Ultra Vires Volume 25, Issue 4: January 2024

ULTRAVIRES.CA

January 25, 2024

VOL. 25 ISS. 4

Ultra Vires

THE INDEPENDENT STUDENT NEWSPAPER OF THE UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO FACULTY OF LAW

U of T on Exchange: Escape from Jackman Hall The pros and cons of studying abroad ALYSSA WONG (3L) The w inter semester is in full sw ing, and Jackman Hall is a litt le more crowded w ith the return of 48 U of T Law students from their fall semesters abroad. Follow ing tradition, Ultra Vires ( U V ) reached out to some returning students to gather insights into the pros and cons of their exchange exper iences. In response, U V received feedback from students who studied at the Centre for Transnational Legal Studies, the National Universit y of Singapore, Queen Mar y Universit y of London, Université Jean Moulin, the Universit y of Copenhagen, the Universit y of Geneva, the Universit y of Hong Kong, and the Universit y of New South Wales.

In general, students valued the opportunit y to explore other countr ies, take unique classes, and connect w ith new people from around the world. One common concern that comes up year after year is the cost of study ing abroad. Future exchange students are encouraged to apply for grants from the Centre for International Exper ience and to consider the cost of liv ing across dif ferent cities. A nother hurdle to note is the work associated w ith going on exchange, from completing v isa applications to selecting courses and work ing w ith the host universities’ administration. However, it seems that most of our students felt that their exchange exper iences were well worth the cost and ef fort!

ELOISE HIRST (3L) AND MEAZA DAMTE (3L)

Center for Transnational Legal Studies – London, UK Pros:

• It’s a breather from Jackman!

• Getting to live in another city and study

somewhere you never thought you’d have the opportunity to.

• Meeting new people and establishing an international network of friends.

• Access to courses that differ from anything

I’d get a chance to study at U of T (for example, Law of the Internal EU Market).

• Traveling on weekends for really cheap!

• Immersing yourself in a new culture and a new city.

Cons:

Continued on page 10

LONDON, UK. CREDIT: MO ZEIGHAMI

ALSO IN THIS ISSUE NAVIGATING THE MOOT COURT JOURNEY

RIGHTS REVIEW

THE ULTRA VIRES CROSSWORD

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Ultra Vires 84 Queen’s Park Crescent Toronto, ON M5S 2C5

Ultra Vires is the independent student newspaper of the University of Toronto Faculty of Law. We provide a forum for diverse viewpoints on topics of interest to our readers. We aim to foster dialogue on academic and social issues between students, the faculty, and the broader legal community in Toronto, Ontario, and Canada. Our content does not necessarily reflect the views of the Editorial Board. We print six issues per year. Ultra Vires is printed by Master Web Inc. EDITORS-IN-CHIEF Amy Kwong and Alyssa Wong BUSINESS MANAGER Manreet Brar ASSOCIATE BUSINESS MANAGER Jamie Oneschuk NEWS EDITORS Nicolas Williams and Abby Sasitharan ASSOCIATE NEWS EDITORS Leon Xu and Evan Squire FEATURES EDITORS Erin Lee and Julia Allen ASSOCIATE FEATURES EDITORS Asra Areej and Rachel Chen OPINIONS EDITORS Brianna Rowe and Jacqueline Ovsenek ASSOCIATE OPINIONS EDITORS Albert Cheng and Rosemary Fang DIVERSIONS EDITORS Fievel Lim and Christine Wang ASSOCIATE DIVERSIONS EDITOR Allie Silcoff PUZZLES EDITOR Ronan Mallovy ASSOCIATE PUZZLES EDITOR Mahnoor Noor RECRUIT EDITOR Rebekah Kim EDITOR-AT-LARGE Vivian Li ONLINE EDITOR Michael Chen STAFF WRITERS Taylor Rodrigues, Emily Sarah Hean, Shelby Hohmann, Olivia Schenk, and Mina Alam RECRUIT REPORTERS Sooyeon Park and Ammar Thaver VISUAL COORDINATOR Rachael Gregoris SOCIAL MEDIA COORDINATOR Olivia Bogner LAYOUT EDITOR Alexandra Fox ADVERTISING If you are interested in advertising, please email us at business@ultravires.ca ERRORS If you notice any errors, please email us at editor@ultravires.ca.

SUBMISSIONS If you would like to submit a tip, letter, or an article, please email us at editor@ultravires.ca.

Ultra Vires reserves the right to edit submissions.

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UV INDEX NEWS Students’ Law Society Update

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How Can Canada Tax the Data Giants?

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OPINIONS Were EDI Fridays Really the Best We Could Do?

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Time Tracking: A Strategy for Better Work-Life Balance in Law School and Beyond

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Why You Should Write for UV

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FEATURES U of T on Exchange: Escape from Jackman Hall

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Navigating the Moot Court Journey

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A Brief Guide to the 1L Job Search

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Meet the Animals of Animal Justice Club

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December and January in Music

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New Year, New You, New Drinks?

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Documentary Review: Tickled Jury in a Hurry: You Confide, We Decide!

Unos Métodos Para Aplicar Las Normas Internacionales de Derechos Humanos a Canadá

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IHRP Working Group: Women’s Human Rights Resources

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IHRP Working Group: The Venezuela Accountability Project

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IHRP Working Group: Gender Apartheid in Afghanistan

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PUZZLES The Ultra Vires Crossword

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KenKen

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Spiral Crossword

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Winter's End

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DIVERSIONS Intra Vires

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Room Booking Name Roundup

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New Year’s Resolutions for Law Students

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Hobbies, So You Can Stop Making Law School Your Whole Personality

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Student Completes Legal Ethics Course, Is Now Ethical

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Ultra Vires Presents: The Best of 2023!

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Be My Valentine?

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RIGHTS REVIEW Paths to Applying International Standards of Human Rights to Canada

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IHRP Working Group: Cameroon Anglophone Crisis Database of Atrocities

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LETTER FROM THE EDITORS Dear readers, Welcome back! School has started with a vengeance, and winter break already seems like a distant memory. But a new semester means new classes, new events, and most importantly, new issues of UV. Plus, the new semester marks the return of old friends, as students who were on exchange finally have their long-awaited homecoming to Jackman Hall (welcome back, Alyssa, Fievel, and Nic!).

Following our theme of renewal, in this month’s issue you’ll find new beer recommendations from the Craft Beer Club, a list of new year’s resolutions for law students, and new hobbies to try out outside of school (featuring a guest writer from Osgoode Hall Law School).

Also, this issue features some amazing Valentine’s Day cards illustrated by our very own Visual Coordinator, Rachael Gregoris. Feel free to clip these out and give them to your friends, lovers, and enemies. If you need more, you can always grab extra copi es of UV at our newsstands in the Atrium and on the first floor of Falconer throughout the month. Might we suggest pairing a card with a little treat, to relive the glory days of elementary-school paper valentines?

In 2024, we’ll be wishing UV a happy 25th anniversary with fun features, including interviews with former UV staff and callbacks to major events in UV history.

We have big things planned, and we’re excited to bring them to you this year!

As always, if you want to get involved with UV or just want to say hi, you can reach us at editor@ultravires.ca or @ultravires.ca on Instagram.

Merit is everything.

If you’re talented and do great work, we have a place for you.

Amy Kwong & Alyssa Wong Co-Editors-in-Chief Ultra Vires Vol. 25

dwpv.com/students CREDIT: RACHAEL GREGORIS

@daviesstudents

NEWS

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January 25, 2024 | 3

Students’ Law Society Update January edition JUSTIN KIM (3L) Congratulations on f inishing the f irst semester! It’s hard to believe that half the school year has already passed. I hope everyone was able to get some much needed rest over the holidays. The Students’ Law Society (SLS) would like to provide the following updates: Frost Week The Social and Finance Committee (SFC) has worked hard to put together a fantastic f irst week back. With cof fee, pizza, cup-

cakes, and winter cookies, we hope you were able to enjoy some yummy food and treats!

Club Funding Last semester, we exper imented w ith a new club funding system which required clubs to submit one funding request for all their Fall semester events by a certain date. With an early list of all the semester’s events, we hoped that we would be able to more ef f icient ly allocate funds. Prev iously,

the SLS has been conser vative w ith club funding to accommodate for events popping up dur ing the semester. However, after discussing w ith club leaders (and recognizing the log istical nightmare the new system brought), the SLS w ill revert back to allow ing clubs to request funding throughout the semester, as long as it is a minimum of 14 days before the event. Club leaders are always encouraged to prov ide feedback on how we could improve our funding policies.

Law Ball The SLS is excited to welcome you to the Old Mill Toronto Hotel on March 16th.

Law Ball is the biggest event of the year, and preparation has long been underway! This year, the theme is James Bond: Casino Royale. Tickets will be on sale later this month. Don’t forget to buy your tickets before they sell out!

How Can Canada Tax the Data Giants?

The James Hausman Tax Law and Policy Workshop returns TAYLOR RODRIGUES (3L) A llison Christians, the H. Heward Stikeman Chair in the Law of Taxation at McGill University, visited U of T on January 17, 2024, to kick of f the start of this year’s James Hausman Tax Law and Policy Workshop series. Her talk was titled, Taxing Data When the United States Disagrees. The talk built on her and Tarcísio Diniz Magalhães’s 2023 paper, “Why Data Giants Don’t Pay Enough Tax.” In the talk, Christians explained how there is a lower legal and geo-political risk for Canada to tax the data g iants through a special income tax than there is through an excise tax.

Data g iants are companies like Google, Facebook, A mazon, Apple, and Netf lix.

Their core value is in their data and platforms. They are usually headquartered in the U.S. and can operate in foreign countries with little to no physical presence.

Taxing data g iants is dif f icult for three main reasons. First, they often shift their prof its to low-tax countries by charg ing their foreign subsidiaries heft y intellectual propert y licensing fees. Second, they can have few or no assets and have employees physically located in foreign countries, yet they can still reach millions of consumers. Third, tax treaties limit how states can tax cor porations and often do not env ision the business model of data g iants.

Since the 1990s, global policymakers have been concerned about global tax competition creating a race to the bottom, eroding public revenues. Christians

believes that over the last several years, policymakers—often in Europe—have been preoccupied with taxing data g iants as a part of industrial policy.

The data g iants often have near monopolies or huge market shares. For example, Google essentially has a monopoly on internet advertising. Because of this, Google essentially controls how Canadian businesses can advertise on the Internet and causes Canadian businesses to send v irtually all of their Internet advertising dollars abroad.

Christians thinks many policymakers want to tax data g iants to keep some of their prof its in the countries where they are ef fectively “earned” and to make it easier for local start-ups to compete with the data g iants.

To date, most countries have attempted to tax the data g iants through excise taxes. For example, on Januar y 1, 2024, Canada implemented a Dig ital Ser v ices Tax ( DST ) of 3% on revenue earned from Canadian dig ital ser v ices over CA D$20 million. The DST only applies to taxpayers that had both CA D$20 million in revenue from Canadian dig ital ser v ices and €750 million in global revenue in the prev ious calendar year.

Unlike corporate income taxes, which are assessed on net income, a DST is an excise tax assessed on gross income (revenue).

Christians arg ued that many countries primarily chose to tax the data g iants v ia excise taxes because they believed their tax treaties prohibited them from imposing a special income tax on

data g iants.

She conceded that some tax treaties currently do prohibit countries from imposing an income tax targeted at U.S. data giants. However, she argued that many tax treaties, including the CanadaU.S. tax treaty, do not. Christians also pointed out that tax treaties can be amended.

Currently, tax g iants’ revenues are characterized as business income and subject to conventional cor porate income tax laws. However, Christians arg ued that the Canada-U.S. tax treat y entitles Canada to deem data g iants’ income as “other income” instead of “ business income.” This would allow Canada to impose a special tax on data g iants.

In the past, the U.S. imposed (and then later suspended) tarif fs on Austria, the UK, India, Italy, Spain, and Turkey in retaliation for them imposing a DST that negatively af fected U.S. data g iants.

Christians predicted similarly that the U.S. will retaliate against Canada’s DST by imposing tarif fs. Canada could appeal the “retaliator y” tarif fs to the World Trade Organization ( W TO).

However, that is a lengthy process and there is no g uarantee the U.S. would abide by a W TO decision.

Christians arg ued that the U.S. is less likely to retaliate against a special income tax on data g iants when compared to a DST. First, a special income tax on net income is less burdensome than a DST to high volume, low marg in businesses—which most U.S. data g iants are.

Second, she thinks that the dispute mechanisms under the Canada-U.S. tax treat y are more friendly to Canada than the W TO process.

In the discussion after her talk, Christians acknowledged that the U.S. might still impose retaliator y tarif fs after the imposition of a special income tax. The U.S. would have a weaker legal case in imposing retaliator y tarif fs to an income tax than an excise tax, but the U.S. often only follows the rules-based international order when it is convenient.

Ultimately, Christians concluded that geopolitical concerns, not legal ones, are the key barrier to taxing U.S. data giants.

Most tax giants are American and the U.S. wants to preserve their tax base and the global inf luence their data giants provide. Historically, the U.S. has not been afraid to ignore the law and f lex its economic might to protect its interests.

Nevertheless, Christians encouraged policymakers to be brave and tr y to tax data g iants to make sure they contribute to the countries they operate in. There is the possibilit y of the U.S. g iv ing these data g iants a corresponding tax credit for foreign DSTs, rather than starting a trade war. The more countries that impose a DST, the more costly it is for the U.S. to retaliate.

The next James Hausman Tax Law and Policy Workshop is 12:30 -1:45 pm on Wednesday, Januar y 31, 2024. Assistant Professor, Ror y Gillis, will be v isiting from Western Law to present. His topic has not yet been announced.

