th St. Gallen Symposium (www.symposium.org) by competing for the 30th St. Gallen Wings of Excellence Award. A special jubilee symposium awaits you with a prize money of CHF 30,000 and various festivities.

Here some more highlights if you make it to St. Gallen:

  • Meet 600 top managers, entrepreneurs, politicians and scientists from around the world
  • Share your ideas with the symposium’s global audience
  • Small and intimate gatherings with world leaders, exclusively for the Leaders of Tomorrow
  • Meet 200 of the world’s brightest young minds and become member of a global community

 

The 48th St. Gallen Symposiumwill be held from 2–4 May 2018 at the University of St. Gallen, Switzerland, and is devoted to the theme “Beyond the end of work”. The St. Gallen Wings of Excellence Award is the world’s foremost student essay competition giving you the extraordinary opportunity to share your voice and opinion with some of the world’s most influential luminaries.

Have a look at competition question and requirements at www.symp.sg/competitionregister now to receive the latest news and tips, and hand in your essay no later than February 1, 2018.

To get more insights check out www.youtube.com/user/StGallenSymposium and follow us on our Social Media channels.

Contact:

Elena Kessler
Member, Your Leaders of Tomorrow Team

International Students’ Committee (ISC)
award@symposium.org

St. Gallen Symposium

P.O. Box 1045
9001 St. Gallen, Switzerland
Phone +41 71 227 20 20, Fax +41 71 227 20 30

LinkedIn Facebook |Twitter | #beyondwork

External Announcements: Calls for Papers

Windsor Review of Legal and Social Issues Accepting Submissions for 11th Annual Canadian Law Student Conference

The Windsor Review of Legal and Social Issues (WRLSI) is now accepting submissions for its 11th Annual Canadian Law Student Conference. Law students from across Canada are invited to submit original, academic work to be considered for presentation at the conference. The conference will be held March 8 and 9, 2018, in Windsor, Ontario.

 

This event is a unique opportunity for students from across the country to share their academic work and receive feedback from peers and faculty in an open and engaging environment. 

In addition, top presenters have the opportunity to be published in the Digital Companion. Exclusively reserved for student work, the Digital Companion features the top papers presented by law students at the conference.


 

To be considered, manuscripts must be received by February 2, 2018. Details on submission guidelines can be found at http://wrlsi.ca/canadian-law-student-conference/submissions/

 

Please send manuscripts to wrlsisolicitations@uwindsor.ca with the subject line “Conference Submission”. Questions may be directed to that same address.

 

 

Taraneh Etemadi

WRLSI Solicitations Editor 2017 - 2018

wrlsisolicitations@uwindsor.ca 

External Announcements: Other

Sexual Violence Education and Prevention Training Module

The University of Toronto has made available online sexual violence education and prevention training to all students, staff and faculty members. Completion is strongly encouraged and constitutes an important step toward creating a campus environment in which all members of the University community can study, work and live free from sexual violence.

Learn more about the University’s Policy on Sexual Violence and Harassment, how to disclose or report an incident an incident of sexual violence, and how to support those who have experienced sexual violence.

http://www.provost.utoronto.ca/committees/Working_Groups/SVactionplan.htm

Late announcements

ALAS Presents: The Music Roundtable

 Law students are invited to attend: The Music Roundtable

Artists' Legal Advice Services (ALAS) is pleased to present The Music Roundtable: A Conversation with Key Players in the Entertainment Industry.

Date: January 30, 2018 
Time: 7PM - 9 PM
Location:  The Rivoli - 334 Queen St W, Toronto, ON M5V 2A2
Tickets:  FREE! Please RSVP at:  https://alaspresentsthemusicroundtable.eventbrite.ca/

This event is all about MUSIC. We have invited a panel of experienced professionals from different aspects of the music business. Our panel will include:

  • A music publisher -- Adrian Battiston, Ole Media

  • An entertainment lawyer -- Paul Sanderson, Sanderson Law

  • A label rep -- Laura Cappe, General Manager, Royal Mountain Records (Alvvays, Mac DeMarco, PUP, Dizzy)

  • An artist manager -- Guillaume Decouflet, Valeo Arts Management (A Tribe Called Red, Boogat, Jean Michel Blais)

  • A booking agent -- Stefanie Purificati, APA Canada (Jess Moskaluke, Virginia to Vegas, Whitney Rose)

  • An artist -- Colin Response (colinresponse.com)

  • A Music Supervisor -- Dondrea Erauw, Instinct Entertainment

ALAS provides free summary legal advice to artists living in Ontario. Our offices are located in downtown Toronto. For almost three decades, ALAS has been helping artists, actors, musicians, dancers, writers, and filmmakers address their legal problems. ​We are able to assist with issues relating to contracts, defamation, copyright, trademarks and royalties.

 

CHILD PROTECTION LAW NEEDS YOU!

CHILD PROTECTION LAW NEEDS YOU!

Find out how you can make a difference fighting for families.

Law students, new lawyers and other interested persons are invited to attend a session about going into child protection law. For anyone looking for a career in public interest law and litigation, child protection law is an often over-looked area where lawyers can advance the interests of vulnerable clients and make meaningful differences in the lives of children and families.

Our speakers have worked as parents’ counsel and counsel for children, as well as counsel for children’s aid societies.  They will be discussing the kinds of cases they have dealt with, what you can expect as counsel, how to look for opportunities in the field, and the practical aspects of establishing a practice.  We anticipate that this will be an inspiring and informative session, with the perspective of practitioners and the Bench. There will also be opportunity to meet and ask question informally after the session is over.  If you have any interest at all in this field of law, this will be a very valuable session to attend!

Speakers:

Justice Manjusha Pawagi sits on the Ontario Court of Justice at 311 Jarvis, where she hears domestic, child protection and criminal matters. Prior to her appointment to the Bench, she worked as counsel for the Toronto Children’s Aid Society and the Office of the Children’s Lawyer.

Renata Austin is a lawyer in private practice who regularly acts for clients in child welfare and criminal proceedings.  Prior to setting up her practice, she worked for the City of Toronto.  Called in 2013, she had set up her own practice by 2015.  Her practice has thrived and she has developed a reputation for her commitment to providing services to families in marginalised communities.

Tammy Law is a family lawyer with extensive experience in child protection.  She has argued at all levels of court, most recently before the Supreme Court of Canada. She has worked as parent’s counsel, counsel for children, and society counsel.  She is the interim president of the Ontario Association of Child Protection Lawyers (Toronto Chapter).

Details:

The event will be held on February 13 at 400 University Avenue, 18th Floor Boardroom.  The closest station is St. Patrick subway station.  Parking is expensive, but the lot underneath City Hall is more reasonably priced.

