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Mock Trial
» continued from front cover
My mouth was probably hanging open a little
bit. However, the highest praise in the room came
from a certain friendly ghost who catcalled for
the duration of the performance. Who let him in,
anyway? Congratulations to Hilary Fender, Kate
Henley, and Stephanie Marchello for successfully
harnessing so much raw talent.
3. Sketches were consistently funny.
I’m sad to say that some past Mock Trials fell
victim to the vortex that forms when alcohol and
attention span come crashing together. Sketches
can easily be too long; songs can have too many
verses, and there can be too many of both. Not
so in 2014. In particular, I recall “Zombies at
Osgoode”, in which two students stuck in the
library following the zombie apocalypse weigh
the legal implications of bludgeoning one of their
former classmates, and the “Social Justice League”,
in which several heroes with questionable superpowers hash out their struggles in preserving
access to justice.
Reprising past success were the Bad Idea
Bears, though I must say one half of the disruptive duo has taken a turn for the provocative –
there was a great deal more hip-thrusting than
I expected from Jean-Paul Bevilacqua. Not that
I’m complaining. Also returning was the everpopular Drunk Cases. It’s taken me three years to
realize it, but the name of this sketch is a doubleentendre: the participants attempt, despite their
intoxication, and with varying degrees of success,
to recount the facts of a case, which invariably
involves someone doing something ridiculous or
dangerous in a drunken stupor. In any case, this
sketch was late in the show, so I don’t remember the name of the case, and I don’t remember
who was in the sketch (though the Obiter’s Dan
Mowat-Rose talks about the aftermath of filming
in this week’s Jurisfoodence). All I remember is
laughing like an idiot.
4. MTB delivers.
Lead guitarist Mike Sheps returned from Denmark and hit the ground running with this year’s
Mock Trial Band, which includes the Obiter’s
Alvin Qian, saxophonist extraordinaire, and Contributor Jesse Cohen, a closet harmonica virtuoso.
This year’s budget allowed the string section to
rent wireless units, permitting a sortie into the
crowd during one of the numbers, in which they
stomped about on desks and generally had a good
time. Also noteworthy was the minimalist performance of “Circle of Life”, complete with animal
costumes. Kwaku Tabi gets bonus points for that
performance. If past years are any indication, this
will not be the last time we see MTB this year.
Here’s hoping.
The Obiter Dicta
All in all, Mock Trial was everything one
would expect from a law school variety show:
plastic soda bottles with the wrong colour liquid
in them, flasks, singing, dancing, laughs, and a
capacity crowd pub night afterward. Producers
Jean-Paul Bevilacqua, Hilary Fender, and Quinn
Harris have done justice to the tradition.
Editorial
» continued from page 2
Lesson: No one is safe, and nothing is
forever.
As law students, with a minimum of two degrees
and an unlimited maximum (because if you made
it in law school, there’s a good chance you’re intellect-hungry and a professional student), we are
not immune from unemployment and we are not
guaranteed a long-term career anywhere. Education is not a golden ticket to a stable and secure
future. Your J.D. is not a failsafe from the real
world. If you came into this (legal) world with the
idea that you would be assured a cushy job in an
ivory downtown tower, then hopefully the Heenan
Blaikie dissolution has readjusted and reset your
perspective from rosy to reality.
Lesson: Even the mighty fall; us mere
mortals are likely to as well.
Pessimistic? Maybe. Realistic? Absolutely.
The only thing we can be sure, or certain,
about is that change will happen. Not all change
is as dramatic as the subject matter of this editorial. But, change nonetheless is the only constant that can be confidently relied upon in this
life. You can either hide from it, curled up in the
fetal position under your desk, or be ready for it.
The choice is yours. The legal industry is becoming increasingly mobile, and your own mobility is
rooted in your transferable skills, growing wealth
of knowledge, applicable experience, and relevant
exposure to various areas of law. It is your choice
and, one would posit, your prerogative to prepare yourself for a world where firms fall, great
articling students don’t get hired back, associates
get fired without committing any grave errors,
and senior partners unexpectedly jump ship from
time to time.
Lesson: Get ready, buckle up, we’re
just getting started kids.
Letters
» continued from page 3
That said, we share with BLSA the view that
we need to do better as an institution and as a
community. For this reason, in December, we
decided to reach out to York’s Centre for Human
Rights, a national leader in equity and inclusion,
to provide training for Osgoode staff beginning
in 2014. With input from the Centre for Human
Rights, we also plan to develop specific guidelines relating to the library’s restricted access
period, and other contexts where we think additional clarity and resources are needed. Building on these institutional initiatives, combined
with the advocacy of groups like BLSA, and in
keeping with Osgoode’s historic commitment to
providing a supportive environment for all our
students and community members, I am confident we can and will do justice to our aspirations
of ensuring Osgoode is a positive, respectful and
welcoming space for all.
Lorne Sossin, Dean
Labour
Minister
» continued from page 4
When I asked the Minister what he thought
of Quebec’s Charter of Values, he replied: “[This
is a] document that is anti-Canadian...our country and our Charter of Rights and Freedoms are
about respecting each other, being tolerant and
inclusive, and respecting each other’s faith. I and
our government oppose the Charter.”
Finally, for those law students who are thinking about a career in politics, getting involved
in the community is key, says Minister Naqvi.
Public service is “a rewarding experience” and “an
amazing way of building one’s community.” The
best part is that, as a law student, the individual
is already equipp ed to cope with the challenges
of public service: problem solving. Anyone interested in municipal politics?