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OPINIONS

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Were EDI Fridays Really the Best We Could Do? Only genuine EDI integration will be effective SHELBY HOHMANN (2L) I am conf ident that (at least most of ) my peers would agree that equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI ) are important values for law students in today’s world. And while I think it is absolutely necessary for us to learn about EDI in law school, I worry that the way U of T Law has approached it in recent years risks has left bright-eyed and bushy-tailed 1Ls jaded towards the topic. While it’s perfectly acceptable for students to emerge from the ashes of 1L feeling resentful towards, say, property or tort law, this should not be the case for EDI. EDI sessions are sporadically held on Fridays. They focus on various topics such as Critical Race Theory, Feminism, and, for some reason, also Legal Research

and Writing? These sessions are mandatory for f irst-year students, but students do not receive any credit or certif ication for attending the sessions. Students who already don’t want to drag themselves into the law school on Fridays therefore have no further incentive to do so. The Faculty can purport that these sessions are mandatory all they want, but it is diff icult to see how they can enforce that without some sort of accountability mechanism to do so. From my personal observations, many students simply did not attend EDI sessions—an obvious problem that should be addressed.

That said, I think blaming those who fail to attend EDI sessions is misguided.

1Ls have packed daily schedules from

Monday to Thursday, with Fridays being the only weekday they have available to schedule in other important things, such as appointments (yes, believe it or not, law school is not the only thing we care about or have to worry about). Forcing students to come in on Fridays is especially unfair to commuter students who live outside of Toronto and have to travel for a signif icant time just to attend relatively short sessions. Newsf lash to the administration: not all of us live in Yorkville or the Annex! Unlike classes, each EDI session also seems to be scheduled at a different time. For example, in Fall 2023, the f irst session was from 9am to 12:30pm, the second was from 10am to 12:30pm, and the October 27 session was from

9:30am to 11:00am. The October 13 session was also postponed. These scheduling inconsistencies make it even harder to plan around EDI sessions Ultimately, the whole underly ing idea of EDI being separated into its own sort of course (without any credit) is problematic. If EDI is something we are to truly value and pursue throughout our careers, students would be better ser ved through the Facult y genuinely integrating it into each of our courses rather than siphoning it of f into separate Friday sessions that can be easily sk ipped. EDIrelated topics come up in many courses and they should be addressed head-on by professors when they do, not just left for g uest speakers.

Time Tracking: A Strategy for Better Work Life Balance in Law School and Beyond How I used time tracking to help understand and optimize my time allocation OLIVIA SCHENK (2L) Law school is a lot like treading water.

You have to give everything just to keep breathing while getting more exhausted as the semester progresses. Finishing exams feels like being tossed a life preserver, just to be thrown back in the deep end immediately when the next semester starts again. So how is one to manage their academics, social life, extracurriculars and most importantly, health, in this sort of environment? I believe the solution is understanding your personal limits and triaging your precious time accordingly. For me, I accomplished this through time tracking!

Learning your productivity limit will set you free It was hard to accept I cannot do it all, but nobody can. Everyone has their own limits. I found my personal limit for high-quality academic work to be about six hours per day. If I work more than six hours my attention and quality of returns plummets. At first, I found this number discouraging, but it is actually above average. Research has shown that most people can only fully focus for four to five hours per day. Statistically, your friend who claims to study ten hours every day is probably exaggerating.

I learned my productivity limit through time tracking. I kept a stopwatch running and recorded in spreadsheets the quality time I

spent doing work for each class each day. I did not include the hours I spent frustrated staring at the screen or scrolling through TikTok, only active quality work time. At first, your productivity may artificially increase when time tracking as you try to beat personal records, but if you average the results over a few weeks to months, they will be fairly representative. I believe time tracking is a worthwhile exercise for anyone serious about bettering their time management skills.

Learning my productivity limit was incredibly freeing. I now no longer set unreasonable goals and then beat myself up for not meeting them. The next step was allocating my new time blocks accordingly.

Schedule everything, even your free time I like to divide my work periods into 2-3 hour blocks throughout the day. Between these blocks, I fit everything else—time with friends, time for extracurriculars, and time for myself. At first, it may feel a little weird to pencil in a call with a friend or time to paint, but I personally found it a lot less overwhelming than unstructured time. However, if you prefer your free time unstructured, you can just block in ‘free’ periods!

Always set time-oriented goals, not taskoriented goals. A big mistake I made early in my post-secondary education was setting

task-oriented goals. For example, “I will finish the rough draft of my essay tonight.” This goal was problematic because tasks always took longer than I anticipated, and I would constantly feel like I was getting nothing done. Now, I instead set time-oriented goals.

For example, “I will work three hours on the rough draft of my essay tonight.” Time-oriented goals are always much more attainable.

Once you complete your period of high-quality focus, you get to guilt-free rest, recharge, and start again later!

Take care of yourself today to take care of yourself tomorrow I believe it is essential to allocate dedicated time to your mental well-being. After you block in mandatory classes and work periods, the next priority should be to allocate time to recharge your productivity batteries. How you recharge will be different for everyone.

Some people recharge by spending time with loved ones, pets, or alone. I personally find quality time with my family and going for walks particularly beneficial.

Taking quality time to protect and foster your mental health has a two-fold benefit: it increases your happiness and productivity. A literary review of thirty-eight studies by Oliveira et al. found clear evidence that poor mental health directly correlates with poor productivity. Why ruin your quality of life by

exceeding your limits when it only results in worse outcomes? Continually exceeding your limits is simply not worth it. Once you block out your schedule with mandatory work and high-priority personal time, you will be able to determine how much extra time you have for everything else.

Sustainable productivity is better for your mental health, relationships, and career.

Many of our peers in other disciplines will finish school and enter nine-to-five jobs. At these jobs, they will clock out at the end of the day and will not need to think about work again until clocking in the next day. Unfortunately, for those of us who want to be lawyers, this will not be our reality. Salary work means you will constantly feel pressure to put in more time. If we learn to set healthy limits in school, we will be more likely to foster and maintain these boundaries when we enter the workforce.

While techniques to foster better mental health like time tracking can be useful, please seek professional intervention when personal strategies become insufficient. I personally used the Mental Health Counsellor resource last summer when I became overwhelmed, and it was incredibly helpful. For this and other U of T Law wellness support services, please visit: https://www.law.utoronto.ca/ student-life/personal-support/health-andwell-being/health-and-wellness-law-school.

OPINIONS

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January 25, 2024 | 5

Why You Should Write for UV Seize the day, and make your mark on the law school AMY KWONG (3L) AND ALYSSA WONG (3L) As we enter our final semester of law school, we find ourselves increasingly maudlin. It’s our last four months at Jackman and possibly our last four months of school, ever. That also means it’s our last chance to do something remarkable at the law school (or make complete fools of ourselves). January’s already over, and with April reserved for exams, we basically only have two months left to be goofy.

If you’re in 3L, you might also be thinking something along the same lines. If you’re in 1L or 2L, the end of law school may seem unfathomable, but trust us, time will fly by, and soon you’ll find yourself in this very same position.

So how have we decided to make the most of our law school experience, in a way that is meaningful, memorable, and gives us a true sense of pride? Have we decided to excel academically, racking up course awards to post on LinkedIn? No. Have we attended numerous conferences to engage with professionals and find opportunities in specific fields of law? Not really. Have we Called-to-the-Bar’ed so hard that we’ve “laterally networked” with every possible future colleague who will graduate from U of T? No way.

No, far from those lofty goals, we’ve chosen to write for UV—an extra-curricular activity that started as a way to get our little jokes published and which has evolved into our very real passion for writing, reporting, and publication.

We write this article as members of UV who made their debuts in Diversions, writing silly articles to get laughs. It’s a great, low-stakes way to flex your creative muscles without needing to give it too much thought. And it’s a popular section! People read it for a little entertainment between (or during) classes, and it feels amazing to know that you’ve lightened up someone’s day. If you’re ever thinking of writing for UV, but you’re unsure about your capacity, we would recommend writing for Diversions for the best bang (clout) for your buck (effort).

Over time, we’ve broadened our horizons, writing for almost every section of UV. This has pushed us to try things that we never would have tried otherwise. Writing for News, we’ve attended cool events and done deep dives into current issues across Canada. Writing for Features, we’ve interviewed lawyers and talked at length about our common experiences in law school. Writing Opinions, we’ve voiced our thoughts and reflected on our own ~spicy~ takes. Writing for the Recruit Special, we’ve sorted through reams of data and statistics about legal recruiting. And although we haven’t made any Puzzles yet, we still have two issues to dip our toes in the water.

Every so often, members of UV write articles similar to this one, encouraging readers to write for UV. Sure, this is partially a function of UV’s monthly publication schedule. UV just always needs articles, and the time we’ve spent tracking down writers last-minute and stressed out about filling pages has probably taken years off our lives.

But, these recurring articles are also a reflection of how much our writers like writing for UV. It’s fun to write something that’s not a memo or a research paper, and meaningful to write about something you’re actually interested in. It’s exciting to see your name in the paper, knowing beyond U of T’s population, your work will be read by practitioners, other law students, and law school applicants. And if the grind is always on your mind, writing for UV can show off your writing chops and looks great on a resume.

UV is one of those institutions that many of us knew about even back when attending U of T Law was only a distant possibility. Writing for UV means joining an ever-growing community of UV alumni who have enabled this newspaper to survive, in some form or another, for the last 25 years. For each new volume of UV, there are dozens of people working behind the scenes to ensure that the U of T Law community gets to read six new issues each year.

LOOK HOW PROUD WE WERE, HOLDING OUR FIRST ISSUE! (ACTUALLY, ALYSSA WAS ON EXCHANGE, SO THIS IS A PHOTO OF US FROM OVER THE SUMMER, HOLDING THE PROGRAM FOR SIX . BUT WE WERE DEFINITELY THINKING ABOUT UV EVEN THEN!) CREDIT: AMY KWONG

It’s easy to assume that there will always be someone else who will write an article instead, or that your idea isn’t important enough, or that UV will continue on no matter what—but this isn’t true. Every article in the UV archive, from hardhitting investigations to little jokes, reveals something about the U of T Law of years past. How else will we discuss important issues that affect us as a student community, like LSO changes or (even more) tuition increases? How else will we remember the legacy of Goodmans Cafe or chronicle the rise (and possible fall) of our many student clubs?

We’ve heard many students express that they want to write for UV before they graduate, but many never do, putting it off until “next month” until there are no more “next” months. When the

March issue of their 3L year comes around, they’re scrambling and regretting that they hadn’t put something together earlier. With two issues left in Volume 25, this is your chance to scramble to put something together now.

If you’re on the fence about writing, reach out to us! Feel free to attend our monthly pitch meetings, which are announced on our Contributors Facebook group, open to all U of T Law students. You don’t need to have an idea to attend—there are always exciting, newsworthy events at the law school, and we always have article ideas (and pizza) ready to go. You can reach out via email to editor@ultravires.ca, or find us on Instagram at @ultravires.ca. We look forward to hearing from you!

FEATURES

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Navigating the Moot Court Journey An overview for 1Ls CHRISTINE WANG (3L JD/MBA) Have you ever seen a clip of lawyers making an incredible oral submission in court and wished you could emulate them? Have you seen Suits and thought you could do better than Mike Ross in court? Or have you played Ace Attorney and wondered if you’re actually supposed to make submissions like that? Look no further, because the 1L mooting opportunities are for you!

Just kidding! But seriously. This author knows that embarking on your f irst year of law school has been both exhilarating and tiring. However, for those interested in honing their advocacy skills, participating in the upcoming moot court tryouts and subsequent competitions can be an invaluable addition to your 1L experience. For those not familiar with mooting, the competition is a platform for students to develop their legal research (particularly in the upper-year competitive moots), oral advocacy, and teamwork abilities within the context of an appellate court. Whether you are participating in the Hamish Stewart Cup or the Cassels Brock Cup (commonly known as the Baby Gale), you will have the opportunity to take on a challenging Supreme Court of Canada decision–typically on a criminal law topic–and argue it further at a mythical, even-higher-level appellate court.

Why you should be interested As mentioned, mooting is a great opportunity to hone your legal analysis skills.

The crux of any moot problem is a complex

legal question—one with no “right” answer. By working through these problems with your partner and moot coach, you will develop practical analytical skills that extend beyond just working out the reasoning on LRW cases—you can work on coming up with novel arguments from scratch and practice pulling from individual trial judgment paragraphs to develop a compelling narrative. While U of T’s 1L moots do not require students to draft their own facta, the experience of being able to work through contentious legal questions, bouncing ideas off of your peers, and presenting your carefully crafted statements in a grand, f inal competition in front of real judges and lawyers is truly an invaluable learning experience that you can’t get anywhere else.

Beyond the immensely valuable practical skills mooting gives you, mooting is also a great conversation point in interviews. It demonstrates your interest in advocacy—a trait that many well-known litigation f irms (that participate in 2L OCIs!) look for when deciding which students to interview. Furthermore, being on a moot team is a fairly signif icant achievement in the United States. This means that if you are interested in New York, having a competitive mooting experience on your resume will make you a more competitive candidate.

Tips for getting started in mooting At the 1L level (and in many 2L moots too), you’re not expected to know anything, so

don’t fret! Most students actually come into tryouts with little to no public speaking experience whatsoever. As such, here’s a list of some general tips that Ultra Vires has compiled to help you succeed in your tryouts and your actual competition!

1. Have Confidence: A lot of mooting (like interviews) lies in the optics of your performance. If you seem in control, your arguments will also appear more persuasive. Having conf idence also typically makes you speak slower, have a stable tone, and maintain effective eye contact—all of which can improve your delivery.

2. Prepare Thoroughly: Of course, conf idence will also stem from feeling (and being) thoroughly prepared. When you have developed a comprehensive understanding of the relevant facts, supporting case law, statutes, and legal principles, you’ll be able to craft a compelling submission for your party. This includes knowing and working around your own arguments’ weaknesses!

3. Organize Your Submissions: Many of your future audiences (including your peers, practicing lawyers, and judges) will not have a thorough understanding of the subject matter at the outset of your submissions. This means that, to guide your audience to the conclusion that you would like them to reach, your submissions should follow a clear structure. Your submissions

should always begin with a clear introduction and roadmap that outlines your key points, followed by well-organized bodies that go through your main points one at a time. Finally, conclude with a concise summary that reinforces and brief ly reminds the court of your main arguments.

