1L
Janice FungApril 3, 2023
Ottawa Summer 2023 General Recruit Numbers
uOttawa dominates with hometown advantage The Ottawa general recruit concluded at the end of February. This year, 36 employers participated in the recruit, an increase […]
Jeffrey LiuApril 3, 2023
Toronto Summer 2023 1L Recruit Numbers
U of T Law students continue to lead the pack The 2023 Toronto 1L recruit resulted in at least 76 students getting hired. Although this […]
Claire BettioMarch 3, 2023
No Job? No Problem!
Comforting words from a 2L who did everything wrong in her 1L job search Hi, 1L friends! I hope everyone isn’t too stressed, but I […]
Sabrina MacklaiJanuary 30, 2023
What to Do When You “Fail” the 1L Recruit
Odds are, you probably will The Toronto Summer 2023 1L recruit is in full swing with applications due just a little over a week ago; […]
Manreet BrarDecember 5, 2022
Taking It 1 L at a Time
Reflecting on the first semester of 1L When making the decision about which law school to attend, I was repeatedly warned about ‘U of Tears.’ […]
Nicolas WilliamsOctober 3, 2022
2022 Ushers in a New Curriculum for Incoming 1Ls
1L curriculum adds courses on Indigenous peoples and the law and removes Legal Process The Faculty of Law is no stranger to shifting academic requirements […]
Luka KnezevicOctober 3, 2022
Orientation Recap
Good experience overall, but room for improvement As 1Ls start settling into their doctrinal classes, Ultra Vires asked a few to reflect on their orientation […]
Taylor RodriguesOctober 3, 2022
Welcome to Law School, You Will Probably Be Average
Tips to thrive in 1L from a mostly average 2L Dear 1Ls, congratulations on getting into one of the most selective and, some might say, […]
Angela FengSeptember 29, 2021
Toronto Summer 2021 1L Recruitment Results
Forty seven first-years obtain employment through the 1L recruit In this year’s formal Toronto 1L Recruit, 47 1L students obtained summer positions. While U of […]
Alisha KrishnaMarch 5, 2021
A Review of This Year’s 1L Joint Professionalism Training Sessions
While the JPT workshops showed some promise in discussing anti-oppression and anti-racism, much improvement is needed Anti-racism, mental health, and the role of the legal […]
Alisha LiNovember 2, 2020
(Solicited) Advice for 1Ls
Upper Years give their take on how to succeed as a 1L With school closing (again) and the term slowly approaching exam season, Ultra Vires […]
Harry MylesOctober 5, 2020
The 1L Pandemic Experience
Masks and parks and Zoom, oh my! On November 1, 2019, I, along with thousands of others, submitted my application to U of T Law. […]
Annecy PangOctober 5, 2020
Changes to the 1L Curriculum (2020-21)
Associate Deans Decide to Make the Small Groups One Semester for the 2020-2021 Academic Year Students entering 1L in Fall 2020 will have their small […]
Editor-in-ChiefNovember 2, 2019
Welcome to 1Ls (revised)
A primer on success To all the 1Ls out there: Welcome to the Faculty of Law. I am sure that you’re used to the pace […]
Vivian ChengNovember 2, 2019
Classic 1L Mistakes
I’ve made a huge mistake You wouldn’t have thought I’d have had time to make all these mistakes by now, and yet… Living with other […]
William MazurekSeptember 28, 2019
Welcome to 1Ls
A primer on success To all the 1Ls out there: welcome to the Faculty of Law. I hope that, by now, you’ve gotten used to […]
Web EditorMarch 27, 2019
Toronto Summer 2019 1L Recruitment Results
66 first years hired all-in-all; 17% more than last year The chart is available here. This year’s 1L Recruit took place during reading week, February […]
Web EditorSeptember 28, 2017
More Featured Students: How the Other Half Lives
Stephanie D’Amico (2L) Every September, the law school regales us with thrilling accounts of some of the most high-profile and glamourous members of the incoming […]
Web EditorSeptember 28, 2017
What Should I Be Asking?