The session will run from 4pm – 5:30pm, followed by informal drinks at the Duke of Cornwall Pub, located downstairs at 400 University Avenue.  There is no cost to attend the session.

For questions, or to RSVP, please contact Stephanie Giannandrea at stephanie@mccarthyco.ca

 

U of T Undergraduate Ethics Society and Law Journal

Mindful is the University of Toronto's interdisciplinary Journal for Ethics, affiliated with the Ethics, Society and Law program at Trinity College. Past issues can be viewed here: 
http://www.trinity.utoronto.ca/current/programs-courses/esl/esl.html#Mindful Journals

Mindful Journal of Ethics is now accepting submissions for our 2017/2018 issue! We are currently accepting work with a significant ethical dimension, particularly as it intersects with legal and social issues. Relevant programs include, but are not limited to: Ethics, Society, & Law; Political Science; History; Criminology; International Relations; Women and Gender Studies; Philosophy; Public Policy; Equity Studies; Peace, Conflict, & Justice Studies; Aboriginal Studies; Environmental Studies; Bioethics; Global Health; and History and Philosophy of Science. Submit your essays, freelance op-eds, book reviews, and original photography or illustrations to mindful.ethics@gmail.com before February 24th at 11:59pm. Submissions must contain a clear ethical dimension. Please include your name, university, and contact information both in the body of the email and within your submission document. 

 

REQUIREMENTS:
- significant ethical dimension
- mark of at least 80%
- original work 
- cited in Chicago style footnotes 
CATEGORIES:
- essay (<4000 words)
- freelance op-ed (500-1000 words)
- book review (500-2000 words)
- original photography or illustration (short explanation of relevance to ethics is welcome) please note: orientalist/voyeuristic submissions will be rejected.
HOW TO SUBMIT:
- email mindful.ethics@gmail.com
- writing should be in .doc format, images in .png or .pdf
- text of your email should include your name, which course the document was submitted for, and grade (if applicable).

2018 Goodman Lecture: Justice Daphne Barak-Erez of the Supreme Court of Israel on 'Multiculturalism as a Family Name'

Friday, January 26, 2018
Justice Barak lecturing

By Peter Boisseau

Multiculturalism is an important social goal but not very useful as a legal mechanism, Justice Daphne Barak-Erez of the Supreme Court of Israel told an audience at the 2017-18 David B. Goodman lecture.

Drawing examples from both Canada and the Israel, Barak-Erez said there are many circumstances where multiculturalism leaves too many unanswered questions about who it protects, when and to what degree.

Tsinghua – Toronto – Hong Kong Law Conference: Legal Research, Pedagogy and Practice in the 21st Century

Now in its sixth year, the conference brings together faculty from the law schools of Tsinghua University, the University of Toronto and the University of Hong Kong to explore legal issues from Chinese and North American perspectives. This year, speakers will address questions relating to the history, theory and practice of international law; the law of trade, investment and development; environmental and climate change law; intellectual property, artificial intelligence and technology law; constitutional law and public law.

Top 10 news stories of 2017

Wednesday, January 24, 2018

Top 10 newsFrom outstanding students to alumni achievements and new faculty, here are the stories that made you click in 2017.

Headnotes - Jan 22 2018

Announcements

Headnotes and Web Site

Law alumni e.newsletter for January
January e.newsletter to law alumni

Every month, the Faculty of Law sends an email newsletter to alumni to keep them up to date with the latest law school news and events.

See the January alumni newsletter

Deans' Offices

Managing Your Debt - A financial literacy workshop for law students

Understanding and managing your debt and financial future – a financial literacy workshop for law students

When:  Tuesday January 23rd at 12:30 – 2:00

Where: Room J130. Pizza will be available.

This workshop will give you a better understanding of debt management techniques and money management tools that you can use while you are a law student and after graduation. The content will build on Understanding Debt and Managing Your Money, a document prepared by the law school’s financial aid office with input from current students and alumni.

Facilitated by David Baskin (UT LL.B 1976), founder of Baskin Wealth Management, this workshop answer the following questions: 

  • What are some best practices in financial management and debt payment?
  • How does debt get amortized?
  • Can I afford to pay my debt if my salary upon graduating is $100,000/$75,000/$50,000/$0?
  • Can I save while paying debt? What are the best ways of using RSPs, TFSAs and other available tools?
  • What tools exist to help me calculate interest rates and debt repayment?
  • What are the tax implications of educational debt?
  • What is the impact of changing interest rates? 

David Baskin, LL.B

David founded Baskin Financial Services Inc. in 1992. The firm, now operating as Baskin Wealth Management, has grown from assets under management of $25 million in 2000 to well over $1 billion today, with about 500 client families in eight provinces. David appears frequently on national television and radio as a commentator on the markets and is frequently quoted in the press. An enthusiastic sailor and traveller, David and his wife Joan Garson (UT LLB 1978) have two adult children. All are actively involved in community and charitable activities.

Lawyers Doing Cool Things - Insiya Essajee, J.D. 2011

Lawyers Doing Cool Things - Insiya Essajee, J.D. 2011

Legal Counsel, Ontario Human Rights Commission

Career profile:  Insiya  has been a lawyer with the Ontario Human Rights Commission since 2012. Her work focuses on addressing systemic discrimination issues through litigation, government consultation, and supporting policy development and outreach. 

Wednesday January 24, 12:30 - 2:00

Room J230. Sandwiches and water will be provided. 

To register, click here.

Leadership Skills Program - Creative Problem-Solving

Creative Problem Solving Laboratory – Crafting a Career That Matters

Thursday January 22nd, 12:30 – 2:00

Presenters: Robert Wakulat and Tim Hurson

Creative Problem Solving offers a great way to ask better questions, unpack problems more effectively and generate solutions efficiently. Structured creativity gets you asking better, bolder, more unusual questions. You will start to see your emerging practice in a more creative light and be offered a set of productive thinking tools that you can begin to apply and benefit from starting tomorrow (and use right away).

To register, please click here

Student Office

New appointment booking system for counselling services at law school

Welcome back and Happy New Year!

 

As of January, 2018, a new triage and booking system for Counselling Services at the Faculty of Law will be available. Any student wishing to book a personal counselling appointment should complete a simple client record form and return it by email to wellness.law@utoronto.ca. One of the counselling staff will review your form and contact you to book an appointment based on the information you provide.

 

The form is available on-line at the Counselling & Support Services pages of the Faculty of Law website: https://www.law.utoronto.ca/student-life/personal-support/health-and-well-being/health-and-wellness-law-school

 

The new booking and triage model will expedite the scheduling process and help reduce wait times. It will also ensure that students are connected with the counselling staff best suited to their needs. Please note that all information provided through the booking process is viewed only by counselling staff and is treated as strictly confidential.