4. Respond Effectively to Questions: The hallmark of mooting is the fact that judges will frequently interrupt you (often mid-sentence) to ask questions. Given the great number of questions that you will receive, you must be prepared to address them with all the relevant facts, case law, and statutes in tow. Be ready to concede on any valid points that the judges might raise in opposition to your submission and provide them with a “Yes, but…” response that demonstrates the ultimate superiority of your position. Treat these questions as a conversation that you are having with the judge, and use them as valuable opportunities to guide your judge to the conclusion that you are looking for.

5. Seek Feedback and Learn from Experience: After every submission, seek constructive feedback from your peers, the presiding lawyers, and judges. Use this feedback to identify areas for improvement and ref ine your presentation skills. You should treat each experience as a valuable learning opportunity, each of which will help you razzle dazzle your way through that upper-year moot requirement!

A Brief Guide to the 1L Job Search Common options for 1L summer CHRISTINE WANG (3L JD/MBA) AND AMY KWONG (3L) If you’re in 1L, you may be starting to make plans for your upcoming summer.

While many students spend their summers on some well-deserved relaxation, work at non-legal jobs, or travel, other students use 1L summer as a chance to add some legal work experience to their resumes. If you are a 1L student considering the former, you’ll have a fantastic summer experience!

If you are a 1L student considering the latter, read on for a brief overview of the job opportunities available to you.

1L Recruit The 1L recruit, or the 1L Bay Street recruit, is the formal recruiting process for a number of the large corporate law f irms on Bay Street, as well as a number of smaller corporate, insurance, and litigation f irms, and the Ministry of the Attorney General (MAG). Applications are collected through viPortal, and successful students are extended an interview that typically takes place over the February

reading week. The Career Development Off ice (CDO) has many resources on this recruit if you are interested.

It’s most important to keep in mind that you are extremely unlikely to get a job from this recruit. Although this sounds disheartening, this is in many ways a gift because the stakes are low and no one truly expects to land a 1L recruit job. Consider this recruit merely as a good opportunity to ref lect on your career goals and get a head start on your application materials.

This formal recruiting process is by far the most competitive law recruit in your career. Very few f irms formally hire 1L students to begin with, and even when they do, they hire very few. In this recruit, you are competing with every other school in Canada (including the nine law schools in Ontario alone, who all have a valid claim to work on Bay Street or with the Ontario MAG) for approximately 5-15 available positions at each f irm. This means that, of a few hundred applications

received by these f irms, only a few dozen students get an interview, and only a few of those interviewed students are ultimately extended an offer. For some of the smaller f irms, there may be only one available offer. This means that the vast majority of students who participate in this recruit— even those with stellar grades—will not receive any interview invites. This is a far cry from the situation in 2L, where signif icantly more f irms participate and hire the majority of their summer class.

Since LSSEP is not open to students from other law schools, it is less competitive than the 1L recruit, but this is not an easy process either. Most LSSEP positions have only a maximum of 15 interview spots for every position, and will ultimately select between 1-5 students out of those interviews. However, sometimes additional positions open up unexpectedly—we have heard of students scoring positions through LSSEP as late as the f irst week of May.

Law School Summer Employment Program (LSSEP) LSSEP is run by the law school to employ U of T students. Available positions are varied, including positions like summer camp co-ordinators, LSAT tutors, casebook researchers, start-up project managers, and in-house counsel interns.

Students submit their applications through the UTLC website, with interviews happening from late February to early March.

Research assistant positions Every summer, professors at our Faculty hire research assistants to help with their own research or prep for next year’s classes. Some professors may even hire up to a dozen students, depending on their individual needs. Professors will post advertisements on the UTLC on a rolling basis, especially as we progress into February and March. Alternatively, even if a professor is not formally hiring, many previous

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ultravires.ca 1Ls have gotten summer positions by just reaching out to a professor and asking if they have any available opportunities for the summer.

These are fantastic positions that translate very well into your future interviews, since you can talk about your specif ic research and how you assisted in the drafting of Very Important™ documents. It’s also a great opportunity to explore a specif ic f ield of law that interests you, all while building a personal rapport with a professor in case you need a reference letter later.

Finding your own opportunities in the legal f ield Outside of the Faculty and its formal recruits, there is always the option of networking with lawyers, firms, and other law-adjacent personnel with whom you have connected during the school year. Whether you’ve talked to a speaker at a panel or really vibed with the practicing lawyer who taught your LRW course, you’ve been networking all throughout 1L, even if you didn’t label it as such at the time. These connections are all valuable pathways that you can—and should—leverage.

Fi na l Thoughts Your 1L oppor tunit y w i l l not sig nif icant ly impact your 2L recr uit ing success, nor w i l l it place you at a sig nif icant d isadvantage for your overa l l career. W hi le it is tr ue t hat hav ing a prominent f ir m or professor’s name on your resume w i l l bolster your chances at receiv ing 2L inter v iew of fers, not having t hose oppor tunit ies w i l l a lso not preclude you from gett ing a desirable 2L job.

You shou ldn’t feel compel led to work in a 1L posit ion, if t hat isn’t your cup of

January 25, 2024 | 7 tea. Being able to spend your summer doing somet hing meaning fu l and not work-related is just as va l id. A nd if it’s of any considerat ion, unique 1L summer ex per iences can st i l l ma ke for a g reat conversat ion in your future inter v iews.

Travel t he world! Become an Instag ram inf luencer! L aunch a cr y pto exchange! In t he g rand scheme of t hings, four mont hs of summer vacat ion after 1L is merely a bl ip in t he t imel ine, no matter what you end up doing. Seize t he day and ma ke sure you end up w it h what’s best for you.

Meet the Animals of Animal Justice Club Animal Justice Club execs share how their animal companions have had a huge impact on their life OLIVIA SCHENK (2L), LISA SCHOLTZ (1L), FATEH HAYER (2L), AND EMILY SARAH HEAN (3L)

PRINGLES. CREDIT: OLIVIA SCHENK

EMMA. CREDIT: LISA SCHOLTZ

ZEUS. CREDIT: FATEH HAYER

PHOEBE AND RAMONA. CREDIT: EMILY SARAH HEAN

One thing all Animal Justice Club members have in common is the huge impact animals have had on our lives. This article introduces our club executives’ furry companions and how they have impacted our lives. At the end of the article, there are resources if you, dear reader, have considered bringing an animal into your family.

with the important question of what rights animals should have and how to move society to a more just relationship with other sentient beings.

Zeus - Fateh Hayer (2L Rep) Zeus was barely two days old when I saw him, and I immediately knew that he was going to be a part of my family. Two years have gone by, and his unconditional love has not dwindled in the slightest. It has always fascinated me how animals have the ability to communicate love despite not being able to speak to us.

However, as we start picking up indicative pet behaviours to decipher what they seek at that moment, we end up overestimating their ability to communicate and advocate for themselves. We overlook the fact that animals in the wild, on the streets, and in shelters do not have similar human interactions. On the contrary, our coexistence with them has been burdensome, dangerous, and even lethal for them rather than us.

In every animal out there, I see a Zeus, who is like a child to me. If I would not let that happen to Zeus, why would I allow it to happen to his kind?

I chose Animal Justice along with other nemeses of animal cruelty to bridge the gap between rights afforded to humans and animals. I hope to increase animal voice and representation, especially in law and politics.

couldn’t stand leaving Phoebe alone, leading me to adopt a seven-month-old maine coon, Ramona, just two weeks after Phoebe’s first birthday.

My girls are my best friends. They sit with me while I study and write papers, play with me when I need to take breaks, and wake me up with little kisses on my nose when I’ve slept past my alarm. Without Phoebe and Ramona, I can’t imagine how I would’ve gotten through law school.

The love I have for my girls inspires me to continue to fight for animal rights as this year's Animal Justice president, and I look forward to carrying what I've learned into my future career and expanding what animal rights look like in Canada.

Pringles - Olivia Schenk (Vice President) I met Pringles as a kitten at a humane society.

I immediately fell in love with his quirky personality and facial markings that make him constantly look like he is smirking. Pringles is five years old now, and we have been through a lot together.

Pringles can always tell when I am having a difficult day. He is not a particularly cuddly cat, but he will always become extra affectionate and lay with me when I am upset. Animals are incredibly sensitive to our emotions. Pringles’ kindness to me has inspired me to be kinder to other people and animals alike. Pringles has had several health scares. For example, he had a urinary blockage two years ago and almost died. I did not realize how much Pringles really meant to me until I almost lost him. I realized that we both take care of each other.

My time with Pringles and other animals has really challenged my perception of animals. I grew up in a rural farming community where the objectification of animals was deeply normalized to me. Animal Justice Club has been a great opportunity to challenge my assumptions and engage

Emma - Lisa Scholtz (1L Rep) When I was ten years old, my parents adopted a goldendoodle named Emma, a former breeding dog. Once she lost the ability to have puppies, Emma was abandoned at an animal shelter—the shelter informed us this was a common fate for former breeding dogs. When we picked her up, it was clear that she had endured horrible living conditions during her breeding years; Emma was severely emaciated, had welts all over her body from physical abuse, and her hair was matted to the point that it was ripping her skin.

Apart from her physical injuries, Emma’s abuse had left her traumatized. The first few months she lived with my family, she was absolutely terrified of us, jumped at any movement or sound, and spent most of her time cowering in the corner. After many months of healing and living in a safe environment, we witnessed Emma transform into a happy and playful dog.

Emma was the first animal I ever encountered that had experienced abuse or poor living conditions. Seeing the toll it took on her led me to consider, for the first time, the abuse that so many animals go through, the impacts of that abuse, and the multitude of industries in which this occurs. I joined Animal Justice because I care about improving the lives of the millions of animals that face conditions that are similar—and far worse—than the ones Emma faced.

Phoebe and Ramona - Emily Sarah Hean (President) My two cats have been the greatest blessing of my law school journey. I got Phoebe, a two-monthold calico full of curiosity and cuddles, on the second day of my 1L summer job, and she spent the entire summer sitting on the windowsill of my office while I wrote research memos and attended hearings on Zoom. When I started school again, I

Adopt, don’t shop Interested in welcoming your own furry companion to the family? Consider adoption! In Canadian SPCAs and Humane Societies, there were 30,000 dogs and 61,000 cats admitted to shelters in 2021 alone.

These staggering statistics do not include the additional homeless animals in private shelters and rescues or internationally.

When you adopt, you save an animal.

When you shop, you encourage the creation of more animals when there are already more animals than available homes for them. For information on whether adoption is the right f it for you and where to f ind adoptable animals in the city please see: https://w w w.toronto.ca/community-people/animals-pets/adopt-a-pet/.

FEATURES

8 | January 25, 2024

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December and January in Music

A whirlwind recount of all of the musical releases in the last two months EMILY SARAH HEAN (3L) Welcome back to the Faculty, fellow music lovers. This is a super-special round-up of all the big releases in music over the last two months. Given that it was the holiday season, there were fewer big pop moments than usual, but there were still some great gems in December and January.

December started off with a bang with the highly anticipated Renaissance: A Film by Beyoncé that came out on the 1st. The film received glowing reviews from both fans and critics around the globe as it arrived in theatres. Contrary to Taylor Swift’s The Eras Tour film, this movie looks at both on-stage performances and behind-the-scenes moments, giving fans greater insight into how Beyoncé and her team put on a show of this scale.

The following Friday, the 8th, was a big one for pop music releases. Nicki Minaj's Pink Friday 2 and Tate McRae's Think Later were

released, delighting fans who were (im)patiently waiting for new music. The two albums both did very well, with many praising McRae in particular for beating the sophomore slump that so many artists fall into.

On the same day, Guns N’ Roses released a new single titled “The General,” originally written for Chinese Democracy—something which is immediately apparent to even casual Guns fans due to the distinctive sound from that era.

The final big release of the month came on the 20th, when Ryan Gosling released Ken the EP. This iconic EP includes the original beloved song “I’m Just Ken,” as well as three others, one of them a Christmas song!

In early January, Paramore made headlines by clearing their socials and cancelling their first live appearance of 2024. The fandom was divided between those worrying the band was breaking up and others reasoning

RENAISSANCE: A FILM BY BEYONCÉ . CREDIT: SCREEN RANT

that it was due to the end of their contract.

Paramore has since cancelled their appearance at Lollapalooza Brazil, sparking more rumours and concern among fans who are looking forward to seeing them open for the European leg of Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour.

Arianators have been very excited for Ariana Grande to announce the title of her next album, launching a new era. She released its first single, “Yes, And?” on the 12th. She announced her seventh studio album Eternal Sunshine on the 17th.

New releases were a bit of a slow burn this month, but the 19th saw a plethora of them.

First, Green Day released their new album Saviors. A week earlier—Saturday the 13th— local record store Sonic Boom hosted an early listening party that was very well attended. The band goes on tour this year to promote the new album, though they promise to also play some old fan favourites.

On the 19th, “No Caller ID” by Megan Moroney was also released. The song was highly anticipated by fans who first heard it during the Lucky Tour, and it very quickly shot up the charts, showing how Moroney will continue to rise in popularity in 2024.

Lastly, Dolly Parton, who turned 78 on the 19th, gave a birthday gift to her fans by releasing Rockstar Deluxe, with four new songs and some new covers that didn’t make it onto Rockstar.

2024 has kicked off to a great start for music, and January was only the beginning.

The Grammys are set to take place at the beginning of February, featuring confirmed performances by Olivia Rodrigo, Dua Lipa, and Billie Eilish Later that month, the Eras Tour will return, and on the 23rd, Olivia Rodrigo takes the stage to kick off the GUTS Tour.

Until next month, happy listening!

PINK FRIDAY 2 BY NICKI MINAJ. CREDIT: NICKI MINAJ

THINK LATER BY TATE MCRAE. CREDIT: SPOTIFY

KEN THE EP BY RYAN GOSLING. CREDIT: ATLANTIC RECORDS

ETERNAL SUNSHINE BY ARIANA GRANDE. CREDIT: GRAMMY

SAVIORS BY GREEN DAY. CREDIT: SPOTIFY

ROCKSTAR (DELUXE) BY DOLLY PARTON. CREDIT: SPOTIFY

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January 25, 2024 | 9

New Year, New You, New Drinks?

