Faculty of LAW NEWSLETTER WINTER, 2018
Fifth Year at Bora Laskin Faculty of Law I
n 2017-18, we are in our fifth year at the Bora Laskin Faculty of Law. This fall, we welcomed our largest incoming class of 77 students engaged in our three mandates: Aboriginal and Indigenous Law; Natural Resources and Environmental Law; and Sole/Small Practice with the Integrated Practice Curriculum (IPC). Our second year law students are busy running student organizations, gaining legal skills in our Lakehead University Community Services (LUCLS) Clinic, preparing for mooting competitions, and holding events enlivening this academic year. Our third year law students are reporting great experiences in Practice Placements and enjoying their final classroom courses before celebrating graduation in early June. In June 2017, we celebrated the Class of 2017 as they reached the milestone of graduation. They went on to take the bar exams and have joined the legal profession to make a difference locally, regionally, and nationally. Our keynote speaker for the Law Ceremony celebration was the Honorable Bob Rae who gave an inspiring talk to the new graduates and provided a glimpse into the life of Chief Justice Bora Laskin. We continue to strive to hold the law school to the exemplary characteristics of his life. As you read this newsletter, you will have a sense of the contributions by faculty and staff to continue to meet a standard of excellence at our law school. We have a few new additions that have enhanced our ability to support our students and have welcomed back those returning from leaves. With the common goal of delivering an innovative legal program in Northern Ontario, we are a community law school that is making a difference. A big thank you for all of our supporters in the legal community and throughout the region. We are very appreciative of our Aboriginal Advisory Committee, our close
relationship with the Thunder Bay Law Association, and those who are serving on the newly created LUCLS Clinic Advisory Committee. Our partnerships and collaborations provide valuable opportunities to our law students and to the greater community on access to justice. We also express our gratitude to the Law Foundation of Ontario for the funding supporting many important initiatives such as Aboriginal legal education and recruitment, summer internships, and delivery of legal services to low-income area residents through the LUCLS Clinic. We hope to see you at our spring events and for the June graduation ceremonies! Warm regards,
Angelique EagleWoman Dean and Professor of Law
Community Legal Services
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e are pleased to advise that we have launched our expansion of services into the District of Thunder Bay. On August 14th and 15th, staff and caseworkers from the clinic visited the town of Geraldton, Ontario, to provide legal assistance and information to residents. In August we held an ID Clinic, in partnership with the Geraldton office of Kinna-Aweya Legal Clinic. We were able to help some of the local individuals with an application for a birth certificate, which is often a necessary component to accessing a multitude of social services, banking services, access to housing, food banks and much more. After the ID clinic, we had the opportunity to meet with some potential clients in the region as well. Clinic law students observed proceedings at the Provincial Offences court in Geraldton. This was a useful opportunity for students to see how court works in some Northern Ontario communities. Finally, we attended at the local “People Advocating for Change through Empowerment” (PACE) office, to do a presentation on Tenants’ Rights. Our caseworkers advised the attendees about what tenants have a right to expect from their landlords, and what they can do if the landlords aren’t respecting those rights. The presentation was very well-received. In September we made trips to Nipigon, Geraldton and Marathon to spread the word about our clinic expansion. And, in October we hosted another ID clinic in partnership with Long Lake 58 First Nation. We were please to help them apply for and process over 55 Birth Certificate applications. During that same trip, two of our second year students attended the Thunder Bird Friendship Centre in Geraldton to do a presentation on Provincial Offences Court. In addition to our expansion of services, Clinic Review Counsel, Joanna Goldenberg and Director Kimberley Gagan will be coaching students in the Arnup Moot competition this February in Toronto. We look forward to sharing our litigation experience with these enthusiastic students.
Moot Listing Start Proud Moot, September 15 & 16, 2017 Arnup / Sopinka Cup, February 9 & 10, 2018 Wilson Moot, February 23 & 24, 2018 Kawaskimhon Moot, March 2-4, 2018 OTLA Cup, March 3, 2018
Toronto Toronto Toronto Montreal Ottawa
Coach: Gilbert Deschamps Coaches: Kimberley Gagan, Joanna Goldenberg Coaches: Rahool Agarwal, Miriam Cohen Coach: Shawn Bell Coach: Jeff Moorley
Our amazing team for the 2018 Arnup Cup. Thank you to Karen, Jessica, Melanie, and Bruce for representing us, and to our coaches for their support! We could not be more proud. Coaches, Director Kimberley Gagan and Review Counsel Joanna Goldenberg with the Arnup Cup team, Bruce Sosa, Jessica Byles, Melanie Mayhew-Hammond, and Karen Hagman.
