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Osgoode Hall Law School Professor Richard Haigh and his student co-host get together to discuss the in‘s and out‘s of Canadian law school life while attempting to be funny. Sit down, shut up, and don‘t forget to do your readings.
Episodes
Monday Apr 26, 2021
Monday Apr 26, 2021
Our guest today is Andrew O'Brien, a 1L student at Osgoode. Andrew discusses what it was like to complete his first term of 1L (partly in a pandemic, although Richard always wants it to be more generic). Then all three go on to discuss how to maintain an online profile when you are embarking on a professional career (albeit, Richard mainly listens since he has no online profile). The bottom line: boring people will excel in this new world!
Links:
WLGTDWI Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/whatslawgottodowithit/
Music Attribution:
What's Love Got to Do With It
by Tina Turner
Soundcloud: What's Love Got to Do with It
Monday Apr 19, 2021
Monday Apr 19, 2021
Our guest today is Dante Trunzo, currently an aerospace engineer in Montreal but in September of this year, a 1L at McGill. (We refer to him as a 0L which we may ask him to patent/copyright/trademark/whatever). Richard and Felicity try to handhold him through the process of becoming a law student. Dante clearly doesn't need our help.
Links:
WLGTDWI Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/whatslawgottodowithit/
Music Attribution:
What's Love Got to Do With It
by Tina Turner
Soundcloud: What's Love Got to Do with It
What's Law Got to Do With It
Music by Tina Turner; Lyrics by Nikolas Koschany
Monday Apr 05, 2021
Monday Apr 05, 2021
Christina Tassopolous is our guest today. She's a 1L student at Osgoode whom Richard taught in the fall term of 2020. Christina talks about how her first year has been going, why she joined student government and why, unlike Richard, she's an angel who belongs in law school. We have yet to determine where Felicity is on the rebel/angel scale.
Links:
WLGTDWI Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/whatslawgottodowithit/
Music Attributions:
What's Love Got to Do With It
by Tina Turner
Soundcloud: What's Love Got to Do with It
Tuesday Mar 30, 2021
Tuesday Mar 30, 2021
It's Part 3 of Alex Mulligan's series on the 2021 job interview process. Today is all about the dreaded "callback". If you don't know what that is, have a listen. Right now.
Links:
WLGTDWI Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/whatslawgottodowithit/
Music Attributions:
What's Law Got to Do With It
Music by Tina Turner; Lyrics by Nikolas Koschany
What's Love Got to Do With It
by Tina Turner
Soundcloud: What's Love Got to Do with It
Saturday Mar 27, 2021
Saturday Mar 27, 2021
This is Part 2 of Alex Mulligan's report on the 2021 job interview process. As noted in episode #73, Alex is a 2L student at Osgoode. Today's episode is all about the second part of the process where candidates have longer interviews. Again, Alex and Felicity have a lot to say on the subject; Richard continues to simply tag along, although he coins a new term, OZI (which the others make fun of).
Links:
WLGTDWI Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/whatslawgottodowithit/
Music Attribution:
What's Love Got to Do With It
by Tina Turner
Soundcloud: What's Love Got to Do with It
Tuesday Mar 23, 2021
Tuesday Mar 23, 2021
Alex Mulligan, a 2L student at Osgoode, joins us today and for the following two episodes as we do a special series on the job interviews in 2021. Today's episode, Part 1, is all about the "OCI" process in Ontario, where employers and students get together for 17 minutes to decide if they'd like to get together for longer later. Richard is just along for the ride.
Links:
WLGTDWI Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/whatslawgottodowithit/
Music Attribution:
What's Law Got to Do With It
Music by Tina Turner; Lyrics by Nikolas Koschany
What's Love Got to Do With It
by Tina Turner
Soundcloud: What's Love Got to Do with It
Monday Mar 15, 2021
Monday Mar 15, 2021
Our guest this episode is Erin McCready, a friend of Felicity's studying at Northeastern University School of Law in Boston. We first had Erin on the show in episode #57, NUSOL v. MAGA, related to the 2020 US election. As we indicated then, that episode was actually Erin's second episode with us, but we simply had to launch it first because of the timing. We now go back to the future for Erin's first recording with us. We discuss what it's like to be a Canadian student at a US law school and Erin and Felicity re-connect over their Quidditch triumphs.