Suhasini Rao (1L) There is a universal truth known to anyone who followed Timothy Goes To School during its three seasons of glory: starting a […]
Norm YallenSeptember 28, 2017
Dear 1Ls, it’s Okay to…
Relax Rachel Chan (2L) In 1L, I often found it difficult to stop working. I felt like there was always something I should be reading […]
Norm YallenJanuary 26, 2017
Ultra Vires Guide to January of 1L
Norm Yallen (1L) January of 1L can be a stressful time, what with grades, the 1L recruit, mooting, and everything else to deal with. Fortunately, […]
Rabiya MansoorNovember 30, 2016
UV “News” Round Up
Rabiya Mansoor (2L) and Kevin Schoenfeldt (2L) Admin Goes Day Without Student Complaint, Assumes the Worst On November 24, U of T Law’s administration experienced […]
Kevin SchoenfeldtNovember 30, 2016
The Administration’s Guide to Writing a Law School Exam
Kevin Schoenfeldt (2L) The administration asked us to print this how-to guide for writing law school exams, out of concern that students were ignoring their […]
Rabiya MansoorOctober 27, 2016
Ask Ab Initio
Rabiya Mansoor (2L) Dear AI, I have missed a week of school because I was sick. I am too scared to ask anyone for notes […]
Cory BettelSeptember 28, 2016
I’m Not Here to Make Friends
Cory Bettel (2L) Maybe it’s whimsical and obscure and makes me a little weird… but I’ve spent my entire life obsessed with reality television. […]
Web EditorSeptember 28, 2016
Unsolicited, Unqualified, and Unwarranted Advice to the 1L Class
Scott Dallen (2L) Okay, so you made it into U of T Law. Now that you have had a few weeks to settle into […]
Kevin SchoenfeldtSeptember 28, 2016
Meet Your Fellow 1Ls
Kevin Schoenfeldt (2L) After being in law school for over a month now, you’ve probably met many of your fellow 1Ls. You might even be […]
Web EditorNovember 26, 2015
First-years have got this
Nick Papageorge (1L) We all know that U of T Law is a brick to the face. Or at least it used to be, back […]
Web EditorSeptember 30, 2015
Dear 1Ls – You Do You, Boo
Rona Ghanbari (2L) As you enter your second month of 1L (holy crap a month as already gone by WHAAATT???) you may be inundated with […]
Web EditorSeptember 30, 2015
1Ls Talk 1L
Initial Feelings, Impressions and Sweeping Generalizations From Students Who Haven’t Had The Sincerity Beaten Out Of Them Yet So far, 1L has raised a bunch […]
Web EditorSeptember 30, 2015
1L students demonstrate against anti-alcoholism sentiments
Nick Papageorge (1L) We were greeted by a giant tent, for we needed some visual affirmation of the hermetic intellectual circus about to take place […]
Web EditorSeptember 30, 2015
A Guide To 1L
Alex Redinger (2L) and Rona Ghanbari (2L) Previous editions of the Ultra Vires 1L guide have professed to be definitive, or at the very least […]
Web EditorSeptember 30, 2015
Changes to the 1L Curriculum in Retrospect
Matt Howe (3L) and Alex Redinger (2L) Two years ago, the Faculty of Law’s decisions to “semesterize” the 1L curriculum and introduce the Legal Methods […]
Web EditorMarch 26, 2014
Expectation vs. Reality: Exam Edition
Social Life Expectation: Study for a few hours, take a break and maybe hang out with a friend or watch a movie before returning to […]
Web EditorMarch 26, 2014
1L In Review
With the upcoming revamp of the 1L program next year, it looks like I get the last word on ours. Here’s hoping I can give […]
Web EditorMarch 26, 2014
Legal Methods and O-Week: Seven reasons why an August start will ruin an august tradition
A notable change in the 1L curriculum is the addition of the “Legal Methods” intensive, which has been scheduled to take place from August 18-29. […]
Web EditorMarch 26, 2014
Heard that you were talking sh*t and you didn’t think that we would hear it…
Okay so maybe not necessarily talking shit, and maybe no real connection to Gwen Stefani or Hollaback Girls …am I aging myself with that lyrical […]
Aron NimaniMarch 26, 2014
Point/Counterpoint: Which is the best year currently at U of T Law?