Try healthier beverages this January while keeping the party going ABBEY BUTLER (3L)

SLEEMAN CLEAR 2.0. CREDIT: LIQUOR CONTROL BOARD OF ONTARIO

CORONA SUNBREW. CREDIT: UPSIDE DRINKS

GUAVA GOSE. CREDIT: COLLECTIVE ARTS BREWERY

COTTAGE SPRINGS VODKA WATER. CREDIT: COTTAGE SPRINGS

Many of us make New Year’s Resolutions about our health—to lose weight, drink less, and become healthier versions of ourselves. Some people make strict, short-term lifestyle changes, such as embarking on “Dry January,” which is truly a valiant quest for those who are committed enough to go an entire month without drinking. Then again, I have many former colleagues who opted to skip the pubs in January 2020 and lived to thoroughly regret it…

If you ask me, lofty ideals regarding physical health should never take complete precedence over having fun. Here are some of my best tips for having responsible January fun without giving up drinking entirely.

sweet-and-tart Guava Gose from Collective Arts.

What if you wanted to keep the alcohol while reducing the impact on your waistline? The infamous Cottage Springs Vodka Water is a hero in the canned cocktail category. Fellow Craft Beer Club member Alex Foulger-Fort describes this one as the “skinny [expletive] drink.” Okay, vodka waters may be slightly less childish than Palm Bays—but at least you’re cutting out all the sugar. Available in several mild flavours with only 100 calories per can, no carbonation, no sugar/sweetener, and no carbohydrates, this option may be a welcome addition to your New Year’s diet plan. Plus, at 5% APV, you aren’t sacrificing alcohol content compared to your average beer.

Play around with different flavours by switching up the kind of sparkling water you use. Lime or lemon juice is essential for a homemade vodka soda. Flavour your cocktails with fresh herbs (rosemary, thyme, mint, or lemon balm), muddled fruit (raspberries or blackberries), or a hint of spice (a few dashes of hot sauce). Make it fun by garnishing your drink with a long cucumber ribbon or a piece of fruit cut into a cute shape.

You can even play around with infusing different flavours directly into your hard alcohol. Make your own jalapeno-infused vodka by combining ordinary vodka with jalapeno slices in a jar. Shake up the jar, then allow the mixture to sit. The longer it sits, the spicier your vodka will be—wait around one hour for just a hint of jalapeno, or 24 hours if you’re feeling spicy. Strain the vodka before serving. Using spice in your drinks allows you to imbue strong flavours that mask the taste of the liquor without adding lots of sugar or carbs. If you aren’t a spice person, you can infuse with botanicals such as hibiscus, chamomile, strawberry, or coconut instead.

Experiment by making lighter versions of traditional cocktails. For example, while a traditional margarita is high in sugar and salt, you can make a healthier version with tequila, lime, coconut-flavoured sparkling water, ice, and a lit-

tle umbrella.

A Bloody Mary is another excellent Cocktail for Health™. This drink includes vodka, tomato juice as the mixer, hot sauce, Worcestershire sauce (regular or vegan), salt, and pepper. If the tomato juice isn’t enough for you, add even more veggies by garnishing with celery, pickles, and/or stuffed olives. This veggie-heavy, low-calorie drink is basically a balanced brunch.

Beers and Canned Cocktails If you don’t want to give up the taste of beer but are okay with reducing or eliminating the alcohol content, many options are available. Most mainstream beer brands have a low-calorie light or non-alcoholic option (e.g., Sleeman Clear 2.0), but I can’t promise it will taste good. On the other hand, I’ve heard good things about Corona Sunbrew, a non-alcoholic beer with only 60 calories per bottle. It also has added Vitamin D to help keep away the January Depressos™. Many craft breweries offer non-alcoholic options with more exciting flavour profiles, such as the

Homemade Cocktails Homemade cocktails are a great option because you can tailor the healthiness of the drink, the flavour, and the alcohol strength to your liking. Alcohol contains seven calories per gram, so it’s really hard to cut calories without reducing the alcohol’s strength. However, you can still make a drink healthier by altering what you mix your hard alcohol with. Go for mixed drinks with lower-calorie or lower-sugar mixers (e.g., use soda water instead of tonic water; use a diluted fruit juice instead of pop).

Other Ideas How else can you meet your health goals this year? One way is to combine your drink of choice with vigorous dancing—burn off the calories while getting your cardio in. Sprinting home from the bar instead of calling an Uber is another quality suggestion, courtesy of Craft Beer Club co-president Jeremy Jingwei. You could also have a great night by skipping the drinking altogether and smoking a J instead.

Feel great, without the liver damage. Beware of the munchies though; plan ahead by preparing a healthy (but tasty!) snack. Maybe a poutine with homemade fries and mushroom gravy?

Don’t forget that in life, everything is good in moderation. Your physical health is important, but so is your social and emotional health. Don’t let a Dry- (or Semi-Dry) January keep you from the party!

Documentary Review: Tickled This movie really tickled my fancy JACQUELINE OVSENEK (3L) New year, new you. You’ve probably read enough articles this January about starting the new year on the right foot.

Well, don’t worry. This is not that. Instead, I suggest you start this new year off with Tickled. After watching, you may f ind that the only way to go from there is up.

That’s not to say that Tickled isn’t a great documentary. It is. It’s full of suspense and intrigue. At its core, it’s a true crime documentary. The subject matter is just slightly different from your average true crime doc. It’s about underground tickling rings across the United States and the mystery surrounding how they operate.

Technically, the term is “Competitive Endurance Tickling.” If that sounds weird, it’s because it is. It is not my intention to shame anyone for what they like, but I never realized that people had sexual interest in seeing people restrained and tickled. I only understood tickling as activating f ight or f light—I always pick f light or peeing my pants—so Tickled was really eye-

opening.

Tickled starts with David Farrier discovering tickling videos online (think young men in sports uniforms tickling their restrained teammate). Like many of us, he f inds it intriguing and decides to reach out. Rather than a response acknowledging the silliness of the situation, he receives a threatening and homophobic response—the masterminds behind competitive endurance tickling aren’t all fun and games.

Naturally, the letter only increases Farrier’s interest in the subject. Over the course of the documentary, the story unwinds. There are visits from representatives of tickle HQ (that’s not what it’s called, but if you can imagine Monsanto for tickling then you’ve got the gist) and there’s a look at our competitive endurance ticklers themselves. Seeing the impact on the ticklers is the most heartbreaking part of Tickled. Many young men were blackmailed for their part in the tickling

videos. “Tickle Cells” exist across America, and there’s no way I would have known that without Tickled.

I don’t want to spoil Tickled—it is best viewed with unprepared eyes. But I will give a few warnings. First, this may not be the best documentary to view with coworkers. If you suggest this, they will think you’re weird (which, in my case, they would be correct). For similar reasons, this may also not be a great idea for family movie night. That said, it really depends on your family dynamic. If you really want to watch Tickled and you’ve got “f ilm” friends (people who call movies f ilms unironically), just tell them it screened at Sundance.

Unfortunately, Tickled is not streaming, so readers may f ind this to be a waste of a review. However, it is easily available for rent. If anything in this article has piqued your interest, I highly recommend viewing the trailer. Start the term off right and educate yourselves.

CREDIT: IMDB

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10 | January 25, 2024

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U of T on Exchange Continued from page 1

SINGAPORE. PHOTOS: NICOLAS WILLIAMS

Center for Transnational Legal Studies – London, UK Continued

• Myths aside, NUS can be quite a relaxed

Cons:

Cons:

• I had to take way more credits than the other

• NUS does not guarantee on-campus housing,

students because U of T required it.

• I had to take more credits the following

semester (Winter semester) than I thought (because U of T requires you to take 14 credits the semester after your exchange) even though they required me to take 15 credits on exchange.

National University of Singapore (NUS) – Singapore Pros:

• Singapore is an amazing city to live in, and a

really comfortable one to adjust to at that. It is also very central, making it easy to visit lots of different countries around Southeast Asia or beyond.

• Travelling is really cheap! Flights with Scoot and other budget airlines are relatively affordable, but where you will really save money is on accommodation, food, and drinks.

school academically—certainly more than U of T Law.

and the housing that is on offer is a little far from the law campus and downtown. On the other hand, finding housing off-campus on the other hand can be quite a challenge.

• Singapore is not a cheap place to live,

especially if you are going out for food and drinks, shopping or seeing the sights. It’s sometimes cheaper to leave town for the weekend than to stay in the city.

registration and course selection process: it is very unlikely the school will remind you of anything.

• When it comes to food, make use of the

hawker centres. It will often be cheaper to eat there than to cook at home.

Queen Mary University of London – London, England Pros:

• Easy to manage schedule—many of us only

had classes one day a week leaving the rest of the week for travelling!

UK for less than 6 months.

• There are lots of parks and free museums to explore, so you’ll never be bored in the city.

• There are lots of food markets with a variety

of different cuisines, so you’ll always find whatever you are craving.

Cons:

• The school administration is a bit all over the place. For example, we were asked to choose our courses before the class schedules were released. A bunch of people had to rearrange their schedules as a result of conflicts after the fact.

• While

• London has multiple airports so you can be

• Living in London is very expensive, so be

Tips:

• The National Railway is very robust so you

• The UK is outside of the Schengen Area, so it

dealing with the Singaporean government is relatively efficient, dealing with the NUS bureaucracy is not.

• When it comes to course selection, it is

possible to stack your classes so you only have a few days of class (I only had two) a week.

You can also use NUSMods to check evaluation methods: there are lots of classes without in-person exams, meaning you will be done with school in mid-November.

• Stay on top of NUS deadlines throughout the

sure to find direct flights to most places. This makes travelling easier (less connections). can easily travel to other parts of England.

• Living on campus is significantly more

affordable than finding your own place off campus—but the downside is the school really waited until the last minute to confirm our rooms, which can be a bit nerve-wracking when you’re not sure if you’ll have a home to live in a month before you move!

• No visa required for students studying in the

prepared (except groceries are relatively cheap so that’s a plus!) can be a bit annoying having to go through passport control in EU countries.

Tips:

• If you’re living on the Mile End campus, you can take the National Express airport bus to Stansted Airport. It takes only about an hour door-to-door and no transfers needed!

• Things in London are expensive, but many

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January 25, 2024 | 11

places offer student discounts so look out for those.

Université Jean Moulin – Lyon, France Pros:

• Lyon is like a miniature Paris but warmer, less busy, and much more affordable.

• You 100% do not need to speak French to get by in Lyon.

• You will be placed in an LLM program (no

undergrads!) made up of only exchange students—most of whom are keen to make friends and find travel buddies.

• You get 2 weeks off during the semester and can opt to write a research paper to get another 2–3 weeks off.

• Housing is easy to find and affordable compared to Toronto.

• You can fly or take the train to most major

European cities from Lyon, or you can take a short train directly to Charles de Gaulle in Paris if need be.

Cons:

• Each class lasts a week and includes a paper

due on the Sunday (although the papers were short, basic, and could be submitted remotely).

• The LLM program’s admin is highly unresponsive.

• Registration was not a fun time.

Tips:

• The law school is not on or anywhere near to

the main campus. It is located in another building at 15 quai claude Bernard.

• If you can afford it, I would recommend renting an Airbnb somewhere on Presqu'île

LYON, FRANCE. PHOTOS: GENEVIEVE SIMMONS

and ideally in the 1 arrondissement—it has the best cafes, bars, and restaurants. er

• Make sure you don’t leave until after La Fête des Lumières in December.

University of Copenhagen (KU) – Copenhagen, Denmark Pros:

• It is one of the cleanest and safest cities in the world.

• It is exceptionally easy to get around on public

transportation, by bike, or walking. The city is so small. I rented a bike for a relatively decent price (I think almost half the population cycles in their daily commute, and the bike lanes are really safe and welldesigned).

• The classes were laid back and accessible; I took two international courses that were taught in English, giving me 30 ECTS credits which translates to 14 U of T Law credits.

Each class only had a 100% final paper, which I was able to do over the break before U of T started again.

• If you take 30 ECTS credits with two classes,

there is a two-week reading break in the middle of October which was great for travel!

• Great cultural activities to get into, such as

cafe culture and daily swimming in the harbours!

• Amazing shopping (mostly flea markets and local brands), and excellent cafes.

• Residence options are all fantastic and living

COPENHAGEN, DENMARK. PHOTOS: ARLY ABRAMSON

at Basecamp City could not have been more perfect for cleanliness, social vibes, and location (although it was really annoying to navigate the system through the Housing Foundation, which you are assigned to by the

school).

• Danish people were friendly and spoke great

English. There was a laid back atmosphere, and it was not too congested for a capital city (Denmark is one of the happiest countries in the world).

• Once you have your visa as a student, you can eventually get free healthcare in Copenhagen—and the healthcare system is amazing.

• Copenhagen overall, and especially the KU Law campus, is very beautiful.

• There was a big contingent of us that went this year, so there are many people available to help navigate the process and give recommendations!

Cons:

• It is windy and rainy (but the weather was really nice and sunny/warm up until mid-October).

• It gets dark very early after the time changes in

October (earlier than Toronto, if you can believe it).

• It’s more expensive to fly out of Copenhagen

than it is from some other cities in Europe, which could limit travel to certain areas sometimes (we did great exploring of Scandinavia and it is so easy and cheap to get to Sweden by train!)

• It is very expensive to live in Copenhagen—you

could end up paying $30CAD for a meal you would pay half the price for in Toronto, which was annoying. The groceries were relatively affordable, though, and there were cheaper (and healthy) options for food on campus (which was great for when I had class). The high cost of living is definitely the biggest con, in my opinion.

• The cuisine is not very diverse, and neither is the population.

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12 | January 25, 2024

• The visa to study there is pretty expensive and was a pain of a process to get.

University of Geneva – Geneva, Switzerland Pros:

• Geneva is a beautiful city! Geneva is located

on the lake, surrounded by mountains, and filled with charming old buildings. The city is incredibly clean and has plenty of green space. It is also not densely populated and so can be a nice change of pace to what we are used to in Toronto.