 

If you are an existing client of one of the counsellors at the law school,  you do not need to fill out the client record form. You may contact your counsellor directly to book an appointment.

 

If you have any questions regarding the triage and booking process please contact wellness.law@utoronto.ca

 

Thank you for your cooperation!

Yukimi

Accessibility Services - Reminder to register for note-taking

Dear students who receive note-taking accommodations through Accessibility Services:

 

Our Winter 2018 courses are now up on ROSI, which means that you can register your courses to receive class notes. Please register as soon as possible so that we can ensure timely access.

 

Please click here for the link to the online registration page.

 

Many thanks

Alexis

 

 

 

Alexis Archbold LL.B

Assistant Dean, J.D. Program

Welcome Day 2018 - Call for Volunteers

JD Volunteers (all years) needed for Welcome Day 2018

If you attended Welcome Day, then you may recall how instrumental it was for our newly admitted students to be able to identify, relate and connect with our senior students.  Your involvement is quite appreciated.

Meet and inspire the excited and eager potential incoming JD class. With your participation you will assist in expanding their awareness of the many areas of legal education, practice and service. You are invaluable to the students' understanding of the role of co-curricular and extra-curricular opportunities offered at the law school and their consequent benefits.

  • Event Date: Friday February 23rd (during Reading Week)
  • Venue: Jackman Law Building
  • Time Commitment:
    We will schedule you according to the amount of time you can commit to the event, indicate your hours of availability on the form
    • between 9am-6pm for the formal event
    • and 6-8pm for the post-event Pub Night at the Fox & Fiddle

To sign-up, please complete and submit the online volunteer form.

For catering purposes, it would be most helpful if you sign-up by the end of day, Wednesday January 31st.

Be the inspiration!

Regards,
Jerome Poon-Ting
Senior Recruitment,Admissions & Diversity Outreach Officer
jerome.poon.ting@utoronto.ca

 

Academic Events

Osgoode Society Legal History Workshop

Philip Girard, Osgoode Hall Law School, and Jim Phillips, University of Toronto

 Slavery, Blacks and the Law in New France and British North America, c. 1700-1866

 Wednesday January 17, 6.30, Betty Ho Classroom, Room 223, Flavelle House

 For a copy of the paper please contact j.phillips@utoronto.ca

Justice Alison Harvison Young on Persuasive Facta

Our Judge-in-Residence, Justice Alison Harvison Young, will be speaking to mooters about persuasive writing and oral arguments.  All upper year students are welcome to join us in P120 on Thursday, January 25 from 12:30 to 2:00 pm.  We hope to see you there!

Law and Economics Colloquium: Natalie Bau

Law & Economics Colloquium
presents

Natalie Bau
University of Toronto
Department of Economics 

Can Policy Crowd Out Culture 

Tuesday, January 30, 2018
4:10 – 5:45
Flavelle Building, Room 219
78 Queen’s Park 

Policies may change the returns to transmitting cultural norms to the next generation with the unintended consequence of changing cultural practices. I study cultural norms that determine whether boys or girls support their parents in their old age in Indonesia and Ghana. These norms play the dual role of increasing old age support while relieving incomplete contracting problems in educational investment between parents and children. Where these norms exist, parents invest more in the human capital of the child who is more likely to care for them in old age. In both Indonesia and Ghana, the entry and expansion of pension plans crowds out human capital investment in the children targeted by these norms. Moreover, consistent with a model where parents jointly choose whether to educate their children and whether to transmit the norm to the next generation, the pension plan also crowds out the practice of the norm. Thus, policy crowds out culture. 

Natalie Bau is an assistant professor at the University of Toronto, a CEPR research affiliate, and a CIFAR Azrieli Global Scholar. She is interested in development and education economics with a special emphasis on the industrial organization of education markets. 

For more colloquium information, please contact Nadia Gulezko at n.gulezko@utoronto.ca

LGBTQ+ Workshop - Prof. Alon Harel, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem

In this workshop, Prof Alon Harel will discuss the state and recent developments of LGBTQ+ Rights in Israel.

Prof. Harel is the Phillip and Estelle Mizock Chair in Administrative and Criminal Law at The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, and the editor of LGBT Rights in Israel: Gender Identity, Sexual Orientation and the Law .

When: February 8, 4.10-5.10pm

Where: Falconer Hall, FA 4

Workshop: Regulating in the Dark: Mapping the Encryption Debate

Regulating in the Dark: Mapping the Encryption Debate

 

Law enforcement and national security agencies in many different states argue that strong encryption in making the internet “go dark” and that they need ways to bypass this encryption in order to investigate crime and prevent terrorism attacks. Proposals to bypass the effects of encryption often include mandating the creation of “back doors” such as through different ways of managing access to types of “master keys” but can also include compelled disclosure of passwords or keys from suspects (raising concerns regarding the right against self-incrimination). Often such proposals are short on details, such as Public Safety Canada’s recent discussion as part of its 2016 National Security consultation. The tech industry, security experts, and civil liberties groups have largely responded that encryption bypasses pose too great a danger to cybersecurity and fundamental rights. 

Click here for details.

The event is free but registration is required. Click here to register

Student Activities

Social Enterprise and the Income Tax Act

Though there is no clear consensus on its meaning, one thing is clear, social enterprise is becoming more important across Canada. While some provinces are experimenting with social enterprise specific legislation, most operate under the general framework of tax and corporate statutes. Nick Pasquino and Ryma Nasrallah of Borden Ladner Gervais will explore and explain how the Income Tax Act fits into all this, how it enables and inhibits charities, nonprofits, and businesses in carrying out social enterprise, and what all this means for us.

January 29th, 2018
12:30-2:00 PM
J130

Presented by...

The Tax Law Society and the Charity Law Interest Group

Law Follies!

Law Follies 2018 is on February 8, at 7PM, at the Opera House! We have the best sketches, amazing videos, and tremendous talents to showcase! Written by a group of stable geniuses and performed by people who went to the best colleges, the best law school. It'll be the most hilarious show, filled with fake news about your favourite law-lebrities. Ticket prices and purchase dates will be announced soon. See you there losers!

Torys Intellectual Property Firm Tour

The U of T Technology and Intellectual Property Group (TIP), together with IPOsgoode, is excited to offer a tour of Torys LLP Intellectual Property and Technology groups.

Date: Thursday, January 25th 

Time: 12:30 pm - 2 pm

Location: 79 Wellington Street West, Suite 3000, Toronto, Ontario M5K 1N2

 

Torys LLP holds one of the highest recommended intellectual property and technology law practices in the country. They represent hundreds of companies and specialize in copyright, advertising, industrial design and cybersecurity. 

The afternoon will included a tour of their offices and an opportunity to speak with lawyers from the both the IP and technology divisions. Lunch will be provided. 

