"Thank you for your interest in the Ontario Bar Association Student Division.  The Executive is made up of representatives from every law school in the province, as we aim to voice the diverse interests of all law students.  On that note, I am very proud to act as Chair for the coming academic year for this Student Division at the OBA. 

Since 2005, I have worked with other members of the Executive, under the outstanding leadership of Alex Dirlis (2005-2006) and Melissa Krishna (2006-2007), on many groundbreaking initiatives.  Now, law students have a permanent column in the recently much-improved Briefly Speaking newsmagazine - a publication reaching more than 17,000 lawyers, judges and law students.  We have instituted the "Life After Law School" program at all the law schools in Ontario, which helps connect local practitioners with law students.  Finally, perhaps the crown jewel of all our efforts - law students today enjoy the many benefits of OBA membership for FREE.  

We continue to strive to create new initiatives that meet the ever-changing needs of law students, and we very much appreciate your ideas and feedback.  Upcoming concerns include how to create sufficient articling positions for the double cohort.  Further names and contact information for your law school student representative can be found below.  

On behalf of the 2007-2008 OBA Student Division Executive, I would like to thank you for your support, and I look forward to serving you this year. "

Alastair Clarke
Chair, Student Division
2007-2008

 

 

 

STUDENT DIVISION OFFICERS
Chair Alastair Clarke	Vice-Chair Sara Gottlieb	Past -Chair Melissa Krishna
ARTICLING STUDENT AMBASSADORS
London Laura Emmett	Ottawa Vasuda Sinha	Toronto Sonu Dhanju
LAW SCHOOL STUDENT AMBASSADORS
Osgoode Hall Sara Gottlieb	Queen’s Emily Assini	University of Ottawa Aaron Grinhaus
University of Toronto Meaghan McConnell	University of Western Joshua Seib	University of Windsor Katherine Pattillo

 

OBA Staff Liaison – Tania Hassan 416-869-1047/ 1800-668-8900 x314 Contact via email

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2006-07 Student Division Executive Highlights 


* The "Life After Law School" regional programs had taken place this year in each law school with an excellent attendance!  Each session included great speakers and there were good opportunities to engage into discussion.  Positive feedback was recieved from faculty members, students and speakers to the way the events were conducted.  Each Law School Student Ambassador did a fine job in helping this program become a success.


* Articling Ambassadors and Law School Student Ambassadors represented OBA at their local spring Articling Career fairs.


* Law Students earned their very own column in each Briefly Speaking newsmagazine edition - a publication that reaches to over 17,000 members including lawyers, judges and law students.


* Melissa Krishna compiled a Bar Ad Report and Recommendation on the long-overdue concerns of students writing their Bar Ad examinations.  This report included feedback from students across the province and was sent to the Law Society of Upper Canada to address. This issue has gained positive awareness in the legal profession, and further updates are still to follow.

 

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The Student Division Executive (SD) is comprised of OBA Student Members who dedicate their time in representing and advocating 'for the student voice of the legal profession'. They continuously work towards:

·   Identifying student issues and bringing them forward to the OBA Executive on behalf of the law student population;
·   Establishing a presence of the OBA at Ontario law schools;
·   Facilitating and encouraging student participation at OBA events at law schools;
·   Promoting the significance of CBA-OBA Membership amongst law school students and articling students.

Have questions or need more info?
lawschoolstudents@oba.org
1-800-668-8900 or 416-869-1047