• The University of Geneva offers a Certificate

in Transnational Law which can be completed during a single semester while taking a normal course load on exchange. Getting to end your exchange with an additional certificate is definitely a benefit of choosing this option.

• Geneva has four subway lines, frequent buses

and trams, a central train station with many options to get to France and other parts of Switzerland, and a busy international airport.

Getting around Geneva is very easy.

Additionally, you can get almost anywhere you need to go on foot if you don’t mind walking.

• Geneva is a very safe city to live in. Crime is

rare, and you can confidently walk alone through almost any part of the city. I was never worried for my safety during my stay and didn’t even need to worry about pickpockets (a problem in much of Europe).

• Geneva is incredibly welcoming to foreigners.

40% of the city’s residents are foreign, and University of Geneva classes are filled with exchange students and international students from around the globe. The University has an

office dedicated to supporting international students, and professors are used to accommodating students from abroad.

• The University of Geneva provides housing

at Cité Universitaire, a four-building residence complex for international students.

While the accommodations at Cité are more akin to undergrad residences than apartments (I shared bathrooms and a kitchen with my floor of 16 students), it provides affordable housing security in a city plagued by a housing shortage.

Cons:

• Geneva is an incredibly expensive city. I

would see groceries and think it was on the more expensive end of what was acceptable, then I would remember the prices were in Swiss Francs (roughly 1.5x CAD). While U of T provides bursaries to offset some of the cost of living, it is one of the most expensive exchange options you could choose.

need to answer your prepared questions and anything else they wish to ask you. This process can be nerve-wracking but is somewhat similar to a substantive OCI you might do for the government during the 2L recruit.

• The

Swiss government has a lot of bureaucratic requirements and spends a long time processing paperwork. To study in Geneva, I had to apply for a visa, apply for a residency permit, provide biometric details, and apply to end my residency. The visa process took about six weeks, and my residency permit was not issued until two weeks before my departure. The process isn’t too burdensome but can be a bit of a hassle.

• Its central location makes Geneva a great hub

from which to travel around Europe (I made weekend trips from Geneva to London, Lyon,

ultravires.ca Annecy, Barcelona, Berlin, Naples, Rome, Istanbul, and Paris). However, I found myself envying the incredibly cheap flight options that other exchange friends were able to take advantage of on Ryanair, which does not service Geneva. Airlines like EasyJet still provided flights to all across Europe for about $90CAD, so air travel is still much more affordable than in Canada; it’s just not as cheap as elsewhere in Europe.

• While the exchange program provides classes

in English, the city itself and the university is predominantly French-speaking.

The majority of people you will encounter speak English very well, but do expect to periodically plug emails from administration into Google Translate if you are not fluent in French.

• Classes run from the end of September until

the week of Christmas. Exams run January and February of the new year. The University of Geneva does not allow you to write exams back in Toronto; however they are used to accommodating Canadian students and will allow you to write your exams during the final week of classes before your departure.

This just means that your final weeks of exchange will be incredibly busy both attending class and studying for finals

• The exams at the University of Geneva are

incredibly different to what we are used to at U of T. This may be a pro or a con: instead of writing a three hour written exam, they do a half-hour oral exam. You have 15 minutes to review the questions and prepare your answers with your notes, then you do a 15 minute interview with your prof. You will

McMillan embodies the qualities I sought in a Firm as a student (and as a lawyer): an excellent growth and learning environment, with opportunities to do interesting and sophisticated work early-on, alongside a variety of bright and friendly people.

Kailey Sutton

Partner, Construction & Infrastructure Municipal, Land Use Planning & Development

GENEVA, SWITZERLAND. PHOTOS: BEN KITCHING

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University of Hong Kong – Hong Kong SAR Pros:

• Hong Kong is a major hub for air travel, so it is easy and relatively inexpensive to travel around Asia (or even further!) on weekends.

Many exchange students flew using HK Express, particularly when there were flash sales, and some people were in a new country nearly every weekend.

• The MTR (subway) is super convenient, fast,

and cheap, especially compared to the TTC. The Octopus transit card is also almost universally accepted by restaurants and stores.

Plus, you can use the Public Transport Fare Subsidy which is based on your transit use in the previous month. You can get back hundreds of Hong Kong dollars throughout the term.

• You can easily get by in daily life with just English and very occasional Google Translate.

• Classes are not 100% exam-based (less stress

in December) but will instead have some assignment or presentation to do during the semester, which are mostly low-pressure. It was also relatively easy to choose classes so you only had two or three days of school and could travel the rest of the time.

• Lots of amazing restaurants and cafes at all

price points, from the cheapest food in openair markets to the most luxurious thing you can imagine (but probably can’t afford). But you don’t have to go far—the food in the oncampus canteens is excellent.

• Can be an expensive city to rent in, but campus residence fees are much lower than anything you’d pay in Toronto.

• Victoria Harbour is beautiful, and there are

coldest it gets is around 10 degrees Celsius, most buildings don’t have central heating.

You might not need a jacket, but don’t only bring summer clothes.

• Course selection for exchange students is somewhat limited.

• It’s surprisingly hard to meet local students, but HKU will match you with a buddy who you can talk to if you’d like.

• Most exchange students were placed in a new

residence in Wong Chuk Hang. This made it a bit easier to meet other exchange students and the facilities were nice, but construction is ongoing in the surrounding areas and it’s about 30 minutes from campus.

• Hong Kong isn’t a big city, so it can get a little old constantly going to the same areas, even if you’re doing something new there. Also, be prepared for lots of stairs and lots of crowds— it’s hard to go anywhere without waiting in line first.

Tips:

• If you leave Hong Kong, you can use your

student visa to re-enter using the shorter line for Hong Kong Residents (not Permanent Residents) at immigration checkpoints, instead of the Visitor line.

• The HKU MTR station is only accessible by

elevator because it’s so deep underground.

You will have to wait in line to enter and leave the station during peak times. Add 1015 minutes to whatever commute time Google Maps tells you to account for the wait.

• Orientation is arguably the best time to befriend other exchange students.

• If you plan to travel around Mainland China, you need a visa! Apply early if you can.

Cons:

University of New South Wales – Sydney, Australia

• The fall semester starts during typhoon

Pros:

plenty of amazing hikes around the city.

season, bringing risk of heavy rain and wind.

It gradually gets colder and even though the

January 25, 2024 | 13

• Depending on your classes, the school is very

LONDON, UK. PHOTOS: MO ZEIGHAMI

LONDON, UK. PHOTOS: NEHA GOEL

HONG KONG. PHOTOS: ALYSSA WONG

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14 | January 25, 2024

relaxed about attendance.

• Sydney is a gorgeous city with Toronto-vibes but without Toronto weather.

• Literally a 20 minute walk from the beach.

• The school has "intensive" courses, which can

dramatically decrease the time you spend in classes per week.

• You can pet a koala.

• Australia is relatively well connected, so you can easily get to Gold Coast/New Zealand/ the Great Barrier Reef.

• It's winter in Australia when you arrive, so don't expect bikini weather (think like 16-20 degrees Celsius).

• A lot of undergrads in the law program, so the social scene skews young.

• Housing in the city is basically Toronto prices and not guaranteed through the university.

• Australia is huge, so you almost always have to fly which can get expensive.

• Similarly, Australia is isolated, so you can't

• Classes are extremely chill, and the bar is

• The time difference is AWFUL.

pretty much on the floor (and no curve).

• The school is higher ranked than U of T, so it’s great for bragging to friends.

• Visa process is simple.

Cons:

• Australian accents.

• The semester dates are kind of annoying

because they start in August (but you can low-

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key get away with not being there for the first few weeks).

• The Australian dollar is 90c Canadian, so everything feels like it's 10% off.

ARE YOU READY FOR

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really do short trips outside the country.

A final word from one of our returning students: Not only did I become friends with other U of T Law students that I didn’t know before, but I also met a lot of wonderful people from around the world! When you go to such a hard school like U of T and you work in law, it is really nice to have a change of scenery for a semester. I could not recommend going on exchange enough!

Editors’ Note: Submissions have been edited for brevity and clarity.

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January 25, 2024 | 15

Jury in a Hurry: You Confide, We Decide!

In this edition, your jurors cover love, loneliness, and learning how to fix a chair JURY IN A HURRY *Bang, gavel, bang* Court is in session!

The evidence has been gathered through our anonymous submissions process, and the jury is ready to tell you what they think. The jury has spent many hours sequestered and pondering your problems. We’ve laughed, we’ve cried, but ultimately, we’ve reached a decision. You’re all guilty of something, and it’s time to find out why. ________________________________ _ Dear Jurors, I think I’m in love with one of my friends. I met her in my 1L small group, and I only realized last fall that I like her romantically. She has been with her current partner for a few years now, and I have no intention of breaking them up. She is one of my closest friends, and I don’t want to ruin our relationship. Sometimes I feel like she feels the same way, but I think that’s just me being delusional and hopeful. I just need some advice on what to do.

Thanks, Secretly in Love Dear Secretly, Have you ever tried crying in the shower for a good 20 minutes while listening to TSwift’s “You Belong With Me”?

In all seriousness, this is a tough situation, and our jury is compelled by your tale. One of our jurors has found themselves in similar situations before, and they understand your pain. Really, there are only two paths you can take.

First, you can work at moving on from your crush. Unfortunately, if she is in a relationship, you don’t have standing to request a remedy. You are just an intervenor. Stay busy, make new friends, or download a dating app—these are all good ways of coping.

Eventually, you might find someone else who is single and even better suited to you.

Second—and our jury only recommends this for the plot—you can tell her how you feel. However, you need to do this respectfully and with full knowledge of the consequences. Your crush may reject you. You might lose

your friend. Even if she does feel the same way, there’s a number of hurdles to overcome before you can live your happily ever after.

Being this honest is not for the faint of heart, and if you think disclosing your feelings will make your crush uncomfortable, you might want to consider option one instead.

Either way, the jury finds you guilty of being a normal young adult with feelings. Pretty much everyone has been through a version of this before. We sentence you to a night out with your friends (with no crushes in attendance!). ________________________________ Dear Jurors, My friends are all getting invited to study groups and I’m not in any… am I missing out if I don’t study with my peers in the library?

Thanks, Lonely in the Library Dear Lonely, Study groups can be beneficial for talking through some of the more complicated class material and for doing practice exams. If you feel like you would benefit from this kind of exercise, then a study group is for you. You should ask your friends to join their group.

Alternatively, if you aren’t comfortable doing that, the SLS usually sends a sign-up sheet for study groups that are open to everyone.

But study groups might also not work for you. Some people find it anxiety-inducing to compare their knowledge with their peers’ before an exam. Other people (one of our jurors included) don’t know when to stop chitchatting. Solo study might be better if you identify with either of these statements.

Finally, if your motivation is primarily to socialize, study sessions aren’t the best forum.

We suggest going to some other social events, either at the law school or in the real world.

We prefer to avoid studying altogether, if that helps.

Ultimately, we find you guilty of not knowing what your study preferences are. We sentence you to testing out all the options and finding what works for you. _________________________________

Dear Jurors, Do you really need to do all your readings?

Thanks, Burnt Out Bookworm Dear Burnt, The University of Toronto Faculty of Law recommends that you do all of your readings before you come to class (read: no, but use your judgment).

You are guilty of needing a little break. We sentence you to taking the evening off. _________________________________ Dear Jurors, I feel socially awkward at school, even though I enjoy the company of my friends and classmates. Also, I don’t know how to act or talk when networking. I don’t know what’s expected of me or the proper social etiquette in professional settings. Help please!

Thanks, (L)awkward Living Dear (L)awkward, To be honest, if you aren’t landing clients for your firm already, you might as well give up now.

No, no! Don’t cry! We’re only joking!

Law school trains your brain to think that everyone needs to be a super outgoing person to find success. The reality is, we all have strengths that don’t always manifest in being a social butterfly. One of our jurors is a bit of a socially awkward person, and they would like to tell you that not only do they have a job lined up, but they also managed to convince friends to start a jury with them for this very paper. So our advice is to find your strengths, find your people, and make the most of them.

If you want to improve your social skills, here are a few tips: Be confident in your own conversational abilities. People respond well to openness and authenticity. Remember that listening is half of the battle; be better than our last Hinge dates, and ask people questions about themselves.

You can treat every conversation with some-

one new as an opportunity to meet a cool person and learn from them. For example, you don’t have to see every coffee chat as transactional. It can just be an opportunity to get out of your comfort zone. Don’t overthink it.

Ultimately, the most awkward parts of us are often the things that endear us to others (have you seen New Girl?). Being authentic to your strengths and values will help you find common ground. Our jurors find you guilty of being an individual with unique strengths.

We sentence you to just chill out, because you sound like you’re doing better than you think. _________________________________ Dear Jurors, The chair I chose in class isn't staying up—it feels like I'm sitting on the floor!

What can I do?

Thanks, Chairy Styles Dear Chairy, Assuming you are allowed to use more than one chair, we suggest trying a different one. If you are devoted to this chair, you can go to Guest Services and tell them your tale of woe.

Here is a YouTube link for fixing an office chair, if all else fails: https://www.youtube.com/ results?search_query=fixing+office+chair. We understand this is in print so you will have to do your own research. But hey, that’s what you’re at this school to do.

You are guilty of being too committed to a single chair. We sentence you to stand for your next class. _________________________________ Until next time, the court is adjourned. We’ve loved reading your anonymous submissions, and we look forward to the next cases that come our way. Don’t get into too much trouble while we’re deliberating!

Stay guilty, Jury in a Hurry Need advice? Your jurors will be answering questions every edition! Be sure to submit your questions to the Google form posted on the Virtual Community and the UV Instagram (@ultravires.ca).