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Community Legal Services
Lakehead Alum, Ray Stewart, Reflects On Life, Love And Purpose
Your legacy is enriching my future.
By Lee-Anne Camlin Ray Stewart with wife, Jennifer in front of the donor wall in the Bora Laskin Faculty of Law building (the former PACI) I first met Ray Stewart (HBComm '72) in the summer of 2015 in the halls of PACI. Born in Thunder Bay, Ray had travelled from his home in British Columbia to visit his mother and father’s grave and refresh the floral arrangement; an annual event, he acknowledged. Charming, intelligent and incredibly humble, Ray and I spoke for more than two hours of growing up in Thunder Bay, his time at PACI and at Lakehead University. "Any success an individual achieves is a result of the people in their lives," says Ray. From parental support, to meeting the Chief of Police as a teenager, having a group of strong academic advisors in university and marrying his high school sweetheart, Ray appreciates the meaning of imperfect decisions and good judgement. People are the difference. In life, Ray has always worked hard and played hard based on a simple principle. Honour the 7-7-7 rule (work 7am-7pm 7 days a week until the job is done) and surround yourself with people that are smarter than you and who love you. Encouraged by his first wife, Rita, now deceased, and their two young sons, Ray enrolled at Lakehead university as a mature student and graduated in 1972 with an Honours Degree of Bachelor of Commerce and went on to pursue a Masters degree of Business Admin at Simon Fraser. A successful businessman and consultant of 3 decades, Ray is now retired and living on a ranch in the South Okanagan with his new wife Jennifer and their eclectic animal kingdom. With a shared love of art, fast cars, travel, animals of all shapes and sizes (yes, even a pet rattle snake named Fred), Ray is proud of his accomplishments. The couple have five grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren. Ray's memories of growing up in Thunder Bay are still vivid and treasured. His boyish grin, ever present as we walked through PACI on that hot summer day, clearly brought him back to a time that was simple and heart-warming. Philanthropic by nature and inspired by the transformation of a heritage building into a modern Faculty of Law in 2013, Ray and Jennifer have purchased 5 named plaques on the main floor "2013" donor wall in PACI to recognize those people that have made a difference in their lives, including a retired Lakehead University professor. People are the difference. My time with Ray Stewart two years ago was one of the nicest experiences I have had with a donor. A genuine and hard-working man, he has learned to appreciate the important messages in life. Life is not easy, but it is purposeful.
The support I received through the estate of Florence Shuttleworth-Higgins has allowed me to focus more on my studies, bringing me closer to my career goals and dreams. ~ Marinda Tran, Third-Year Music Student Recipient of the Florence Higgins Music Scholarship, Lakehead University
For information on how to include a charitable gift in your will to Lakehead University contact Lee-Anne Camlin at: T: (807) 346-7792 E: rlcamlin@lakeheadu.ca All requests remain confidential with no obligation
EXCEPTIONAL. UNCONVENTIONAL.
Lakehead Alum
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FACULTY HIGHLIGHTS Dr. Ryan Alford Dr. Alford recently brought an application to the Superior Court of Justice requesting the Court determine whether the new Statement of Principles requirement imposed by the Law Society of Upper Canada is constitutional and legal, or in the alternative, a consent order indicating that the requirement does not and cannot regulate values and beliefs. He recently published an opinion piece, in the Globe and Mail, on why precedents for compelled speech must be taken seriously. An editorial supporting his application were published by the Globe and Mail and the National Post. Both are available online.
Prof. Daniel Dylan Professor Dylan designed and taught two new courses at the Bora Laskin Faculty of Law in 2017-2018. In the fall semester, he designed and taught a unique course that dealt with Intellectual Property and Indigenous Knowledge Governance. During the Fall Semester, he coordinated the design of the Legal Research & Writing curriculum at the Faculty, and will be teaching a course of the same name to one of three first-year sections in the Winter Semester. His article “The Curious Case of NIRB’s Acquisition of Jurisdiction Over Scientific Research in Nunavut” will appear in the upcoming 2018 issue of the Journal of Environmental Law and Practice. In September 2017, he was selected by the Antonin Scalia Law School’s Law & Economics Center to attend a conference on legal education hosted by that institution in Austin, Texas in March 2018. “I believe in our students, and I remain committed to delivering to them the best legal education possible,” he said of the upcoming conference. In November 2017, he was appointed as a member with legal expertise to the Research Ethics Board at the Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre. As co-investigator on a SSHRC-funded project in partnership with the Center for Policy in Aboriginal Law, Confederation College, and the Ontario Native Women’s Charitable Foundation, he also supervised research by two research assistants at the Bora Laskin Faculty of Law.