Links:
WLGTDWI Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/whatslawgottodowithit/
Music Attribution:
What's Love Got to Do With It
by Tina Turner
Soundcloud: What's Love Got to Do with It
Monday Mar 08, 2021
Monday Mar 08, 2021
Our guest this episode is Emily Kot, returning again for more challenging Zoom discussions. The three discuss what it has been like learning online for the better part of a year. No one can agree on what are creative solutions or what are just weird ones.
WLGTDWI Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/whatslawgottodowithit/
Music Attribution:
What's Love Got to Do With It
by Tina Turner
Soundcloud: What's Love Got to Do with It
Friday Feb 26, 2021
Friday Feb 26, 2021
Dylan Yan returns as our guest this episode. Dylan is in Montreal at McGill. Felicity and Dylan take over the show and ask Richard all about student evaluations of professors.
Links:
WLGTDWI Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/whatslawgottodowithit/
Music Attribution:
What's Love Got to Do With It
by Tina Turner
Soundcloud: What's Love Got to Do with It
What's Law Got to Do With It
Music by Tina Turner; Lyrics by Nikolas Koschany
Monday Feb 22, 2021
Monday Feb 22, 2021
Shaniel Lewis returns as a guest for this episode. Shaniel's a 2L student at Osgoode.
After much rambling, the discussion finally gets around to the reason Shaniel has returned -- to talk about the Black Law Students Association (or more colloquially known as BLSA, pronounced "Balsa").
Richard teases both Felicity and Shaniel by withholding some sage advice. He also remembers he has a gift for Shaniel, which remains hibernating in his office at the law school. He promises to get it to her someday once the pandemic is over.
Links:
WLGTDWI Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/whatslawgottodowithit/
Music Attribution:
What's Love Got to Do With It
by Tina Turner
Soundcloud: What's Love Got to Do with It
Wednesday Feb 17, 2021
Wednesday Feb 17, 2021
Our guest today is Nikolas Koschany, who is a 1L at Osgoode. We talk about what it is like to finish the first semester of law school, how the Supreme Court is not just fond of living trees, but can also be described as a gardener or as a pair of pants (you'll have to listen to figure that one out!). Nikolas describes themself as like a pie. Richard laments the use of metaphors.
Nikolas is the writer and singer of our new alternative opening to the show. We love them for it; and this episode is where the promise to do it occurred. It's always nice to see people living up to their promises.
Links:
WLGTDWI Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/whatslawgottodowithit/
Music Attribution:
What's Love Got to Do With It
by Tina Turner
Soundcloud: What's Love Got to Do with It
What's Law Got to Do With It
Music by Tina Turner; Lyrics by Nikolas Koschany
Monday Feb 08, 2021
Monday Feb 08, 2021
Our guests today are Colin McMillan, who joined us on episode #63, and his roommate, Tom Russell. Colin is a 1L at Ryerson; Tom is a 1L at UofT. They have known each other since high school. We talk about what it is like to live with someone who is in law school but not the same one. There's something about law school that brings people together.
Links:
WLGTDWI Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/whatslawgottodowithit/
Music Attribution:
What's Love Got to Do With It
by Tina Turner
Soundcloud: What's Love Got to Do with It
What's Law Got to Do With It
Music by Tina Turner; Lyrics by Nikolas Koschany
Monday Jan 18, 2021
Monday Jan 18, 2021
Our guest today is Karen Randhawa, a student at Osgoode. Karen was a mentee of Felicity's in her first year. Karen knew from grade 4 that she wanted to be lawyer; more relevant, she knew from her undergraduate days that she wanted to do tax law. That's why we had her on the show -- while some people take a long time to know what they want to do in life (read: Felicity) others are dead sure early on. For Karen, the only question is whether she will do transactional tax work or tax litigation. We all agree that it's okay to be either type but no matter what, it isn't a bad thing to keep your options open.