16 | January 25, 2024

R IGHTS R EVIEW

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The International Human Rights Program at the University of Toronto Faculty of Law An independent student-led publication 2023–24 Rights Review Editorial Board Editors-in-Chief: Fatima Aamir (3L) and Duncan Crabtree (3L) Senior Editors: Hannah Beltran (2L), Jason Quinn (2L), and Vidit Desai (2L) Junior Editors: Manreet Brar (2L) and Daniel Edmeades (2L) Online Editor: Cassie Heward (1L)

PATHS TO APPLYING INTERNATIONAL STANDARDS OF HUMAN RIGHTS TO CANADA IHRP & CLAIHR & IIRESODH WORKSHOP ON USING INTERNATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS MECHANISMS TO SUPPORT DOMESTIC ADVOCACY

By Hannah Beltran (2L JD/MBA) How can international standards of human rights be applied to Canada? The International Human Rights Program (IHRP) co-hosted the Using International Human Rights Mechanisms to Support Domestic Advocacy workshop on October 23, 2023 to address this question. Canadian Lawyers for International Human Rights (CLAIHR) and the International Institute for Social Responsibility and Human Rights (IIRESODH) co-hosted this event with Professor Victor Rodríguez Rescia as the guest speaker. Professor Rescia is a lawyer, a human rights professor, and the President of IIRESODH. Formerly, he was a member of the United Nations (UN) Human Rights Committee and the Assistant Secretary of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights.

Professor Rescia characterised states’ human rights obligations as “having a plan for life.” This includes “all kinds of rights–civil and political, economical, social, cultural, [and] environmental.”

Professor Rescia pointed out that while Canada has ratified several international human rights treaties, such as the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, Canada has not ratified some important treaties including the American Convention on Human Rights (ACHR). This is significant because most states that ratify the ACHR

consent to the authority of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights (Inter-American Court). At the Inter-American Court, a state party to the ACHR can submit a human rights claim against another state party.

Professor Rescia emphasised that legal human rights frameworks provide little protection of human dignity if those frameworks are not accompanied by public policies for human rights. He stated that public policies entail “cultural protection, institutional systems, and funding” to bolster human rights frameworks.

The workshop highlighted three alternative pathways to hold Canada accountable to international human rights standards. Although Canada has not ratified the ACHR, it is still possible to file a case against Canada in the Inter-American Court. Canada is part of the Inter-American Commission of Human Rights (Inter-American Commission). The Inter-American Commission examines human rights violations, including those related to the ACHR, and can refer individuals’ cases to the InterAmerican Court. Professor Rescia mentioned that Indigenous peoples have submitted claims against Canada to the Inter-American Commission.

Professor Rescia also highlighted UN Special Pro-

cedures as an option for individuals who seek to make a claim against Canada on human rights grounds. Individuals can submit a description of their claims online to the UN Human Rights Council. This could result in a UN Special Procedures investigation of a thematic mandate, such as on Indigenous rights across several countries, or the state of human rights in general within one country.

Based on the investigation, human rights experts may send letters to a government with recommendations on addressing human rights issues.

Furthermore, Professor Rescia discussed that non-governmental organisations (NGOs) have a special role in holding Canada accountable to human rights standards. Approximately every four years, Canada faces the Universal Periodic Review at the UN Human Rights Council, where Canada’s representatives report on Canada’s progress towards its human rights obligations. NGOs can submit their own reports ahead of the review and are invited to a private meeting with experts on the Human Rights Committee before the Committee cross-examines Canada’s representatives.

The private meeting allows NGOs to flag any information that refutes parts of Canada’s report.

The workshop clarified potential pathways to hold

Canada accountable to international standards of human rights. Yet, Professor Rescia noted that scholars should further critique and suggest reforms to these approaches. Relatedly, an audience member raised concerns about the barriers to filing these claims, especially given that there are barriers to understanding the law and financial barriers to justice. They asked Professor Rescia to explain how to address these issues. Professor Rescia stated that the forms to the UN Human Rights Committee, for example, could be filled out with just the facts of a claim and some evidence supporting the claim. The UN will then apply the law to that claim. While only requiring plain-language descriptions when filing a claim reduces some barriers, it does not address other issues like the non-binding nature of the UN Human Rights Council’s recommendations.

Professor Rescia recognized that holding states to international human rights standards is a difficult task, but he asserted that we should not lose faith despite this challenge. He completed the workshop by stating, “We are not perfect, but what would we do without the United Nations and multilateral organisations? Multilateral organisations are the only way to maintain hope.”

IHRP WORKING GROUP: CAMEROON ANGLOPHONE CRISIS DATABASE OF ATROCITIES

By Julia Cappellacci (3L) and Eric Li (3L) Group Leads: Julia Cappellacci (3L) and Eric Li (3L) Group Members: Maria Bon (1L), Rebecca Dragusin (1L), Erfan Ehsan (1L), Qiyang Hong (1L), Parker Hopkins (1L), Yashleen Jhand (2L), Sahara Mehdi (1L), Thomas Mora (1L), Ella Ryu (2L), Allison Zhao (1L), Jerry Zhao (1L) Background of the Cameroon Anglophone Crisis Cameroon is an officially bilingual country, with two English-speaking regions and eight Frenchspeaking regions. The Anglophone Crisis is occurring in Cameroon’s English-speaking regions: the South-West Region and the North-West Region.

The Crisis began in October 2016, when Anglophone lawyers and teachers took to the streets to protest the government's placement of French-language judges, teachers, and procedures in the Anglophone regions’ courts and schools. The government met these peaceful protests with force, and in January 2017, jailed the movement's leaders and cut the internet to the Anglophone regions for months.

Anglophone activists continued to protest in response, resulting in further escalations. Over time, the situation evolved into a regional armed conflict between various separatist groups and Cameroon’s security forces.

The Crisis has since become a humanitarian disaster, rife with deplorable human rights violations

@utrightsreview

and inhumane violence, perpetrated by both Cameroonian government forces and non-state armed separatist groups. Approximately 6,000 people have been killed, 600,000 have become internally displaced, 80,000 are now refugees in Nigeria, and over 700,000 children are being deprived of school.

Purpose of the Cameroon Anglophone Crisis Database of Atrocities The Cameroon Anglophone Crisis Database of Atrocities (“Database”) provides an apolitical and non-partisan means for securely storing and verifying digital evidence of war crimes and human rights abuses perpetrated during the ongoing conflict. The curators of the Database hope that this evidence may be used in future legal proceedings that are brought to hold perpetrators accountable following the conclusion of the conflict.

Work Performed by Student Volunteers of the Database Members of the International Human Rights Program (“IHRP”) student working group contribute to the Database by applying open-source intelligence (“OSINT”) investigative methodologies to verify photographic and video evidence submitted to the Database. These investigations involve using satellite imagery, weather data, solar positional data, social media postings, and other publicly available tools to

CREDIT: WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

verify the authenticity of submitted evidence. In conducting these investigations, student researchers focus on the following inquiries: •

Where did the depicted incident occur? (Geolocation)

•

When did the incident occur? (Chronolocation)

•

Who was responsible for the incident? (Identification of perpetrators)

•

What motivated the incident? (Identification of the underlying context behind the incident)

ihrp.law.utoronto.ca/rights-review-homepage

Student volunteers will then verify if the allegations submitted with the evidence are corroborated by the information gathered using OSINT methodologies.

In an age of AI-powered deepfake technologies and rampant social media misinformation campaigns, this verification work is crucial for upholding the credibility of the Database and the evidence that it securely stores.

Once the verification analysis has been completed, student volunteers compile their findings in verification reports, which are then published by the Database and may be publicly accessed here.

uoftrightsreview

RIGHTS REVIEW

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January 25, 2024 | 17

The International Human Rights Program at the University of Toronto Faculty of Law An independent student-led publication

UNOS MÉTODOS PARA APLICAR LAS NORMAS INTERNACIONALES DE DERECHOS HUMANOS A CANADÁ

IHRP & CLAIHR & IIRESODH WORKSHOP ON USING INTERNATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS MECHANISMS TO SUPPORT DOMESTIC ADVOCACY Original article by Hannah Beltran (2L JD/MBA), translation by Vidit Desai (2L) ¿Cómo se pueden aplicar las normas internacionales de los derechos humanos en Canadá? El 23 de octubre de 2023, el Programa Internacional de Derechos Humanos fue anfitrión para un taller sobre cómo usar los mecanismos internacionales para ayudar con la abogacía nacional. La organización Abogados Canadienses para Derechos Humanos Internacionales y el Instituto Internacional para la Responsabilidad Social y Derechos Humanos (IIRESODH) también fueron los anfitriones con el profesor Victor Rodriguez Rescia como orador principal. El Profesor Rescia es un abogado, un profesor de derechos humanos, y el Presidente de IIRESODH. En el pasado, el Profesor Rescia era un miembro del Comité de Derechos Humanos de las Naciones Unidos y el Subsecretario de la Corte Interamericana de Derechos Humanos.

El profesor Rescia describió las obligaciones de los derechos humanos como “tener un plan para la vida” que incluye “cada tipo de derechos - civil, político, económico, social, cultural y ambiental”. El profesor Rescia señaló que Canadá ha ratificado algunos tratados para los derechos humanos internacionales como el Pacto Internacional de Derechos Civiles y Políticos. Pero Canadá no ha ratificado algunos tratados importantes como la Convención Americana sobre Derechos Humanos (CADH). Eso es importante porque la mayoría de los países que son signatarios de la CADH aceptan la autoridad de la Corte Interamericana de Derechos Humanos. En esta corte un país, que es un parte de la CADH, puede presentar una demanda sobre derechos humanos contra una otra parte de la CADH. El profesor Rescia enfatizó que los sistemas jurídicos no ofrecen mucha protección para la dignidad humana si estos sistemas no tienen las políticas públicas para derechos humanos. El dijo que las políticas públicas consisten de “la protección cultural, los sistemas institucionales, y el financiamiento” para reforzar los sistemas de derechos

humanos.

El taller enfatizó tres maneras para responsabilizar a Canadá por normas internacionales de los derechos humanos. Aunque Canadá no ha ratificado la CADH, es posible presentar una demanda contra Canadá en la Corte Interamericana.

Canadá es parte de la Comisión Interamericana de Derechos Humanos (CIDH). La CIDH examina las violaciones de los derechos humanos, incluyendo las que tienen una relación con la CADH. La CIDH puede remitir estos casos a la Corte Interamericana y en el pasado, las comunidades indígenas han presentado las demandas contra el gobierno canadiense a la Comisión Interamericana.

El Profesor Rescia también señaló que existen los Procedimientos Especiales de Las Naciones Unidos y estas son una opción para las personas que quieren presentar una demanda contra Canadá por violaciones de los derechos humanos. Las personas pueden entregar una descripción de su demanda en línea al Consejo de Derechos Humanos de las Naciones Unidas. El resultado puede ser una investigación de los Procedimientos Especiales de un mandato temático. Un ejemplo es el tema de los derechos indígenas en algunos países. Otro ejemplo es el tema del estado de los derechos humanos en un país en particular. Basado en los resultados de una investigación, expertos en derechos humanos pueden mandar cartas a un gobierno con las recomendaciones para mantener los derechos humanos en su país.

Además, el Profesor Rescia discutió que las organizaciones no gubernamentales (ONGs) tienen un papel especial en el proceso de responsabilizar a Canadá por las normas de derechos humanos.

Cada cuatro años, hay una revisión universal periódica al Consejo de Derechos Humanos donde los representativos de Canadá deben discutir el progreso de Canadá en el cumplimiento de sus obligaciones de derechos humanos. Las ONGs pu-

PROFESSOR VICTOR RODRÍGUEZ RESCIA (UPPER RIGHT) PRESENTING THE IHRP WORKSHOP ON USING INTERNATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS MECHANSIMS TO SUPPORT DOMESTIC ADVOCACY. CREDIT: HANNAH BELTRAN

eden mandar sus informes propios antes de la revisión. También las ONGs pueden participar en una reunión con los expertos de derechos humanos del Comité de Derechos Humanos antes que el Comité interroga a los representativos de Canadá. En esta reunión, las ONGs pueden refutar el informe de Canada si es necesario.

El taller clarificó algunas maneras diferentes para responsabilizar a Canadá por las normas internacionales de derechos humanos, pero es necesario preguntar sobre la viabilidad de estas maneras.

Una persona en la audiencia preguntó sobre las barreras que existen para presentar estas demandas, especialmente porque hay barreras para entender el derecho y hay barreras financieras para acceder a la justicia. El preguntó al profesor Rescia si el puede explicar como se puede solucionar estos problemas. El profesor Rescia dijo que los for-

mularios para el Comité de Derechos Humanos por ejemplo solo requieren los hechos de una demanda con una poca de evidencia para apoyar.

Después, las Naciones Unidas aplicará el derecho a la demanda. Aunque exigir solo lenguaje sencillo para las descripciones ayuda, también existen otras barreras como la regla que las recomendaciones del Consejo de Derechos Humanos son no vinculantes.

El Profesor Rescia reconoció que responsabilizar a los países por las normas de derechos humanos es una tarea difícil, pero él afirmó que no podemos perder nuestra fe frente a este desafío. Él completó el taller diciendo: “No somos perfectos, pero qué podemos hacer sin las Naciones Unidos y los organismos multilaterales? Los organismos multilaterales son la única manera para mantener la esperanza.”

IHRP WORKING GROUP: WOMEN’S HUMAN RIGHTS RESOURCES

PROVIDING THE INFORMATION NEEDED TO STUDY AND UNDERSTAND HUMAN RIGHTS ISSUES

By Aliya Hemani (3L) and Megan Peters (3L) (1L), Kitt (Katrina) Sellinger (1L), Caroline Tolton (2L) When and why was this working group instituted? What are the objectives of this working group?

Group Leads: Aliya Hemani (3L) and Megan Peters (3L) Group Members: Naxi A ze (2L), Isabell Brisson (2L), Julia Colombo (1L), Rachel Ger tin (2L), Kinsey Greenfield (3L), Maebh Kelly (2L), Cathleen Ma (1L), Megan Raber

@utrightsreview

The Women’s Human Rights Resources (“WHRR”) Working Group was initiated in 2011 to keep the WHRR database current and ensure its upkeep in future years. The WHRR database was created in 1995 and has since become an impor tant tool for human rights defenders, professionals, international law scholars, and students across the globe. The database provides annotations for key UN documents and leading scholarly ar ticles on a range of topics, from economic globalization to reproductive rights to armed conflict. The objective of our group’s work is for this database to ser ve as a roadmap for scholarly and academic research, thereby facilitating and spreading research across the globe. Each entr y in the database is

comprised of a cited source followed by a 150-word annotation that summarizes the material in a cogent and thoughtful way.