If you would like to participate, please send an email to Ben.mayergoodman@mail.utoronto.ca with your name and dietary restrictions. 

* The tour is open to ALL current law students, not only U of T law students*

For more information visit the TIP event page: https://www.facebook.com/events/179257822809225/

Smart & Biggar Firm Tour

The U of T Technology and Intellectual Property Group (TIP) and IPOsgoode are excited to announce a joint tour of Smart & Biggar, one of Canada's premier intellectual property boutiques.

The evening will include a presentation and the opportunity to meet some of Canada's best patent and trademark lawyers.

 

Date: Wednesday, January 24th

Time: 5:00 pm - 7:00 pm

Location: 150 York St #1100, Toronto, ON M5H 3S5

 

Spaces are limited.  Please e-mail jc.parker@mail.utoronto.ca to register.

Public Interest Gathering (PIG!)

 

Come grab a snack and hang out with other super cool law students dedicated to the public interest at our first ever Public Interest Gathering (PIG!)! 

Thursday January 25 at 6:00 PM in Flavelle 223

Brought to you by: Aboriginal Law Society, Animal Justice, Charity Law Interest Group, Environmental Law Club, & Feminist Law Students' Association.

Cassels Brock Cup 2018 - Call for Coach Applications

The Cassels Brock Cup (“Baby Gale”) is the 1L competitive moot, pitting the University of Toronto against Osgoode Hall. U of T sends five teams of four students to the competition. Four of these teams will be coached by this year’s Gale mooters. The remaining coach will be selected through an application process.  

This year’s Cassels Brock Cup will be held on Saturday, March 24th at the Ontario Court of Appeal. Coaches are expected to organize and supervise 6-8 run-throughs between late February and the date of the competition. Coaches will also be required to attend the competition.

If you are interested in applying, please submit a statement outlining your interest and experience to the Moot Court Committee. If you are currently coaching or competing in a competitive moot, please state when that commitment will end. All students with competitive mooting experience are welcome, including those competing in a moot this year. Statements are to be no longer than 300 words and are due by 11:59pm on Wednesday, January 24th. Please submit your statement to utlawmoot@gmail.com. 

Centres, Legal Clinics, and Special Programs

IHRP & HRW - Panel Discussion: The Darker Side of Digital: Human Rights Implications of Technology in Canada and Abroad

Registration Required:  http://bit.ly/2imQESp - through Eventbrite

Please see the Save the Date Poster (pdf)

Moderator: Stephen Northfield: Digital Director, Human Rights Watch, Twitter: @snorthfield45
 
Panelists:

  • Lisa Austin: Professor, Chair in Law and Technology, Faculty of Law, U of T, Twitter: @Lisa_M_Austin

  • Lex Gill: Research Fellow, The Citizen Lab;  and Advocate, National Security Program, CCLA, Twitter: @lex_is 

  • Felix Horne: Senior Researcher, Horn of Africa, Human Rights Watch, Twitter: @FelixHorne1

Rapid advances in technology offer human rights activists’ tremendous opportunities. We can now collect new, and richer data than ever before; gather information in dangerous or hard-to-access places and have greater capacity to project our findings and influence key decision makers and media.

But there’s a darker side to the technology revolution.
 
Commercial spyware and malware tools are being used to track and disrupt the activities of human rights defenders. Privacy is under assault by governments who gather massive amounts of metadata on their citizens – and those in other countries. Technology is being used by some to spread toxic ideologies, disrupt democracy and distort the truth.
 
Please join us for a panel of experts to discuss human rights implications in Canada and abroad. 

For more information, contact ihrp.law@utoronto.ca

 

Justice Harvison Young - Lunch and Learn

PBSC will be hosting a lunch and learn session with the Honourable Justice Alison Harvison Young on January 18th from 12:30-1:45 PM. She is currently a Judge in House at the University of Toronto and sits on the bench of the Superior Court of Ontario. Prior to her appointment, she acted as Dean and Professor of the Faculty of Law, Queen's University, Kingston Ontario. She was the recipient of the John W. Durnford Teaching Excellence Award and also of a Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada research grant to support her research in the areas of family law and new reproductive technologies. She will discuss her pro bono work, provide some stories about working with self-represented litigants and answer any questions you have about the legal profession and pro bono work.

Students interested should RSVP by emailing probonostudents.utoronto@gmail.com. Hope to hear from you! 

The event will take place in the Betty Ho classroom (room 219).

Jan 31st Asper Centre Constitutional Roundtable with Akis Psygkas

Constitutional Roundtable Presents 

Athanasios (Akis) Psygkas

Lecturer in Law
University of Bristol Law School

on

Wednesday, January 31, 2018
12:30 – 2:00
Solarium (Room FA2), Falconer Hall
84 Queen’s Park

"The hydraulics of constitutional claims: Four models of democratic constitutionalism and same-sex marriage"

Who makes constitutional claims? The paper argues that on both sides of the Atlantic a multiplicity of constitutional actors outside the courts participate in the elaboration of constitutional principles. I map out these constitutional actors by using as a case study the legal recognition of same-sex marriage in the United States, Spain, the United Kingdom, and Ireland. In all four country cases, there are common functional demands for democratic involvement in shaping constitutional meaning. Even though these demands may take various institutional and procedural forms owing to diverse political, institutional, and cultural contexts, I argue that the same overarching hydraulics effect is at play across jurisdictions. When social movements are shut out of one forum, they channel their constitutional claims through different institutional avenues.

The four systems represent distinctive models of formal recognition of same-sex marriage, with different actors taking the lead and having the final say on this contested issue. However, I explain that in all four cases we can detect the voices of multiple actors, including notably the people themselves, in a process of legal contestation around and interpretation of fundamental constitutional principles. These voices can take different forms, and the paper proposes institutional, historical, political, and cultural factors that may account for this. Thus, the paper tells a story of legal development arising from inclusive interpretive communities in the context of a democratic constitutional theory. This facilitates dynamic constitutional interpretation that reflects evolving political and social demands instead of top-down delivery of constitutional meaning.

------------

Athanasios (Akis) Psygkas is lecturer in law at the University of Bristol in the UK and currently a visiting scholar at the University of Toronto. His research interests include comparative public law, regulation, and global governance. His latest book, entitled “From the ‘Democratic Deficit’ to a ‘Democratic Surplus’: Constructing Administrative Democracy in Europe” (Oxford University Press, 2017), examines the impact of EU law on the adoption of participatory regulatory processes in the member states.

Akis received J.S.D. and LL.M. degrees from Yale Law School, where he was a Fulbright scholar, and an LL.B. and LL.M. in Public Law and Political Science from the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki (Greece). He has held fellowships at the European University Institute in Florence, the Institut d’Etudes Politiques (Sciences Po) in Paris, and Yale. He has been managing the Comparative Administrative Law Blog over the past seven years.