4 Faculty Highlights
Dr. Miriam Cohen
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Some of Dr. Cohen's recent developments and research include: – Book on reparations for international crimes forthcoming (2018/ 2019) with Cambridge University Press; – Invited to be part of an interdisciplinary research group with the F.A. Hayek Program for Advanced Study in Philosophy, Politics and Economics, George Mason University Invited to lead research projects and write commissioned papers; Invited to work as subject-matter expert on a project on the international rule of law; Published four peer-reviewed commentaries with Oxford University Press; Published two peer-reviewed articles and chapters; Presented research at international conferences, including at the University of Oxford; Conducted funded field research in The Hague on reparations for international crimes; Received competitive funding for interdisciplinary research in the field of human rights; Participated in and Conducted a high-level judicial training for Legal Officers of the Indonesian Constitutional Court; Appointed to Lakehead University Research Ethics Board; Continued to serve as Legal Adviser appointed by the Applicant (Panama) in a case before the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea; Continued to serve as Director of the Children’s Aid Society.
New Department Of Student Services T
he Bora Laskin Faculty of Law welcomes its new Department of Student Services! Director Hope Buset and Student Services Advisor, Anya Scheibmayr are delighted to bring their diverse experiences to their new roles. Originally from Thunder Bay, Ontario, Hope Buset received her Bachelor of Laws degree from the University of Manitoba, with recognition in Aboriginal Law. After she articled in Thunder Bay and receiving her Ontario Call to Bar in July 2006, she returned to Winnipeg and received her Manitoba Call to the Bar. As a criminal defence lawyer, Director Buset advocated for her clients at every level of court in Manitoba, including the Provincial Court, the Court of Queen’s Bench and the Manitoba Court of Appeal. In early 2011, Hope joined the Legal Help Centre; a not-for-profit organization located in downtown Winnipeg with a mandate to assist low-income individuals access their legal and social rights. In her dual role as Legal Director/Supervising Lawyer, she was responsible for providing advice and information to clients on a variety of legal and social service topics, and for teaching and mentoring law student interns as they applied their legal education in a clinical setting. In the fall of 2014, Director Buset joined a rural general practice law firm in Portage la Prairie, Manitoba. By providing a wide range of legal services to individuals living in and around Portage la Prairie, she experienced firsthand the legal needs of those living in smaller and more remote communities. Anya Scheibmayr has called Thunder Bay home for the past 10 years, living and working as an educator and advisor. Originally from Cobourg, Ontario, she completed her undergraduate double degree at Queen’s University and moved to Thunder Bay in 2006 to complete her Bachelor of Education at Lakehead University. Since then Anya has been working as an educator in the north, with extensive experience delivering multi-disciplinary vocational training and educational programs to Indigenous learners in a formal classroom and alternative learning environments for Superior Greenstone District School Board and Confederation College. In the Fall of 2014, joined the team at Lakehead University’s Student Accessibility Services. She has since been providing assistance and direction to students with various disabilities as they navigate the academic demands of their program. Director Buset’s and Ms. Scheibmayr’s roles include the following: • • • • • • • •
Recruitment Admissions Career Services Practice Placement Awards and Bursaries Student Engagement General student assistance and referrals Planning for Orientation and Graduation
Their combined experiences will be a great resource for the students. The Department of Student Services is dedicated to supporting students and helping to facilitate success in the Bora Laskin JD program!