How has the work of this group changed in recent years?

In line with the recent shift in focus of Uof T law's International Human Rights Program, the WHRR working group has placed a greater emphasis on researching the database’s themes in relation to the contemporar y Canadian context this academic year. In addition, we have recently expanded the range of topics covered by the WHRR database to respond to shifting priorities in human rights work. Namely, our group is working to add content relating to the newly included topics of climate justice, corporate accountability, and Indigenous women.

How does this working group contribute to the IHRP experience?

students, par ticipation in the group is an effective and rewarding way to develop legal research and writing skills on impor tant and interesting topics outside of the classroom. Group members may gain foundational knowledge on the latest developments in key areas of women’s human rights work while simultaneously contributing to the growth of the University of Toronto Faculty of Law’s own resource database to promote the dissemination of research and information on women’s human rights.

The Women’s Human Rights Resources Database can be accessed at https://lib r a r y. l a w.u to r o n to.c a / wo m e n s - h u m a n rights-resources-programme-whrr.

The Women’s Human Rights Resources Database will be updated with the 2024 cohor t’s work in summer 2024.

For University of Toronto Faculty of Law

ihrp.law.utoronto.ca/rights-review-homepage

uoftrightsreview

RIGHTS REVIEW

18 | January 25, 2024

ultravires.ca

The International Human Rights Program at the University of Toronto Faculty of Law An independent student-led publication

IHRP WORKING GROUP: THE VENEZUELA ACCOUNTABILITY PROJECT DOCUMENTING ATROCITIES COMMITTED BY THE VENEZUELAN GOVERNMENT

By Adrian Piecyk (2L) Group Leads: Adrian Piecyk Quinn (2L)

(2L), Jason

Group Members: Betel Woldu (1L), Max Mickelson (1L), Aaditya Juvekar (1L), Shireen Faisal (1L), Stas Castro (1L), Tim Hong (1L), Arifah Razack (3L) What is the Venezuela Accountability Project?

Since its founding in 2020, the Venezuela Accountability Project (VAP) working group's primary purpose is to document atrocities committed by the Venezuelan government under President Nicolas Maduro. The VAP operates under the broader Global Accountability Network (GAN), which researches and collects data on atrocities worldwide for use by international criminal prosecutors. The students who contribute to GAN projects, the VAP included, benefit from interacting with legal practitioners across the globe who have successfully prosecuted infamous abusers of human rights.

The Accountability System used by VAP and other GAN projects is a proprietary model used to analyze and catalogue the enormous amounts of evidence needed to prosecute atrocity criminals. It intends to create an actionable body of documents that international lawyers and local stakeholders can use to prosecute state agents and even heads of state responsible for committing atrocities. The Accountability System was pioneered by David

Crane, GAN’s founder, in the successful indictment of the then-sitting President of Liberia, Charles Taylor. Since then, Accountability Projects have expanded to include Venezuela, Syria, Yemen, Ukraine, and the Pacific Rim region.

What does VAP do?

Students involved in the VAP play a key role in creating the “cornerstone documents” that GAN then uses for its dossiers on atrocity criminals. These documents are built from the chronological conflict narratives and crime base matrices that students prepare, utilizing both official reports prepared by NGOs, as well as open-source investigation (OSINT). GAN lawyers use the work produced by students to identify the Most Responsible Parties (MRP) and the Most Egregious Incidents (MEI) for a given atrocity project. Students gain valuable insight and experience in profiling atrocity criminals, as Venezuela in particular has many distinct security and intelligence agencies committing crimes alongside paramilitary colectivos.

Local stakeholders also play a key role in drafting objectives for atrocity projects. With their help, VAP can appropriately focus on particular incidents and perpetrators as the situation demands. The previous year’s team was, for example, asked to put special care in researching incidents involving crimes committed by the Venezuelan regime against military or security services personnel for perceived disloyalty.

What was VAP’s most recent work?

Our VAP team this year was predominantly composed of a fresh cohort of 1Ls, who continued the work of the previous year’s “first team” in preparing conflict narratives and crime base matrices. Each student was assigned a given month to research on, with the VAP cohort covering the tumultuous period from April-October 2019 in Venezuela. This period was defined by an abortive uprising in support of presidential challenger and opposi-

tion leader Juan Guaidó on April 30th, with an ensuing period of extreme repression by the victorious Maduro regime.

Recent events have also propelled Venezuela back into the media spotlight compared to the previous year. The ongoing dispute between Venezuela and Guyana escalated in December 2023 after a referendum nominally annexed the oil-rich Essequibo region into Venezuela. Time will tell what these events may mean for future VAP projects.

IHRP WORKING GROUP: GENDER APARTHEID IN AFGHANISTAN EXAMINING CANADA’S ROLE IN AFGHANISTAN’S SYSTEMATIC DISCRIMINATION AGAINST WOMEN AND GIRLS

By Manreet Brar (2L) and Nicholas Slawnych (2L) of women and girls. Despite the Taliban’s repeated commitments to upholding women’s rights, experts have observed that since coming to power the Taliban have engaged in systematic gender-based discrimination against women and girls in areas such as education, employment, mobility, and healthcare. This report's designation of gender apartheid highlights the international community’s duty to take effective action to end the practice. Recognising that Canada has an active role to play in ending the gender apartheid in Afghanistan, the IHRP launched the Gender Apartheid in Afghanistan working group for the 2023-2024 academic year.

Group Leads: Manreet Brar (2L) and Nicholas Slawnych (2L)

About the Gender Apartheid in Afghanistan Working Group

Group Members: Asra Areej (1L), Alexandra Burns (1L), Annie Chang (1L), Emma Farrell (1L), Yinzi Gao (3L), Cassandra (Cassie) Heward (1L), Jaerin Kim (1L), Paniz Fotoohi Roud Majani (1L), Miruna Mureseanu (3L), and Yasmin Rajwani (1L)

In the words of the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Afghanistan, “nowhere else in the world has there been an attack as widespread, systematic and all-encompassing on the rights of women and girls as in Afghanistan.” Since taking power in August of 2021, the Taliban have imposed a regime that violates the fundamental rights

@utrightsreview

The working group aims to shed light on the international human rights violations of gender apartheid in Afghanistan; identify the role of Canada and the international community in enabling the Taliban’s human rights abuses; and provide policy recommendations outlining ways that Canada can fulfill its international obligations. Ghizaal Haress, Afghanistan’s former presidential ombudsperson and current visiting scholar at the University of Toronto, has been instrumental in helping the group perform research to produce an in-depth report documenting Canada’s role in the Taliban’s human rights abuses against women and girls and in helping

ihrp.law.utoronto.ca/rights-review-homepage

develop potential recommendations, including foreign policy advice, to Canada.

The group hopes to deliver the report in presentation form for David Sproule, Canada’s United Nations Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Afghanistan, in the winter 2024 semester. Sproule has held informal discussions with the Taliban more than a dozen times over the past two years, so this report is likely to inform Sproule’s approach to future discussions.

What kind of work are members of your working group engaged in?

In the fall semester, group members have prepared research for the report on two aspects of gender apartheid in Afghanistan. The first subgroup has identified the human rights abuses committed by the Taliban since coming into power in 2021, identifying specific violations of relevant international law in the areas of employment rights, civil rights, education, and socio-economic rights. The second subgroup’s research has focused on whether Canada has adequately upheld its international human rights commitments towards Afghan women and children in view of Canada’s legal obligations and longstanding peacekeeping role in Afghanistan. In the winter semester, students will be transforming their research into a memostyle report.

uoftrightsreview

ultravires.ca

PUZZLES

The Ultra Vires Crossword The Eras Tour RONAN MALLOVY (3L/MA ENGLISH)

KenKen RONAN MALLOVY (3L/MA ENGLISH) Each row and column must contain the numbers 1 through 5. The bolded boxes must total to the number in the top left corner using the indicated command (e.g. x20 means the numbers must multiply to 20).

January 25, 2024 | 19

Across

Down

1 #9 9 Inactivity 15 Refreshed, as a webpage 16 Minutiae-obsessed person 17 Inactivity 18 Without a struggle 19 CEOs' aides 20 Sun Devils' sch.

21 U.S. "uncle" 22 Woman, in dated slang 23 Discord alternative 25 It may be picked by one with a grievance 26 #6 31 They may justify means 32 When one might break for lunch 33 Where original hair colour may start showing 35 Long-ruling Libyan dictator 38 Sloth variety 42 Global green power grp.

44 Charity, perhaps 45 Draw in 48 Song off #4 with a ten-minute version 51 Washingtons, slangily 52 Old-fashioned 53 American navy abbv.

54 Sandwich abbv.

55 Changeling in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine 57 "In media ___" 60 Provoke continually 62 #8 64 Apple tech support worker 65 Highly theatrical 66 Crosses the threshold 67 Joan Didion or James Baldwin

1 Shallowest Great Lake 2 Bit of Hindu scripture 3 Defeats, in modern slang 4 Fish eggs 5 Magical life force 6 Black Sea port 7 End product 8 Actors Asner and Helms 9 #3 10 Group of oxen or sled dogs 11 TV spots 12 Former name of Ho Chi Minh city 13 Not coastal 14 Pop star who inspired some tracks on #5 21 Sidle 24 2023 shoe biopic 25 Impart, as an honour 26 Upbeat, jazzy piano piece 27 Greek H 28 Word after I or Air 29 Drawers 30 Rip 34 List item 36 #2 37 Shelter from the storm, at sea 39 Loneliest number 40 Unagi fish 41 Ctrl + 43-Down + ___ 43 Ctrl + ___ + 41-Down 45 Lay about 46 Hidden 47 Begrudge 49 Military forces 50 Many, informally 54 Possible result of a low shutter speed 56 Gumbo ingredient 57 Indian flatbread 58 Greek goddess of strife 59 Religious offshoot 61 "The" in Berlin 62 Enemy 63 Non-professional

PUZZLES

20 | January 25, 2024

Spiral Crossword RONAN MALLOVY (3L/MA ENGLISH) Use the Forward and Backward clues to complete the spiral. Every letter is used in at least one forward and backward answer.

Forward 1–7 8 – 13 14 – 19 20 – 22 23 – 26 26 – 33 34 – 38 38 – 41 40 – 44 45 – 50

One of 300 in a famous army Brief trailer What’s needed here Building block of life Nibble persistently Lycanthrope Event info Eighteen-wheeler Acted out silently One of 193, for an international organization 51 – 54 Attention-getting noise 55 – 59 One of ten for the subject of the other crossword puzzle 60 – 65 Tel Aviv’s country 66 – 70 Muscle affliction 71 – 76 Type of candy or punch 77 – 80 Golfing needs 81 – 86 Nullify 87 – 92 Hebrew name for the JudeoChristian God 93 – 98 Regarded with reverence 97 – 100 Main textual source for Norse mythology Backward 100 – 96 95 – 90 89 – 85 84 – 78 77 – 74 73 – 70 69 – 66 65 – 62 61 – 58 57 – 53 52 – 48 47 – 42 42 – 39 38 – 34 33 – 28 27 – 24 26 – 23 22 – 17 16 – 11 10 – 6 5–1

Venomous snake species Common snack nut Neoliberal political philosopher Supervise Wars or ___ (fandom debate) Brink Former Raptor Gasol Shakespearean king Actor Liu Throw under the bus, perhaps Second-largest Vietnamese city, by population Bicycle “built for two” One trapped in an invisible box Mount Bloom Actor McGregor Fashion designer Vera Fleabag actor Scott Catches in a net US health insurance giant Back muscles, for short

Winter’s End REBEKAH KIM (3L)

Snow and ice melt Frost and cold give way Put away your hat Winter is going away

What’s next, then?

Follow the fourth scold, second epic, f irst sworn, Then the f ifth Thai, second nice, and f irst gowns

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DIVERSIONS

ultravires.ca

January 25, 2024 | 21

Intra Vires

Totally real news from a frrreeezing Faculty of Law FIEVEL LIM (3L) AND CHRISTINE WANG (3L JD/MBA) Intensives? Uh yeah, they sure are!

True to its name, the U of T law intersession intensives are back and more intense than ever this month. In the name of providing students with a truly intense experience, the Faculty has implemented a new method of assessment in lieu of the typical final paper: a military-style boot camp. Purportedly, this change was made to form students into truly zealous advocates.

In particular, rumours suggest that those enrolled in Justice Abella’s intensive, Judging in a Democracy, can even square off against the retired Supreme Court Justice on a hardcore obstacle course. “That’s judging for ya, baby” is apparently the new description of the course. When requested for comment, one 3L student, covered in mud, simply stated: “Please just let me graduate.”

Essert going on leave to pursue bigger and better dreams Our beloved Associate Dean, Christopher Essert, is away on sabbatical this semester. This has led to widespread student speculation on where he will be going, or what he will be doing, on his

well-deserved break. Perhaps he is off to participate in an international pizza-tasting tour (he is apparently a fan of these open-faced sandwiches)? Or mayhaps he’s embarking on a content creation journey? Or is he simply following Taylor Swift on the 2024 leg of The Eras Tour (sources say he will be watching Reputation Taylor’s Version drop in Tokyo)? Who knows! All we can say is that the law school will be awaiting his return (and the scintillating stories of his journey) with bated breath.

Exchange students are back, baby!

You awright, mate? After being away from Jackman for a nice and long four months, the exchange students have come back in droves, though some are still suspiciously missing at roll call. You can spot one from a mile away, dressed in the style of a distant land, or loudly reminiscing in the atrium about surfing in November.

Many students have also reported to UV that their friends seem a little bit…different. Could it be the new spark of life in their eyes? Or maybe it’s the unfamiliar accent that they insist they have had the entire time?