  Light lunch provided

For further details, please contact tal.schreier@utoronto.ca

Career Development Office and Employment Opportunities

Max Planck Summer Research Fellows: Call for Applications

The Max Planck Institute for the Study of Religious and Ethnic Diversity (MPI-MMG) in collaboration with the University of Toronto Faculty of Law, are offering a unique research opportunity for UofT law students to spend six weeks in Germany conducting supervised research assistance during the summer months, under the guidance of Prof. Ayelet Shachar and Prof. Ran Hirschl. The research projects will focus on topics of citizenship and immigration; law and religion; and comparative constitutionalism.

The Max Planck Summer Research Fellowship will cover a return (economy) flight ticket from Toronto to Frankfurt, accommodation for the duration of the fellowship, and compensation for 25 hours of research assistance per week. The research fellow will receive an office and library privileges at the Max Planck Institute, located in the scenic university town of Göttingen, which holds the world’s highest ratio of Nobel Prize laureates to residents, and served as home to renowned figures such as Carl Friedrich Gauss, the Grimm Brothers, Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz, Robert Oppenheimer, Max Weber, and Jürgen Habermas, among others.  

Excellent research, writing, and communication skills are required. Previous editorial experience in student run journals or other professional domains is a plus. Communication will be in English; no mastery of German is required. The fellowship may be combined with a German language training course (costs not covered by the fellowship), and/or with time spent on students’ own research projects or intellectual endeavors. The Max Planck Summer Research Fellowship will be offered on the following dates:

Session 1: May 14 – June 22, 2018

Session 2: June 18 – July 27, 2018

Session 3: July 23 – August 30, 2018

Kindly identify which of these three sessions you are applying for.

Please send your CV, cover letter, a copy of your transcripts, and a brief academic writing sample (not a case note) to nancy.bueler@utoronto.ca by January 31, 2018.

Work In Japan Program

Dear Students,

The Work in Japan Program is currently accepting applications.

The Work in Japan Program allows 2L and 3L students to apply for a paid one year position as an English language editor at Nishimura & Asahi, a law firm in Tokyo Japan. Nishimura & Asahi will consider students who have completed their second or final year of studies. Second year students, who will return to complete their final year of law school, are given a leave of absence for the year. Graduating students accept the responsibility to make inquiries from the law society of the province where you intend to be called to the Bar to determine the effect, if any, of delaying your admission to the bar.

Students submit their application to the firm who makes all hiring decisions.

JOB DESCRIPTION

Nishimura & Asahi is one of Japan’s premier law firms located in Akasaka, Tokyo and accepts applications for the position of English-language legal editor.

This is a full-time position, with working days of Monday to Friday, 2:30 pm to 11:00 pm.  The successful candidate will be expected to make a minimum one year commitment to the firm.

Although editors are occasionally asked to assist with due diligence and research, the work involves mainly editing, rewriting and reviewing legal documents and correspondence.  The position requires the ability to convey ideas and information effectively and concisely, in clear and professional written English. Nevertheless, the position will provide an opportunity for the successful candidate to experience what it is like to work at a major Japanese law firm and to work on high profile and complex legal matters.

A law degree is preferred, but consideration will also be given to students still completing their law studies (so long as they hold another degree). Preference will also be given to candidates with editing or legal experience and a desire for exposure to international law and business. The position will be offered to a native English speaker. No Japanese language ability is required.

The successful applicant will join a staff that includes over 450 Japanese attorneys, and several attorneys and editors from countries such as the U.S., Canada, the U.K., NZ and Australia. Compensation will be commensurate with background and experience.

Information about the firm may be found at: www.jurists.co.jp/en/

Students can submit applications to: 

Mr. Simon Cornell
Email: s_cornell@jurists.co.jp
Subject: Legal Editor Position 2018/19

Professor Langille wishes to hire a Research Assistant

Professor Langille wishes to hire a Research Assistant for periodic assistance over the course of the term, and perhaps beyond, mainly concerning labour law related projects.  If interested please email Professor Langille direct brian.langille@utoronto.ca

Financial Aid, Scholarships, and Awards

Journals, Research, and Scholarship

Journal of Law and Equality - Call for Associate Editors

New year, new you? Try us on for size!

The Journal of Law & Equality (JLE) is looking for Associate Editors for the remainder of this academic year.

The JLE is a peer reviewed, student-run journal at the University of Toronto, Faculty of Law. Our mandate is to promote critical and informed debate on issues of equality, with a special emphasis on the Canadian context. Prior journal experience is not required, and all are welcome to join us!

Associate editors will work with members of the senior board to assist in bringing works we hope to publish up to snuff. This will involve editing and research work, all of which you will be instructed on by Senior Editors beforehand. It’s an exciting and immersive way to work on your research and writing skills, while dealing with interesting and current issues in equality law!

To apply, please submit your a brief statement of interest to editors.jle@gmail.com with "Associate Editor Application" as the subject line. Feel free as well to contact us with any questions about the position or application process.

Bookstore

Bookstore

Hours for the week of January 22nd, 2018 

                                  Monday:         9:30 a.m. – 3:30 p.m.
                                  Tuesday:               CLOSED
                                  Wednesday:   9:30 a.m. – 3:30 p.m.
                                  Thursday:       9:30 a.m. – 3:30 p.m.
                                  Friday:                   CLOSED
                                  

For updated information, please remember to visit the Faculty of Law Bookstore website at:  

http://www.law.utoronto.ca/student-life/bookstore

External Announcements: Events

Hart House Global Commons
2017-18 Hart House Global Commons

The 2017-18 Hart House Global Commons is an international dialogue exploring ways we can engage in our communities and work towards peaceful pluralism. Join students and guests from Canada, Colombia, South Africa, and the U.S.A., to share lived experiences, stories, and lessons learned on this path towards working together, through difference, to build better societies.

Session 2: The Opportunities and Challenges of Diverse Communities
February 1, 2018, 10 am-12 pm (EST)
Scene Setter: Janice Mcmillan, Global Citizenship Programme, University of Cape Town
Moderator: Azeezah Kanji

Session 3: Personal Strategies for Promoting Peaceful Pluralism
March 1, 2018, 9 am-12 pm (EST)
Scene Setter: Rima Berns-McGown
Workshop Facilitator: Amelia Merrick, University of Toronto
Moderator: Azeezah Kanji

Find out more

Jan 24: Ktunaxa Nation v. BC and the Shape of Religious Freedom (w/ Richard Moon)

Ktunaxa Nation v. BC and the Shape of Religious Freedom 

The main criticism of the recent Supreme Court of Canada decision in Ktunaxa is that the court in its s. 2(a) (freedom of religion) analysis relies on a “Protestant” or “Christian” conception of religion – that focuses on personal belief rather than collective practice or shared ways of living. I will argue, however, that this criticism of the court’s approach to s. 2(a) fails to understand the practical limits of religious freedom in a spiritually and culturally diverse political community.

