Blog
Support and reporting resources amid the conflict in Israel and Palestine
December 18, 2023 - The following is a non-exhaustive list of support and reporting resources amid the conflict in Israel and Palestine and its ongoing impact on students. We understand that this is an exceptionally difficult time for Palestinian, Israeli, Arab, Muslim and Jewish students.
Read more...An Historical Account of the Orderly Payment of Debts Act Reference: Limiting Provincial Efforts to Protect Insolvent Debtors
September 21, 2022 - In a new article, Professor Thomas Telfer and Virginia Torrie (University of Manitoba) provide an historical account of Alberta’s Orderly Payment of Debts Act and analyze the importance of the consequent reference case which ruled upon the constitutional validity of the Act.
Read more...Welcome to the fall term at Western Law
September 01, 2022 - I am delighted to welcome you (or welcome you back) to Western Law for the 2022-23 academic year.
Read more...Our Charter – Our Rights: Protest, the Charter and International Human Rights Conference
August 15, 2022 - Benjamin Drummond and Sophie Lewycky celebrated the 40th anniversary of the Charter by attending the "Our Charter – Our Rights: Protest, the Charter and International Human Rights" Conference hosted by the Human Rights Research and Education Centre (HRREC) at the University of Ottawa Faculty of Law.
Read more...A law student’s perspective on PDAC
July 18, 2022 - Mitchell Grimmer represented Western Law as a student Dattels Fellow at the June 2022 Prospectors & Developers Association of Canada (PDAC) conference in Toronto, Ontario.
Read more...Dean's update on Jan. 31 return to classes
January 27, 2022 - In this return-to-class update, Dean Chamberlain covers everything students need to know to have a safe, healthy, and productive winter term.
Read more...Message from the Dean: Western Law Advisory Council
December 16, 2021 - Dean Erika Chamberlain addresses Western Law's newly-formed Advisory Council and what is being done to ensure diverse voices are represented.
Read more...Farm Businesses, Debt Adjustment & Federalism
December 03, 2021 - Professor Thomas Telfer and co-author Virginia Torrie consider the impact of Reference Re Debt Adjustment Act, 1937 (Alta.) on the field of federal bankruptcy and insolvency law.
Read more...Lloyd v Google: UK Supreme Court holds that England’s representative rule can be used to craft a class action
November 10, 2021 - Professor Suzanne Chiodo writes on the long-awaited judgment in Lloyd v Google.
Read more...Ducking the Ricochet: The Supreme Court of Canada on Foreign Judgments
November 08, 2021 - Professor Stephen Pitel shares his thoughts on the court’s decision in HMB Holdings Ltd v. Antigua and Barbuda, 2021 SCC 44.
Read more...Making sport safer: the Sport Solution Clinic and the changing nature of sport disputes
September 23, 2021 - The Sport Solution Clinic expanded its legal services last year to include athlete representation in safe sport disputes, and has since been retained by several female athletes, who – despite being from different national sport organizations (“NSOs”) – all brought safe sport complaints against their coaches.
Read more...Dean Chamberlain's top ten highlights for the 2020-21 academic year
June 29, 2021 - The 2020-21 past year was historic in so many ways. While it’s natural to think about the major disruptions caused by the pandemic, we also need to recognize the ongoing successes of our faculty, staff, students and alumni. Here are my top 10 highlights, in no particular order.
Read more...Becoming competitive on the worldwide stage: UK Supreme Court gives green light to class actions
December 11, 2020 - The UK Supreme Court has given its stamp of approval to the country’s fledgling competition law class action regime, relying on Canadian jurisprudence in doing so. Opt-out class actions have been part of UK competition law since October 2015, when Schedule 8 to the Consumer Rights Act 2015 came into force, amending the Competition Act 1998.
Read more...Holding extractive companies liable for human rights abuses committed abroad
December 07, 2020 - In the last days of November 2020, the Swiss nation voted on a referendum question with high stakes for industry: the passing of a law intent on rendering Swiss businesses liable for human rights abuses or environmental damage abroad.
Read more...Trojan Horse or Existential Threat: The SCC takes on Carbon Charges
October 06, 2020 - For two days in the last week of September 2020, the Supreme Court of Canada was seized with hearings into three related cases in a matter whose outcome is likely to chart an important future course for Canadian jurisprudence, both concerning the global climate crisis and the appropriate calibration of the constitutional division of powers. By any account, it has the potential of culminating into one of most significant Supreme Court rulings to date.
Read more...Faculty Book Recommendations 2020
October 07, 2020 - From historical fiction to judicial memoirs - this list of thought-provoking books recommended by our faculty will inspire, engage and educate.
Read more...Maximizing Virtual Learning
April 23, 2024 - With the move to virtual learning for much of the academic year, a new set of challenges comes with a different form of schooling. Virtual learning takes more effort on the part of the learner. This shift means that students should be reflective on what is or isn’t working in the learning process, and to adapt as needed.
Read more...Not Waiving, but Drowning: Supreme Court of Canada Kills Waiver of Tort as an Independent Cause of Action
July 24, 2020 - After decades of uncertainty in the area of class actions and tort law, waiver of tort is dead. In its decision in Atlantic Lottery Corp Inc v Babstock, released this morning, the Supreme Court of Canada killed off the concept once and for all, holding that, “[t]his novel cause of action does not exist in Canadian law and has no reasonable chance of succeeding at trial.
Read more...Dean Chamberlain's Top 10 Highlights from the 2019-20 Academic Year
June 18, 2020 - The world has changed dramatically over the last few months, and sometimes it’s hard to remember our pre-COVID circumstances. But I’ve been reflecting on the great year we had at Western Law, and wanted to share my top 10 highlights, in no particular order.
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