Students frozen on the way to school, business as usual at the Faculty Cancelled classes? Or Zoom accommodations? Because of a measly -25 degrees Celsius with windchill? Couldn’t be the University of Toronto! After a warm and toasty December, it appears that Toronto is finally experiencing its patented, refined, and renowned East Coast Winter™. Students, still returning from that holiday high, were seen trudging to school through the deep freeze, covered in as many layers as one could wear and still be able to check for bedbugs. Although most were successful in making it in through the school’s front doors, a few unfortunate students are apparently frozen on the back lawn. The Faculty is hopeful that they will thaw by the time exam season rolls around.

Seriously, why are bugs still a problem?

Some unfortunate UV editors were still subject to the horrors of the Flavelle House basement last week, when their casual catch-up session was encroached on by many unwelcome guests. At first it was a lone silverfish trying to add their two

cents. Then there was a second silverfish on the column next to the couch. Too reminiscent of the bedbugs and cockroaches that have been confirmed at the school, the editors were barely hanging on. The final straw was the army of ants on the carpet, threatening to make their way onto the backpacks. Yeah…nope. Gotta get out of there, ASAP! Faculty to implement mobile alerts for well…everything After the immense success of the earthquake and voyeurism alerts on everyone’s phone the last few months, the Faculty has decided to add mobile alerts to the school’s arsenal of never-ending reminders. Now, students will get 15, 5, and 1 minute reminders before every single class on their schedule. Administration has expressed their excitement for this new project, as the high volume of email reminders have proven to be very effective in the past. There are even reports with our Faculty liaison that alerts to do your readings may be in the works too. Thank goodness for the advancement in technology!

Room Booking Name Roundup The good, the bad, and the punny TAYLOR RODRIGUES (3L) Did you know that your classmates can see the title you put down for law library group study room bookings? They remain visible to all until you delete your room booking or the room booking expires.

Fret not though—the good news is that your embarrassing room booking titles are quickly lost to the sands of time.

The bad news? It’s difficult for UV writers to find the funniest room booking titles to share with readers.

This is a roundup of the good, the bad, and the punny room titles I saw when randomly checking the library website. If you had a hilarious room booking title that didn’t make this list, it’s probably because I missed it (not because you are not as funny as you think you are).

The Good Initials Examples: “TR”, “NL x SM Study”, “Call – ED”, and “Z &C”.

Commentary: Short, simple and sweet. You will recognize what room you booked a week ago when you check the library website the morning of your booking.

preference for choice of outlet to relieve stress, you do you.

The Good References Examples: “phew, not the bedbug room”, “Center for Kids Who can’t read Good”, and “Robin Gan”.

Commentary: You had (or have) a life outside of law school and keep up with popular culture.

Good for you.

The Bad The Generic Example: “Group study”, “study”, “factum”, “chit chat”, “Meeting”, “booked”, “tutor session”, and “moot”.

Commentary: Boring. Do better. You could at least try to entertain your fellow classmates.

How are you going to remember which room you booked with a generic title?

The First Name Examples: “Seth”, “Wilson”, “ammar”, and “ jordyn”.

The Meeting Title

Commentary: Boring, but slightly less generic.

Still likely to cause confusion. You can do better.

Examples: “IPC Meeting”, “Tort Moot”, and “Future of Law”.

The Gibberish

Commentary: Boring but informative. Other meeting attendees will be able to figure out which study room you booked by checking the public titles.

The Mood Check Examples: “tired”, “ok but not great”, “ugh”, “mental breakdown”, “Panic continued”, and “suffering”.

Commentary: Checking in on your mood is a healthy stress management technique. Although library room names are not my personal

Examples: e.g., “/”, “NR7”, “!”, “frz”, and “PWITMF&FSD”.

Commentary: Are you okay?

The Concerning Examples: “3COL (cry out loud)”, “CT Scan needed”, “Pyramid of depression”, “ihrl” [I hate real life], “Do you want me to cry? I’ll cry”, “Tears on my exam paper rn”, “ignore me if I’m sobbing”, “divorce babe divorce”, “reading 4 months’ worth of cases”, and “Scoring Below 85 on the MPRE”.

Commentary: Really, are you okay? Law school is tough, but please take care of yourself. There are more important things than grades. Please access resources if you need to.

The Random Examples: “Reading the Fish Code”, “craig’s cookies”, “TLC”, “Mango < 3”, “I know what 15km is”, “Solomon hoffman”, and “Medical Degree in Fashion from France”.

Commentary: I will give you credit for trying but you are making bad references or super inside jokes. Write for your audience (the rest of your classmates).

The Ominous Examples: “Siamese connection”, “Communist Biker”, “Hymns of Vyvanse”, “Crash Make ‘Em Pay”, and “Pape jail”.

Commentary: Honestly, I don’t know what’s going on here, and at this point I’m too afraid to ask.

The Punny Public International Law (PIL) Examples: “Is PIL law?”, “Crayon Law”, “PIL TIL I DIE”, and “In PIL we trust”.

Commentary: PIL gave you an existential crisis or inspired you to save the world. We get it.

Property Law

Administrative Law Examples: “AD-MI-IN a mental institution”, “ADMINister us something strong”, “The Room Where it Happens”, “What is standard of review”, “Disguised Correctness Review”, “cancel vavilov’s citizenship idc”, “Vavilovs parents”, “Ms. Baker and her Children”, and “post admin-cry”.

Commentary: If group study room bookings are correlated with course difficulty, administrative law is definitely the hardest course.

Constitutional Law Examples: “pith and thubthtanthe”, “Panic! at the constitution”, “last schneiderstand”, “schneidy’s superstars”, “Scheniderstans”, and “Anna Su’s Fan Club”.

Commentary: Good mix of puns and professor appreciation. But have today’s kids lost faith in the constitution or are there multiple constitutional crises going on in the world? Why not both?

Criminal Procedure Examples: “Crim pro-fessionals”, “Atmosphere of oppression”, “Room Temp pursuit”, “Criminals”, “Criminal Activity”, “crim hopefully”, “crim definitely”, and “crim probably not”.

Commentary: Many of these titles could also fall under “The Concerning” category.

Trusts Examples: “Trust issues” and “more trust issues”.

Examples: “Propertea”, “No occupier Liability”, “Fun with Property”, “Property of No one”, and “BB Property”.

Commentary: Did you really graduate law school if you didn’t come out with more “trust issues” than you started with?

Commentary: I enjoyed the multiple titles making a Bohemian Rhapsody reference: “is this the real life”, “is this just fantasy”, “I’m just a chattel in a real property world”.

Business Organizations Examples: “Piercing the HH veil”, “Majors & acquisitions”, and “Bored governance”.

Commentary: High-quality puns. A solid H effort.

22 | January 25, 2024

DIVERSIONS

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New Year's Resolutions for Law Students Totally serious ways you can do better this year SHELBY HOHMANN (2L) Advocate for the devil

Schedule crying time in the calendar

The devil reached out to me personally and complained that ever since ‘playing the devil’s advocate’ has become a meme, he’s been feeling chronically underrepresented. Next time you’re in class and get that itch to say something problematic, just do it! We all seem to have too much self-awareness these days.

If you want 2024 to be your best year yet— or at least a mediocre one ( because let’s be honest, you’re in law school)—you’ll need to get ahead of those pesky sob fests that always seem to come at the worst times. Since you’re probably already scheduling far less important things, like going to class, doing readings, or even eating, you can surely make space for crying. After all, it is the most important and time-consuming hobby of a law student…or maybe that’s just me.

Subscribe to at least f ive more law newsletters

Bring at least one (1) more bedbug into the library

If there’s one thing we don’t get enough of as law students, it’s emails (and free pizza lunches, obviously). For me, the Supreme Court updates just aren’t scratching that itch anymore. I need an endless stream of pinging to distract my brain from the boring, dystopian world we live in. This year, try adding yourself to more listservs. Working on Bay Street, you may not be able to clear your conscience, but at least you can clear your inbox!

Is it sad that the bedbug-in-the-library craze was the most exciting part of the year so far?

Nothing livens things up like finding a bug somewhere it shouldn’t be—just ask Ms. Donoghue! That being said, I couldn’t help but feel bad for the little guy and how lonely he must have been as the only bedbug in Bora Laskin.

Even though he has (allegedly) passed on, I’d like to think that his spirit lives on, so if anyone has a bedbug plug, please be kind and bring Mr. Bug the friend he deserves.

Hobbies, So You Can Stop Making Law School Your Whole Personality Osgoode Obiter Dicta x Ultra Vires Collaboration MANREET BRAR (2L) AND MANPREET BHARJ (1L, OSGOODE)

CREDIT: OSGOODE DIGITAL COMMONS

Ever speak to someone who talks about nothing but school? That’s basically every U of T Law student. Here are some non-law related hobbies you can pick up to develop an actual personality: Baking: We all deserve a puff pastry once in a while to get through the stress of classes, recruit, and the twenty-one extracurriculars. With the harsh Toronto winters limiting outdoor activities, including “hot girl walks,” it may be time to pick up baking as a new hobby. Get rolling to warm yourself up because life's too short not to have your cake and get baked too.

Intramurals: Has your ass ever gone numb from sitting in the library for too many hours? Have you recently experienced a shortness of breath while walking up a single f light of stairs? Has someone tried to throw something your way and you inexplicably fumbled the bag? Are you unable to recall the last time you touched grass (not that type of grass)? You may be experiencing an extreme shortage of physical activity!

Join intramurals! The law school has a wide selection of sports to choose from. Joining a team—or several, if you feel like living out the life of a student athlete—can be a great, low-stakes (unless you’re at USTC) way to spice up your usually unhealthy life.

And guess what? It’ll be a great lil’ something to embellish your resume with.

Meditate: Ever have so many thoughts that you simply don’t know what to do? Try meditating! What’s that, you ask? It’s when you sit down with all those thoughts and try to clear your head. You take a deep breath and try to declutter your mind. And magic— you will never have a bad thought again.

You’re welcome.

THE BEST HOBBY IS ONE THAT RESULTS IN SNACKS. CREDIT: AMY KWONG

Here’s what Osgoode students like to do during their free time: Studying for our 1L exams was extremely tough. By

exam #3, we were doing cartwheels in between practice exams, or turning our friend’s dorm into a karaoke lounge at 11pm (our neighbours got free live performances, which we know was what they wanted during the heart of the exam season). But a few hobbies that stuck with us and that we’re equipping ahead of the winter term are here to stay: Movie Critics: Now I need to say a little more about this because imagine re-watching movies you were hyped about back in 2009. My 10-year-old self would just cry if she heard me critique Joe Jonas’ acting in Camp Rock. To make it worse, the awkward poses each character made when singing their hearts out has embedded itself within us and now we can’t sing songs without bending our knees together the way Demi Lovato did. Let’s not forget the painful insults and the iconic “WHAT-EVER MAJOR LOSER” comeback that we now resort to after we get roasted by each other.

Amateur Vloggers: This one was a fun one during the exam season, especially now that we look back at how miserable we were.

We started vlogging our experiences around exam time and intend on doing that for the next 2.5 years, presenting a f inal movie when we graduate!

Fitness Enthusiasts: It’s funny that when running (ha!) from school, the gym looks more fun. But I never imagined myself doing a Latin Dance class after my classes, or Yoga at 3pm with other students in the school—good for the mind and the body.

Overall, life is too short to worry about the pressures (and there are many!) of law school. So take the step back to breathe and escape (and vlog it!) while you can.

U OF T’S ATHLETIC CENTRE, JUST A FEW MINUTES’ WALK FROM JACKMAN. CREDIT: THE VARSITY

DIVERSIONS

ultravires.ca

January 25, 2024 | 23

Student Completes Legal Ethics Course, Is Now Ethical Necessary for graduating, and also necessary for life AMY KWONG (3L) U of T Law student, Eleanor Shellshop, completed the mandatory Legal Ethics course last semester, emerging as a completely ethical and fully rational being. Despite doing no readings all semester and attending only a small fraction of the weekly 6pm to 8pm classes, she has ascended to a higher plane of knowledge, evolving past the lowly beasts who have yet to expose their minds to the higher study of legal ethics.

This semester-long course, which is a requirement to graduate, is often overlooked by skeptical students who do not understand how going over all of the Law Society of Ontario’s Rules of Professional Conduct in excruciating detail makes for more ethical lawyering. However, Shellshop was one of the rare few able to look past the surface-level course content and understand the underlying philosophical musings.

Having seen the light, Shellshop believes that it would be difficult to return to looking at shadows on the wall. She notes that after Legal Ethics, it feels like all other law courses just don’t do enough to address the crucial questions we as lawyers face.

She commented, “Sure, those courses are way more interesting and probably more useful, but do they ever tell us when to apply client-lawyer privilege?”

Client-lawyer privilege only scratches the surface of what is covered in Legal Ethics.

Shellshop now knows the answers to the most difficult questions posited by some of history’s greatest thinkers. For instance, she knows if one should let a train run over five people or divert the train so that it runs over one person instead. She knows how to build a functional society from scratch regardless of what position she would later occupy in that society. She knows how to cope with the endless task of rolling a boulder up a hill, only for it to roll back down as she gets close to the top.

And she credits Legal Ethics for this knowledge.

Most importantly, Shellshop knows how to live the good life, one which simultaneously respects all humans as equals, maximizes everyone’s happiness, optimizes social utility, maintains everyone’s moral character, and creates an ideal Kingdom of Ends.

“I can’t imagine graduating law school without having taken this course,” Shellshop said gratefully. “I highly recommend it to every student. It’s not about just knowing the law—it’s about knowing yourself.”

“Of course, it’s not like you could avoid it—it’s mandatory.”

Ultra Vires Presents: The Best of 2023!

SARA ESAYAS (1L)

What better way to start the new year than to reflect on the past one? This playlist includes some of the multi-genre music highlights from 2023, allowing you to reflect on all the moments of 2023 and set your goals for this upcoming year. Give it a listen if you want to flex your knowledge of 2023 tracks or if you want to meditate on the past year.

This playlist features: Aly & AJ, Remi Wolf, boygenius, Tennis, and yeule.

Explore | Engage | Learn Developing Future Leaders in Law

24 | January 25, 2024

DIVERSIONS

CUT OUT THESE VALENTINES AND GIVE THEM TO YOUR FRIENDS. CREDIT: RACHAEL GREGORIS

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