OBA members around the province engaged over 5000 students and members of the public on April 17 (Law Day) and throughout the month of April - now being coined Law Month.
The OBA's Law Day Committee headed by Karen Perron organized secondary and elementary school mock trials, a visual and written expression competition, courtroom tours, question and answer sessions and career fairs all in an effort to educate students and promote the importance of the rule of law and our Charter.
Our flagship program, the Secondary School Mock Trial Tournament, the only province-wide tournament of its kind in Canada, inspired students from over 100 schools (and many more schools as well as CBA branches across the country who use the OBA's materials) to seriously consider a career in the legal profession. Students' dedication and determination was noted by the many lawyer volunteers and the Court of Appeal for Ontario, Superior Court of Justice and Ontario Court of Justice judges who judge the trials. The Elementary School Mock Trials saw OBA volunteer lawyers facilitate an in-class trial demonstration with students from grades five to eight acting as Crown, defense and jury; engaged schools in nearly 30 cities and towns provide-wide. With nearly 200 submissions from students and Children's Breakfast Clubs, Expressly Law Day, our visual and written creative competition, that evolved from the Law Day Photography Contest, was very well received in its new format this year.
Engage and inspire! Volunteer for the Law Day Committee or events in your region. Please visit our volunteer page for more information: http://www.oba.org/En/LawDay/volunteers/volunteers.aspx
Links of interest:
Read the Secondary School Mock Trial Tournament Media Advisory
CTV News Coverage of the Secondary School Mock Trial Tournament Provincial Finals: http://www.ctvnews.ca/video?clipId=909992
Expressly Law Day Winning Visual Submission by Xizi Luo of North York; view the photo
Expressly Law Day Winning Written Submission by Laura Wu of Mississauga; read the poem
View Law 2013 Photo Gallery
More information about Law Day: www.LawDayOntario.ca
Thank you to the Law Day Committee 2012/2013!
Karen Perron, Borden Ladner Gervais LLP
CHAIR
E-mail: kperron@blg.com
Andrea M. Hill, Evans Sweeny Bordin LLP
Hamilton/Halton Law Day
Deidre Newman, Barrister & Solicitor
Expressly Law Day, Photography Contest (Past Chair)
Eugene Meehan, Supreme Advocacy LLP
Ottawa Law Day
Julia Lefebvre, Lenczner Slaght Royce Smith Griffin LLP
Elementary School Mock Trials (Co-chair)
Kerri Salata, BMO Financial Group
Elementary School Mock Trials (Co-chair)
Marquis Felix, Ministry of the Attorney General
Secondary School Mock Trial Tournament – Fact Scenario
Quinn Ross, The Ross Firm
Secondary School Mock Trial Tournament (Vice-chair)
Raong Phalavong, Cambridge LLP
Secondary School Mock Trial Tournament (Chair)
Sean Sullivan, Gowlings Lafleur Henderson LLP
Kitchener/Waterloo Law Day
Sean Adams, Adams, Sherwood, Swabey & Follon
Cornwall Law Day
Key volunteers:
Erin Cassidy, Federal Court of Appeal
Expressly Law Day
Linda Chavez