Director Hope Buset and Student Ser vices Advisor, Anya Scheibmayr
Events of the 2017/18 Year August 28 - September 1 - Orientation for the Class of 2020 September 5 - Welcome Back Lunch for 2Ls and 3Ls Sepember 22 - Professional Development Session with Joy Wakefield October 5, 17 & 18 - Meet and Greets for each year with Student Services. October 23 - Presentation from Student Awards and Financial Aid on Awards and Bursaries October 24 - Professional Development Session with Justice Fitzpatrick November 1 - Professional Development Session with Duncan MacGillivray and Ryan Green November 2 & 6 - Resume and Cover Letter Workshops with Student Success January 24 - Professional Development Session with Lydia Stam February 5 - Indigenous High School Day February 16 - Welcome Day for Admitted Students February 28 - Professional Development Session with Michael Strickland March 21 - Professional Development Session with Chris Arnone June 1 - Graduation
New Department of Student Services
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Land Based Learning O
n November 6th, a crisp autumn afternoon, the 1L students embarked on an adventure to the Fort William Historical Park for the Land Based Learning portion of their curriculum. The students were guided by interpreters from the Old Fort and learned about the wild plants in our area that provided food and medicine for the indigenous people and the voyagers. They also entered the learning wigwam for traditional indigenous teachings, being able to touch animal pelts and enjoying a traditional indigenous song. This field trip was made possible by the continuing support of the Law Foundation of Ontario!
Lakehead University’s Bora Laskin Faculty of Law Hosts Indigenous High School Law Day The Bora Laskin Faculty of Law invited 80 Indigenous students from Dennis Franklin Cromarty High School and Sir Winston Churchill Collegiate and Vocational Institute to attend the second annual Indigenous High School Law Day on Monday, February 5th. Interim Director of Indigenous Relations, Crystal Gionette, coordinated the informative and fun-filled day, engaging high school students as future leaders. “We are building the pipeline to allow students to dream of their possible future careers,” said Dean Angelique EagleWoman. The day included presentations from various Lakehead 6
Student News
departments including the Native Access Program, the Native Nurses Entry Program, the Indigenous Learning department, the department of Athletics, and key features of the legal program. There was also a law mooting demonstration – where current students presented a legal issue against opposing counsel and a judge.
Faculty Alumni 2017 Graduating Class Steven Arturo Hamza Nicholas James Daniel Zachary James Christina Chelsea Leslie Emily Maura John Sarah
Aceti Acosta Ahmad Baxter Bennett Brockenshire Campbell Carpino Comacchio Cooper de Meulles Delaney Dunk East Eddy
Erin Jacqueline Kelsey Dustin Aranka Michael Misbah-ul Marc Deanna Evan Daniel Kristyn Min Jillian Nicole
Estok Fitzpatrick Fuerst Fuller Golphy Grimaldi Haque Hardiejowski Hiebert Holt Hughes Hutchinson Jin Kellar Kucherenko
Leslie de Meulles Class of 2017
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eslie de Meulles truly embodies the mandate of the Bora Laskin Faculty of Law. A graduate of the second class of law students in 2017, Leslie entered law school having previously worked as political staff and senior policy advisor to the Ontario Minister of Northern Development and Mines and Minister of Natural Resources, respectively. Having completed her Master’s thesis on the Indian Residential Schools Truth and Reconciliation commission, she knew that she wanted to use her legal education to continue fostering her passion for reconciliation and social justice. Today, Leslie is Counsel with Westaway Law Group, based in its Whitehorse, Yukon office, working primarily with self-governing First Nation communities in Yukon, Northwest Territories and northern British Columbia. She notes that in the Yukon alone, there are currently 11 self-governing First Nations who signed self-governing agreements roughly twenty years ago and are continuously working to implement the agreements through negotiation with the Federal and Territorial governments. Leslie works directly with the communities to determine their priorities and establish which areas of governance will be devolved to the First Nation’s rule and administration, while also communicating back to various levels of government about how to best execute the handover. Recently, she found herself in Vuntut Gwitchin First Nation, an Arctic fly-in community in northern Yukon and one of the first to sign a self-government agreement: “It was a pretty remarkable place to be”. According to Leslie, the best part of her job is playing a role in “actively undoing the legacy of colonialism” by representing First Nations in their dealings with government on a nation-
Ryan Katherine Victoria Brent Molly Connor Liam Amirreza Tanya Tyra Samantha Anthony Katherine Therin Lianne
Lemay Linton Locs Love MacDonald MacKay McNeely Mirzaesmaeeli Muthusamipillai Ohman Prescott Rasetti Remington Rhaintre Roberge
Rebecca Derrick Amanda Brandon David Carman Joshua Joshua Tyron Emily Michael Margaret Danielle Brandon
Senior Silvestro Somek Spalvieri Spence Stafford Stevenson Szajewski Telang Vereshchak von Keitz Waddington Wood Wright