Richard Moon
Professor of Law
University of Windsor

Jan 30: Ethics of AI in Context: The Future of Automated Healthcare (w/ Frank Rudzicz)

Frank Rudzicz, The Future of Automated Healthcare

As artificial intelligence and software tools for medical diagnosis are increasingly used within the healthcare system generally, it will be important that these tools are used ethically. This talk will cover recent advances in machine learning in healthcare, current approaches to ethics in healthcare, likely changes to regulation to allow for increased use of AI, and new challenges, both technical and societal, that will arise given those changes.

Frank Rudzicz
University Health Network & Computer Science
University of Toronto

04:00 PM - 06:00 PM
Centre for Ethics, University of Toronto
Rm 200, Larkin Building

Jan 30: Ethics of AI Film Series: Blade Runner (w/ Mark Kingwell)

 

Tue, Jan 30, 2018
06:00 PM - 08:00 PM
Centre for Ethics, University of Toronto
200 Larkin

Feb 5: The Police Man’s Burden: Emotional Labor, Masculinity and the Ethics of Force (w/ Jennifer Carlson, Arizona)

The Police Man’s Burden: Emotional Labor, Masculinity and the Ethics of Force

Use of force is central to police work, yet the contours of the use of force for American police have changed dramatically in recent years. First, police have become increasingly prepared to use force due to changes in training and equipment amid threats of mass shootings, domestic terrorism, and so forth. Second, police are increasingly policing contexts that are gun-rich and gun law-lax, with over 13 million people licensed to carry guns in the US. Third, police have increasingly faced public outcry related to the use of force, especially with regard to racial disparities in excessive force. In what contexts do police embrace, versus accept or even avoid, the use of force? Is police use of force equally ‘non-negotiable’ (see Bittner, 1973) across social settings? If not, why not—and to what ends? To explore these questions, this talk draws on interviews with nearly 80 police chiefs across Arizona, California, and Michigan. While policing scholarship has documented how “hard charger” masculinist approaches to policing mediates the central role of firearms in constituting “real” policework (see Herbert, 2001), I draw on the concept of ‘moral wages’ (see Kolb, 2014) to show how guns operate not just as means of violence but also as gendered tools of emotional management. Examining how police evaluate more versus less moralistic uses of force and at times even opt out of force, I show that police make ethical sense of the use of force by framing it as masculine carework. Further situating these findings within the divergent contexts of Arizona, California and Michigan (especially their respective gun cultures) reveals that the boundaries between police and broader society are more porous than often acknowledged: police sensibilities about legitimate force are patterned by more localized norms regarding the use of force as well as by the socio-legal regimes in which police are embedded.

Jennifer Carlson
University of Arizona
School of Sociology & School of Government and Public Policy

04:00 PM - 06:00 PM
Centre for Ethics, University of Toronto
200 Larkin 

Feb 13: Ethics of AI Film Series: Star Trek TNG (w/ Mark Kingwell)

 

 

Tue, Feb 13, 2018
06:00 PM - 08:00 PM
Centre for Ethics, University of Toronto
Rm 200, Larkin Building

Feb 14: Author Meets Critics: Connected by Commitment: Oppression and Our Responsibility to Undermine It (by Mara Marin)

Connected by Commitment: Oppression and Our Responsibility to Undermine It (Oxford 2017)

Mara Marin
Postdoctoral Affiliate, Centre for Ethics
University of Toronto

Commentators:
Shannon Dea
(Philosophy, University of Waterloo)
Kerry Rittich (Law, University of Toronto)
Meredith Schwartz (Philosophy, Ryerson University)
Torrey Shanks (Political Science, University of Toronto)

Saying that political and social oppression is a deeply unjust and widespread condition of life is not a terribly controversial statement. Likewise, theorists of justice frequently consider our obligation to not turn a blind eye to oppression. But what is our culpability in the endurance of oppression?

In this book, Mara Marin complicates the primary ways in which we make sense of human and political relationships and our obligations within them. Rather than thinking of relationships in terms of our intentions, Marin thinks of them as open-ended and subject to ongoing commitments. Commitments create open-ended expectations and vulnerabilities on the part of others, and therefore also obligations. By this rationale, our actions sustain oppressive or productive structures in virtue of their cumulative effects, not the intentions of the actors.When we violate our obligations we oppress others.

12:00 PM - 02:00 PM
Centre for Ethics, University of Toronto
Rm 200, Larkin Building 

2nd Annual Canadian Women in Management Conference Innov-Action: Designing for Equality and Change

2nd Annual Canadian Women in Management Conference

Innov-Action: Designing for Equality and Change

 

January 31, 2018

 

Join WIMA on January 31, 2018 as it hosts the 2nd Annual Canadian Women in Management Conference at Rotman! This year’s concept: InnovAction: Designing for Equality and Change seeks to encourage participants to move from conversation to action on the issue of gender equality. Using Business Design principals, we will work together to create innovative solutions to gender equality issues that exist in the workplace. You can find more, here.

 

Registration Deadline: January 24, 2018

Link: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/innovaction-designing-for-equality-and-change-tickets-40001458439

Feb 6: Ethics of AI in Context: The Ethics of Agonistic Machine Learning (w/ Mireille Hildebrandt)

What do we mean when we say that machines learn? What is the difference that makes a difference between human learning and machine learning? In my talk I will discuss the nature of machine learning (ML), including a series of design decisions that inform ML research designs and the trade-offs they incorporate. I will argue that these trade-offs have real world implications that require the participation of those who will suffer or enjoy the consequences of real world ML applications. Building on Mouffe’s democratic theory and Rip’s constructive technology assessment, I will argue for agonistic or adversarial ML as the only viable way to ensure that ML contributes to human and societal flourishing.