Links:
Legally Brown: https://legally-brown.weebly.com/
Legally Brown Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/legallybrownlaw/
WLGTDWI Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/whatslawgottodowithit/
Music Attribution:
What's Love Got to Do With It
by Tina Turner
Soundcloud: What's Love Got to Do with It
Friday Jan 08, 2021
Friday Jan 08, 2021
We are joined by a returning guest, Sim Singh. Sim regales us with his new method for accomplishing three key things at one time: walking in nature with 40 lbs in a backpack, listening to Audible books on his earbuds. You learn, you bear weight, and you improve the cardio-vascular system. He recommends all law students try it. The three then discuss some basic advice to students about the recruitment process. Sim's bottom line: life is full of constant unknowns, flux and change; keep your perspective and realize all law students have been granted a privilege; something will happen. Richard and Felicity feel like guests on their own show.
Music Attribution:
What's Love Got to Do With It
by Tina Turner
Soundcloud: What's Love Got to Do with It
Monday Dec 21, 2020
Monday Dec 21, 2020
We are joined this episode by Zach Battiston and Karly Lyons. Zach and Karly are the co-founders of the Legal Listening Podcast. Like audiobooks, the Legal Listening podcasts provides an oral version of famous cases in their entirety. Karly and Zach explain how it came to be, how it all works, and why reading (or listening) to the full text of a case is often better than its excerpt.
Legal Listening Podcast: https://www.legallistening.com/
Music Attribution:
What's Love Got to Do With It by Tina Turner
Soundcloud: What's Love Got to Do with It
Wednesday Dec 09, 2020
Wednesday Dec 09, 2020
Our guest this episode is Colin McMillan, a 1L student at Ryerson. Colin did his undergrad at UofT in physics and history, took a gap year where he worked in pest control and at a medical lab. But the reason he's on the show is mainly because he was one of the lucky students to be inducted into the inaugural class at Ryerson law school.
We discuss what's it like being at Ryerson. Colin goes over the format, which is different from most (all?) law schools in Canada. In particular, every class will have 2 instructors: a regular "professor" for theory elements, and a practising lawyer for tutorials and practical elements of lawyering. Already, he's had a lot of hands on experience experimenting with things like filling out leases, writing opinion letters, and interviewing clients. Colin also notes that the school has a requirement to do an internship which normally means that for one term in 3L, students will be placed at a law office.
All in all, Colin's experience at Ryerson has been, it seems safe to say, fantastic. The profs have been welcoming and engaging, the school has navigated Covid as well as could be expected, the practical sessions have proven valuable, and he's gained a lot of confidence regarding the practice of law. Felicity thinks everyone who goes to Ryerson loves it; Richard recommends she may wish to do law school there all over again.
Music Attribution:
What's Love Got to Do With It
by Tina Turner
Soundcloud: What's Love Got to Do with It
Tuesday Dec 01, 2020
Tuesday Dec 01, 2020
Our guest this episode is Sydney McIvor, a 3L student. Sydney mentions a play for her law-related entertainment -- What the Constitution Means to Me by Heidi Schreck -- which she saw on Broadway. (Lucky her! -- but also lucky for those who have access to Amazon Prime as it is available for streaming: https://www.amazon.com/What-Constitution-Means-Me/dp/B08KRB3FQ4)
Sydney talks about two internships/placements she's had, both of which took her outside of Canada. First, during her 1L summer she was with the World Bank Group in Washington DC -- an internship funded through Osgoode Hall Law School (there's another position funded through Western Law); and second, a term spent at The Hague in the Residual Mechanism for International Criminal Tribunals - which related to matters left over from the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia. Richard thought she was paid for these positions, but she assured us she wasn't.
Felicity is curious as to why Sydney hates Canada because she's always off galivanting around the world. Sydney's answer is much more sophisticated: she sees law as a somewhat limited licensed profession because expertise in it is not all that transferable, unlike other professions. For her, committing to one jurisdiction (as you pretty much need to do if you're going to have a career in professional practice) can be daunting for someone just starting out, and the barriers to moving around are high.
Sydney's advice if you want to do international law work: think about going to law school in the place you want to be; but if that's not possible, realize that a common law degree is a good backstop, particularly if the law school has an international reputation (which many in Canada do).