to-nation basis. She is proud to be witnessing the start of change and hopeful about the expansion of self-government agreements to many more communities throughout Canada. When asked what role the Bora Laskin Faculty of Law played in helping Leslie to articulate the role she has now, she notes that the unique mandate which includes mandatory Indigenous law-based courses was essential to a balanced legal education. While this was subject matter that she already had an interest in, she believes that learning about residential schools, treaties, and Aboriginal law-focused Supreme Court cases, is invaluable knowledge for all Canadian law students. Bora Laskin’s unique Indigenous Legal Traditions course was also an asset for Leslie; she is actively applying the principles she learned in that course, as the Nations she works with are incorporating their law and legal traditions into their governance systems. The “hands-on” approach to learning the law was also something she benefitted from. “Lakehead prepares you for lawyering; the practical and work experience was great” recalls Leslie. She noted that a co-worker of hers only went to court for the first time as a lawyer. However, in her placement Leslie spent nearly every day in court and worked as a caseworker in the Community Legal Services clinic in her third year. She encourages current and future students to “take advantage of the experiential opportunities, like legal positions during the summer” and notes that “the local bar [in Thunder Bay] is so supportive. The more practical experience students can get, the better”. She also suggests that students remain open-minded during the course of law school; to gain experience in various areas of law instead of limiting their focus prematurely. She is glad she didn’t set any limitations on her future career path. Leslie also served as President of the Law Students’ Society, and as President of the Law Students’ Society of Ontario. “I truly value the education I received at the Bora Laskin Faculty of Law and hope that current students will take advantage of the unique opportunities available to them both inside and outside the classroom”. Alumni
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Library Update The Law Library continues to grow its collections with new books and new electronic resources. Faculty and Students now have access to Lexis Practice Advisor Canada which allows firms to manage tasks, issues, and transactions efficiently. The Library added 8 new computers. In addition, students now have a new printing/scanning/photocopying system which allows them to use one multifunction machine for all of these purposes. The Library offered workshops on Library research and Library staff met with students to discuss their research projects.
Welcome to our New Librarian - Courtney Dicke he University Library and the Bora Laskin Faculty of Law at Lakehead University are pleased to announce the appointment of Courtney Dicke as the new Law Librarian, starting on January 2, 2018. Courtney Dicke earned her Juris Doctor degree in 2012 from Osgoode Hall Law School at York University. Courtney completed her Master of Science in Library Science at City University in London, England, in 2015. The title of her Master’s dissertation is “Museums and Twitter: Shaping a Society.” Courtney was the sole librarian at Providence Motherhouse in Kingston, Ontario, in 2016 and worked as a Librarian Intern at the International Criminal Court Library at The Hague in Holland in 2017. Courtney has also worked as a researcher with the United Nations Development Project in Serbia and has volunteered as a librarian with many organizations and legal services. Courtney is excited about moving to Thunder Bay and is “looking forward to a position where I can use my legal, library, and teaching skills.” Dean Angelique EagleWoman and Karen Keiller, University Librarian and ViceProvost (Teaching and Learning) thank Debra Gold, the interim Law Librarian, for providing excellent library services to the Faculty of Law since July 2016.
Inaugural Speaker for the Dibinawe Onashiwewin (Inherent Law) Indigenous Lecture Series
Professor John Borrows Faculty of Law, University of Victoria
Thursday, March 1st, 2018 7:00 pm - 9:00 pm Bora Laskin Faculty of Law The John N. Paterson Auditorium
Email: law@lakeheadu.ca
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John Borrows B.A., M.A., J.D., LL.M. (Toronto), Ph.D. (Osgoode Hall Law School), LL.D. (Hons., Dalhousie & Law Society of Upper Canada) F.R.S.C., is the Canada Research Chair in Indigenous Law at the University of Victoria Law School in British Columbia. His publications include, Recovering Canada; The Resurgence of Indigenous Law (Donald Smiley Award for the best book in Canadian Political Science, 2002), Canada's Indigenous Constitution (Canadian Law and Society Best Book Award 2011), Drawing Out Law: A Spirit's Guide (2010), Freedom and Indigenous Constitutionalism ((Donald Smiley Award for the best book in Canadian Political Science, 2016), The Right Relationship (with Michael Coyle, ed.), all from the University of Toronto Press. He is the 2017 Killam Prize winner in Social Sciences. John is Anishinaabe/Ojibway and a member of the Chippewa of the Nawash First Nation in Ontario, Canada.
Web: law.lakeheadu.ca
Twitter:@LawLakehead