Mireille Hildebrandt
Law and Technology, Vrije Universiteit Brussels
Computing & Information Sciences, Radboud University Nijmegen

 

Tue, Feb 6, 2018
04:00 PM - 06:00 PM
Centre for Ethics, University of Toronto
Rm 200, Larkin Building

Sean Columb - Tuesday January 30th, 2018 - 12:30pm to 2:00pm - Centre for Criminology & Sociolegal Studies Winter Speaker Series

Sean Columb, Liverpool Law School,University of Liverpool; visiting scholar, Centre for Criminology & Sociolegal Studies

 

Organ Markets and Organized Crime: Egypt Revisited

Due to their precarious status, undocumented migrants are being targeted for their organs. The link between migrant populations and organ sales is exacerbated by the current political climate across the Middle-East and North Africa. Migrant routes ranging across Lebanon, Egypt and Libya have become key sites for recruiting organ sellers, by networks of intermediaries with links to transplant centers and hospitals in Cairo, Egypt. Drawing on in-depth interviews with Sudanese migrants who have sold or arranged for the sale of kidneys in Cairo, this study examines the implications of current legal and policy measures in the Egyptian-Sudanese context. Recent findings (November, 2017) suggest that attempts to prohibit the commercial exchange of organs via the imposition or threat of criminal sanction has pushed the trade further underground and created an opportunity for organized crime to enter the market. While the threat of arrest has, ostensibly, led to fewer (reported) cases of organ commercialism, there has been an increase in organ ‘trafficking’, generating increased violence and exploitation. The core aim of this paper is to demonstrate how law and policy produces and constructs vulnerability to exploitation in organ markets, explicating the theoretical and practical implications of the prevailing law enforcement model in response to the organ trade.

Date: Tuesday January 30th, 2018

Time: 12:30pm to 2:00pm

Location: Centre for Criminology & Sociolegal Studies - Ericson Seminar Room - 2nd floor Canadiana Gallery - 14 Queen's Park Crescent West

A light lunch will be served at 12:00 noon in the Lounge

The talk will begin at 12:30pm in the Ericson Seminar Room (room 265)

All are welcome to attend - RSVP in not required

(event poster & building map attached)

If you are a person with a disability and require accommodation, please contact Lori Wells at 416-978-3722 x226 or email lori.wells@utoronto.ca and we will do our best to make appropriate arrangements.

Faculty of Music winter concert season

The Faculty of Music is right next door to the law school and has an extensive program of events - see the attached program.

Most events are free and even ticketed concerts are now free for all UofT students with a valid tcard (space permitting).

The full listing of events is always available and up-to-date on the website: music.utoronto.ca and anyone can sign up for the monthly e-newsletter at http://bit.ly/UofTMusic-enews.

.

Refugee law conference – REGISTRATION NOW OPEN | CARL LobbyCon 2018

Are you a law student interested in refugee law? Are you interested in public interest advocacy? This opportunity is for you!

 

The Canadian Association of Refugee Lawyers (CARL) student chapters are pleased to announce CARL LobbyCon 2018 taking place February 25 and 26, 2018 in Ottawa. [Contact us in case of financial need – we might be able to help].

 

This is a unique opportunity for law students from across Canada to learn public interest advocacy skills and meet with Members of Parliament to push progressive refugee law reform based on CARL’s recommendations.

 

You do not need to have taken courses in immigration and refugee law. You will receive all the training and materials you will need!

 

You must be a law student and a member of CARL to participate (CARL membership is free for students). Lawyers and articling students practising in the area of refugee and immigration law are invited to participate as supervisors for meetings with MPs. Please contact carllobbycon@gmail.com if you are interested.

 

Registration is $20 and closes Friday, February 2. Please share widely to interested law students.

 

If you have any questions, please contact carllobbycon@gmail.com

 

Hope to see you there!

 

Sincerely,

CARL LobbyCon Team

Website: http://lobbycon.wordpress.com

Email: carllobbycon@gmail.com

Centre for Criminology & Sociolegal Studies: "Searching for Truth in the Transitional Justice Movement: Lesson from the Balkans and Colombia "

Book presentation:
Searching for Truth in the Transitional Justice Movement: Lesson from the Balkans and Colombia

 

Jamie Rowen, Assistant Professor of Legal Studies, Department of Political Science, UMass Amherst

 
Dr. Rowen's book, Searching for Truth in the Transitional Justice Movement (Cambridge University Press) focuses on the emergence of transitional justice as an idea in international and domestic scholarship, policy making, and advocacy, and efforts to make truth commissions in the Balkans, Colombia and the United States.

Date: Friday March 2nd, 2018
Time: 12:30-2:00pm
Location: Centre for Criminology & Sociolegal Studies, University of Toronto
14 Queen's Park Crescent West 2nd floor
Toronto, ON M5S 3K9
Ericson Room (room 265)

A light lunch will be served at 12:00 noon in the Lounge.

The talk will begin at 12:30pm in the Ericson Seminar Room (room 265)

Prof. Anver Emon - Monday March 19th, 2018 - 12:30pm-2:00pm - Centre for Criminology & Sociolegal Studies

Mapping Jihad-ly: Jurisdictional Encounters in Medieval Islamic Law

 

Anver M. Emon is Professor and Canada Research Chair in Religion, Pluralism, and the Rule of Law at the University of Toronto, Faculty of Law

 
While the term ‘jihad’ all too invokes imagery of militancy, violence, and warfare, premodern Muslim jurists drew upon the idea of jihad to develop a legal map of the terrain of governance. The discussion will examine the implications of jurisdiction in recasting the meaning of jihad and thereby bringing into the study of Islam insights from legal geography.

Date: Monday March 19th, 2018
Time: 12:30-2:00pm
Location: Centre for Criminology & Sociolegal Studies, University of Toronto
14 Queen's Park Crescent West 2nd floor
Toronto, ON M5S 3K9
Ericson Room (room 265)

A light lunch will be served at 12:00 noon in the Lounge.

The talk will begin at 12:30pm in the Ericson Seminar Room (room 265)

This Wednesday, Jan 24! Sidewalk Toronto: Ethics in the "Smart City" (Ethics in the City Series)

 

Panelists:

Mark Fox
Industrial Engineering, University of Toronto

Ruben Gaetani
Management, University of Toronto

Mariana Valverde
Criminology & Sociolegal Studies, University of Toronto

Wed, Jan 24, 2018
04:00 PM - 06:00 PM
Centre for Ethics, University of Toronto
Rm 200, Larkin Building

External Announcements: Opportunities

Harvey T. Strosberg Essay Prize (class actions)

The value of the prize for the best essay is $10,000. The paper will be published in the Canadian Class Action Review.

More information, including submission details, is available by visiting the Harvey T. Strosberg Essay Prize link at https://www.irwinlaw.com/harvey-t-strosberg-essay-prize or by contacting lsteeve@irwinlaw.com.

Join the Canadian Bar Association National Section for International Law for free!

We would like to invite members of the Faculty of Law to join the National Section on International Law (NSIL) of the Canadian Bar Association (CBA)!

The NSIL addresses both private and public international law.

As a member, students will be able to:

            •           Attend our events and professional development opportunities

            •           Network with lawyers across Canada specializing in international law

            •           Submit an article

            •           Participate in panels on latest international law issues

            •           Read our latest news

            •           Access our submissions and resolutions

            •           Subscribe to our journal, Canadian International Lawyer

            •           Discover the work we are doing on the Anti-Corruption Team

            •           Upgrade your skills with the CBA Skilled Lawyer Series

            •           Visit CBA PracticeLink for practice tips and resources

In order to join us, students need to become a CBA member and then identify that they wish to join our section online. CBA Membership for students in your province is free.