Music Attribution:
What's Love Got to Do With It
by Tina Turner
Soundcloud: What's Love Got to Do with It
Monday Nov 23, 2020
Monday Nov 23, 2020
Felicity is in a state because she just had her graduation photos taken, and is wondering whether everything is happening too fast. Is she ready to leave the law school nest?
Our guest this episode is Dylan Yan, a former student at Osgoode who transferred to McGill and is back in 1L all over again. Richard and Dylan have an unusual relationship as Dylan, who admits he rarely goes to class, got to know Richard well because he often visited his office during 1L at Osgoode. (Richard taught Dylan Public and Constitutional Law). He ended up transferring because he realized that there's no truth to the rumour that you should attend law school where you want to practice; so he made the move for himself, not for some wacky idea.
Felicity wonders whether there are differences approaches between different law schools. Both she and Dylan talk about how the form of law school evaluation gets reflected in class attendance and study habits. (Hint: all agree that form follows function here, which is far from ideal). Dylan concludes by relating a story of how he found a creative way to complete a property law photography assignment. Felicity and Richard are rendered almost speechless.
Music Attribution:
What's Love Got to Do With It
by Tina Turner
Soundcloud: What's Love Got to Do with It
Monday Nov 16, 2020
Monday Nov 16, 2020
Shaniel Lewis is our guest this episode. Shaniel's a 2L student at Osgoode, and it's her first time being a guest on a podcast.
Shaniel looks back to law school from the perspective of her 1L self. The amount of readings were a shock to her, she didn't expect to be reading cases everyday, including weekends. Richard wonders why it's such a shock; Felicity admits she also found the first year to include a lot of reading, but admitted she's a slow reader and knew it would take a lot of time.
Richard reveals that he wanted Shaniel on the show because she was a talker in class (as was Felicity), and is curious what they do to rein themselves in. Both agree that asking good questions in class is valuable, but sometimes it is better to go up individually to a prof. Shaniel drops the bomb that she sometimes ask questions just to get a laugh. The lesson to be learned, ultimately, is don't be annoying with your questions. Richard is put on the spot as to what he does with bad questions; he's far too diplomatic to ever say such a thing out loud (although he thinks it!)
Music Attribution:
What's Love Got to Do With It
by Tina Turner
Soundcloud: What's Love Got to Do with It
Tuesday Nov 10, 2020
Tuesday Nov 10, 2020
Our guest this episode is Emily Kot, a 2L student at Osgoode. Although she recommends Legally Blonde as a law-related film, she mentions she's seen Legally Blonde the musical. Richard and Felicity are completely blown away as they had no idea such a thing existed.
Turns out, she saw it at Hart House at the University of Toronto, as friends took her there to help ease the stress of grades release. That's exactly what the episode is about: 1L life and in particular, dealing with 1L life during a pandemic. Emily has a unique perspective because she lived in Hong Kong during the SARS epidemic in 2003. She remembers being pulled out of school, having to wear masks, and when she went back to school, having her music teacher pointing out those masked students who were not singing because he could see that their foreheads were not moving. It isn't clear how that relates to law school, but when Richard asks Emily for advice or pointers on how to cope, she says the biggest thing is knowing that the pandemic will end, that there is hope. Excellent advice.
Emily also says that keeping perspective is important while the pandemic Is on. Although anxieties about grades will always exist, Emily tries to turn the focus away from law students being turned into commodities for firms, since in the world at large, people are suffering in ways that put the privileges of law students in stark relief. Also excellent advice.
Emily and Felicity compare law school to high school. That was one thing Emily found she wasn't prepared for. 1L is clearly the most like high school, as students lack agency (Emily's word) but both agree things improve in upper years. Richard wonders if the "high school" label is unfairly pejorative -- there are good aspects to the collegiality and friendships that occur because of everyone's close proximity and shared experiences. Reluctantly, the other two agree. Richard coins a new term, BLS, meaning before law school, to reflect the two halves of one's life that law school manufactures. Felicity disses it as a term that will never catch on, but Emily and Felicity both then say it's important not to abandon your BLS friends, and Emily imparts some final wisdom, which is to find out and protect something you used to do in your BLS life. Richard names the episode BLS as vindication.
Music Attribution:
What's Love Got to Do With It
by Tina Turner
Soundcloud: What's Love Got to Do with It