Point- 1Ls are Best Aron Nimani (1L) Go ahead, say what you will about the 1Ls. Seriously. We love to hear it, because you’re […]
Web EditorMarch 26, 2014
This is How You Do It: The 1L Recruit
Having had some time to reflect upon the 1L recruitment, here are some thoughts, opinions, and suggestions about how to be successful in the process. […]
Web EditorFebruary 26, 2014
Why A Day Spent on Professionalism and Ethics was a Day Wasted
It is with great disbelief that upper years look at a 1L who complains about a mere two days (one day per term) of professionalism […]
Web EditorFebruary 26, 2014
To Semesterize or to Not Semesterize
The significant changes to the 1L curriculum are designed to address problems with student workload, learning, and stress. This year, I was the 1L student […]
Web EditorFebruary 26, 2014
1L Hires (2014)
First year recruitment concluded on Thursday, February 20th. Toronto’s legal offices hired 42 1Ls this year, versus last year’s 44. All data is self-reported by […]
Web EditorFebruary 26, 2014
An Overview of the 1L Curriculum Changes
At the Faculty Council meeting on February 12, a strong majority of the Council voted to approve the recommendations in the Final Report of the […]
Web EditorJanuary 29, 2014
The Most Optimistic Story You’ll Read Today
The biggest refrain we 1Ls tend to hear whenever the subject of summer jobs comes up is just how comically low of a chance any […]
Web EditorJanuary 29, 2014
1L Hire
Last year, law firms hired 44 people in the 1L summer recruitment process, from seven law schools across Canada. 19 were from U of T […]
Web EditorNovember 27, 2013
A Futile Attempt to De-Stress the 1Ls ALEX CARMONA (1L)
They’re coming. In September they were just a haze in the far-off distance, way less important than making sure you weren’t that one loser who […]
Web EditorOctober 30, 2013
Where the 1Ls Are
It is said that a single pride of lions can require up to 100 miles of hunting space. In the past, the same was true […]
Web EditorOctober 30, 2013
Section 1: Why Can’t We Be Friends?
For those of you who are willing to cast off the shackles of case reading, map-making and OCI prep for at least one night a […]
Paloma van GrollSeptember 25, 2013
The Definitive Guide to 1L
“All of this has happened before… but it doesn’t have to happen again” Breaking the Cycle 1L is always a stressful year, but it doesn’t […]
David FeldmanMarch 27, 2013
First Year: A Movie Review
This season’s budget-busting megamovie, Law School: First Year, is an epic coming of age story in the grand tradition of The Paper Chase and Legally […]
Web EditorFebruary 27, 2013
1L Hiring
A total of 44 students were hired in this year’s 1L summer hiring cycle. See the chart for detailed firm breakdowns. Note that all data […]
Web EditorNovember 30, 2012
Do your LSATs matter in law school?
Here’s an extra that didn’t make it to our print edition: according to our fall recruitment survey data, your LSAT score will have no impact […]
Paloma van GrollNovember 28, 2012
What kind of studier are you?
Judging by the well-attended ‘Exam Prep’ seminar that the SLS hosted, the only thing on 1L’s minds in November is December. Namely, how to survive […]
Paloma van GrollNovember 28, 2012
Seven Problems with Ethics Week
The grumblings about Ethics Week began almost as soon as we found out about it. The general sentiment was that it seemed kind of boring […]
Web EditorOctober 17, 2012
1L Curriculum Unchanged… For Now
This year’s 1L curriculum could have looked very different. In March, the Faculty Council Standing Curriculum Committee voted on a series of proposed changes to […]
Paloma van GrollOctober 17, 2012
Reflections on 1 month of 1L life
We came to U of T bright-eyed and fresh-faced (just kidding we’re jaded and sombre at all times), only to find out that we are […]
Jacquie ROctober 17, 2012
Six U of T Law School “truisms” That (sort of) Aren’t Actually True
1 TRUISM: The highlighter method is “a thing”. TRUTH: The highlighter method is a confusing, unbelievably time consuming thing with questionable value unless you’re hoping to […]
Web EditorSeptember 12, 2012
Guide to 1L
Glossary: Events: Mayo’s Muffin Madness: First Wednesday of Every month Dean Moran feeds us breakfast! Don’t forget a reusable mug. Pub night – SLS (Student […]
Web EditorSeptember 12, 2012
SLS 1L Program Audit
The volume of assigned readings in 1L varies so widely across courses and within sections of the same course that the Faculty should establish a […]
Web EditorFebruary 25, 2012
1Ls: LRW Floundering
It may surprise first year students to know that the Legal Research and Writing course was a response to upper year student requests for a […]
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