Please see the attached flyer for more information.  

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us.

Looking forward to meeting you in the future!

2018 Green Ribbon Award Nominations Open

Nominations are now open for the Green Ribbon Awards –deadline is January 31st  

 

Do you know of any eco heroes on campus–individuals or groups–who are committed to environmental progress at U of T’s St. George campus?  What better way to recognize their efforts than by nominating them for a Green Ribbon Award!

 

Now in its 10th year, the Green Ribbon Awards have been recognizing the outstanding contributions and achievements of students, staff, faculty and external partners who have made our campus ‘greener’! As individuals, groups, departments or business partners, these green leaders have contributed to a sustainable culture on campus, and inspired others to adopt environmentally-conscious behaviours.

 

For more information on the Green Ribbon Awards, including past winners and the nominations page, please visit www.uoft.me/gra .

Feb 1 Deadline for St. Gallen Wings of Excellence Award, an all expenses paid conference in May 2018

AWARD FOR ALL EXPENSES PAID CONFERENCE IN SWITZERLAND - MAY 2018

Open to JD, LLM and SJD students

Would you like to share your vision of the future with world leaders such as
Dominic Barton, Professor Niall Ferguson, Kersti Kaljulaid, Christine Lagarde, or Jack Ma?

Discuss your ideas with the global elite, create an impact and enjoy an all-expenses-paid trip to Switzerland.

Seize the opportunity to qualify as one of 200 “Leaders of Tomorrow” for the 48th St. Gallen Symposium (www.symposium.org) by competing for the 30th St. Gallen Wings of Excellence Award. A special jubilee symposium awaits you with a prize money of CHF 30,000 and various festivities.

Here some more highlights if you make it to St. Gallen:

  • Meet 600 top managers, entrepreneurs, politicians and scientists from around the world
  • Share your ideas with the symposium’s global audience
  • Small and intimate gatherings with world leaders, exclusively for the Leaders of Tomorrow
  • Meet 200 of the world’s brightest young minds and become member of a global community

 

The 48th St. Gallen Symposiumwill be held from 2–4 May 2018 at the University of St. Gallen, Switzerland, and is devoted to the theme “Beyond the end of work”. The St. Gallen Wings of Excellence Award is the world’s foremost student essay competition giving you the extraordinary opportunity to share your voice and opinion with some of the world’s most influential luminaries.

Have a look at competition question and requirements at www.symp.sg/competitionregister now to receive the latest news and tips, and hand in your essay no later than February 1, 2018.

To get more insights check out www.youtube.com/user/StGallenSymposium and follow us on our Social Media channels.

Contact:

Elena Kessler
Member, Your Leaders of Tomorrow Team

International Students’ Committee (ISC)
award@symposium.org

St. Gallen Symposium

P.O. Box 1045
9001 St. Gallen, Switzerland
Phone +41 71 227 20 20, Fax +41 71 227 20 30

LinkedIn Facebook |Twitter | #beyondwork

External Announcements: Calls for Papers

Poster Submissions (Community Benefits Summit)

TCBN, York University Osgoode Hall School and the DUKE Heights BIA have teamed up on March 23rd and 24th to bring you this year's Creating Opportunities Summit (COS 2018), exclusively focused on CBAs.

Do you have research you could contribute? We would love to highlight your research in the format of a poster presentation.

The Summit seeks to highlight and celebrate the best examples we have across Canada and North America for furthering social and economic development and prosperity. CBAs are emerging as a leading innovation in this area of practice.

To learn more about CBAs, the process to submit your poster and the benefits of your participation, download guidelines HERE.

Then, send us a focused summary of your research as it relates to community benefits, and we will prepare a poster for you that will inspire our audience to explore and create ways to dismantle economic barriers for historically disadvantaged communities and equity seeking groups.

Submit your poster proposal to Natasha Allen at nallen@communitybenefits.ca by Monday, February 12, 2018 at 11:59 pm.  

Windsor Review of Legal and Social Issues Accepting Submissions for 11th Annual Canadian Law Student Conference

The Windsor Review of Legal and Social Issues (WRLSI) is now accepting submissions for its 11th Annual Canadian Law Student Conference. Law students from across Canada are invited to submit original, academic work to be considered for presentation at the conference. The conference will be held March 8 and 9, 2018, in Windsor, Ontario.

 

This event is a unique opportunity for students from across the country to share their academic work and receive feedback from peers and faculty in an open and engaging environment. 

In addition, top presenters have the opportunity to be published in the Digital Companion. Exclusively reserved for student work, the Digital Companion features the top papers presented by law students at the conference.


 

To be considered, manuscripts must be received by February 2, 2018. Details on submission guidelines can be found at http://wrlsi.ca/canadian-law-student-conference/submissions/

 

Please send manuscripts to wrlsisolicitations@uwindsor.ca with the subject line “Conference Submission”. Questions may be directed to that same address.

 

 

Taraneh Etemadi

WRLSI Solicitations Editor 2017 - 2018

wrlsisolicitations@uwindsor.ca 

External Announcements: Other

Sexual Violence Education and Prevention Training Module

The University of Toronto has made available online sexual violence education and prevention training to all students, staff and faculty members. Completion is strongly encouraged and constitutes an important step toward creating a campus environment in which all members of the University community can study, work and live free from sexual violence.

Learn more about the University’s Policy on Sexual Violence and Harassment, how to disclose or report an incident an incident of sexual violence, and how to support those who have experienced sexual violence.

http://www.provost.utoronto.ca/committees/Working_Groups/SVactionplan.htm

Late announcements

AODA Consultations
The Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA) office at the University is drafting a plan and report for its compliance with the AODA. The AODA requires the University to develop, implement and enforce accessibility standards in order to achieve accessibility for Ontarians with disabilities with respect to goods, services, facilities, accommodation, employment, buildings, structures and premises on or before January 1, 2025.
 
The AODA office would like to hear from students regarding this plan. If you have feedback for the University on accessibility or have questions about the AODA please visit room P238 in the Library on Tuesday, January 23 from 12:30 to 2:00 pm or Wednesday, January 24 from 4:00 to 6:00. Any and all thoughts, comments, likes and dislikes are welcome!!
 
For more info:

Registration: Regulating in the Dark

Fill out the form below to register for:

Regulating in the Dark: Mapping the Encryption Debate
Friday, February 9, 2018
9:00am to 5:00pm
Solarium (FA2), Falconer Hall, 84 Queen's Park

Find out more about the conference here


 

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