A subterranean passage north, opening to suburban streets rarely serviced. A mall the size of St. George Campus. New houses spaced against old houses. Poor urban planning and architecture, but, some say this is still Toronto. I call this exile. On a good day, it takes one hour with the TTC, by metro, then bus; on a bad day, it takes two.
Yea… but I was not one of those banished from the inner city for not having performed well on undergraduate and LSAT exams, left dreaming of Bay Street. No, I chose exile, for something that I couldn’t find at U of T: an advanced labour and employment law course in first semester. I wasn’t the only one there. On my first day, I found another like me, taking a class in Native Rights.
Welcome to the Ignat Kaneff Building, still under construction. An obvious victim of a naming rights fundraising campaign. Inside one can find the MacMillan LLP Reading Room, the Goodmans LLP Bistro. There’s a goofy picture of Dean Sossin of U of T Fame with other faculty holding up jumbo-sized red letter blocks spelling “TRANSFORMATION”. Near the front door are copies of the student’s satiric newspaper “Obiter Dicta.” I understand that you, the reader, may not believe this account of a parallel universe. Believe me, I was there. Although I found myself as a stranger in a strange land, this is no science fiction account of a dystopian future. It is an account of today’s Osgoode Hall.
Actually… the title of the physical hall has also been sold. I sat myself down in Gowlings Hall which is lined with service offices such as a Help Desk, the Office of Clinical Education, Admissions & Financial Aid, and something called the Centre for Innovation in Dispute Resolution. The first thing I noticed about the students, was how diverse they were. Not too far away I noticed a female security guard wearing what appeared to be a bullet-proof vest. Turning to the middle aged woman sitting next to me I asked: “overkill, don’t you think?” She responded, by politely informing me that her grasp of English was limited.
I was getting culture shock, so I got up to search for something familiar, and for a bit of water. I found a BRITA water fountain, and some WASPs milling about, which assured me that I was at a Canadian law school. Nonetheless, I’m sure that if Obiter Dicta were to have a competition for the “WASP of the Year” like Ultra Vires, they would have an easy time due to a lack of eligible candidates.
The question hit me: was this really Osgoode Hall? I knew the sign outside this building said so, but, what did this place have to do with that venerable institution? The modern school seemed to be making a desperate attempt to connect with its past. There were video terminals with the slogan “Osgoode: Then and Now,” juxtaposing class photos and achievements from different eras. On some of the walls are photocopies of old class photos. Presumably, the originals from the 19th Century are too valuable to place in hallways frequented by contemporary students.
Osgoode Hall exemplifies the philosophical problem presented by the Ship of Theseus. If every piece of wood that makes a ship were replaced over time, would it still be the same ship? Likewise, if overtime, Osgoode Hall changes locations, building materials, faculty, student body, and curriculum, is it still Osgoode Hall, or, Wasgoode Hall? I don’t know. I saw a painting, hung proudly in a student common area depicting various Osgoode students with the line “#1 Law School in Canada… Again” What does that mean? Was the painter under the impression that Osgoode is currently the best law school in Canada, or, was this some sort of nostalgic hope for the future?
Nonetheless, I was particularly impressed by two of Osgoode Hall’s practices. The first, is the availability of A+’s. That’s right reader, if you want an A+ on your U of T Law transcript, don’t donate a million dollars to the new building fundraising campaign, try taking a cross-listed class at Osgoode Hall instaed. The second, is the bar on SNAILS [Students Not Actually in Law School] in the library during exams.
Most surprising, were the students. They were very welcoming, and there were so many of them! Although I often introduced myself as a student from U of T, I experienced no hostility. Sincerely, I would like to thank our distant northern cousins for their hospitality, but, I hope to never take the bus up there again.
