pbsc 1l info session
DESCRIPTION
PBSC 1L Info Session. 2013-2014. What is Pro Bono Students Canada?. Pro Bono Students Canada. The only national pro bono program in Canada Has been serving the legal profession for 15 years Operates 21 Canadian law school chapters Approximately 1500 volunteers nationwide - PowerPoint PPT PresentationTRANSCRIPT
+ PBSC 1L Info Session
2013-2014
+
What is Pro Bono Students Canada?
+Pro Bono Students Canada The only national pro bono program in Canada Has been serving the legal profession for 15
years Operates 21 Canadian law school chapters Approximately 1500 volunteers nationwide Runs almost 500 projects every year Provides 120,000 hours of legal services each
year
+
PBSC Training Conference Dinner at Thomson ReutersCourtesy of Laura Pedersen Photography
+Junior Sirivar, Partner Litigation Group
“The Importance of Pro Bono Work”
+PBSC MandatePBSC aims (1) to provide vulnerable communities
with legal services free of charge, (2) to provide law students with out-of-
the classroom legal experience, and (3) to instill the pro bono ethic in future
lawyers from their first day of law school.
+
How PBSC Works:
PBSC increases access to justice by partnering with: Not-for-profit
Organizations Legal Clinics and Law
Help Centres Government Agencies Courts and Tribunals Lawyers working on Pro
Bono files
+What Do PBSC Volunteers Do? Legal Research and Writing/Policy
Development – conduct research for a public interest organization
Clinical Projects – conduct client intake, provide information to clients, assisting with document preparation
Public Presentations – develop and deliver legal information seminars to members of the public who do not have access to lawyers; create plain language documents for the public
Courts and Tribunals – assist self represented litigations attempting to navigate the legal system
+
What am I committing to?
General PBSC Training Westlaw Canada Training
(mandatory for 1Ls and UYs on research projects)
Specialized training (if applicable)
Student Agreement Form 3–5 Hours per Week on
Your PBSC Project On-line, end-of-year survey
+Timeline Applications due:
Specialized: Sept 13th or 15th
General: Sept 18th Attend General Training:
Sept 25th or 26th
Attend the Community Building Event on Nov. 13
Make yourself available for monitoring call/drop-in
September
October
November
December Break for Exams Attend mandatory
WestLaw Training on either Oct 21st or 22nd
+Timeline
Start up at placements again
Attend the Final Appreciation Event
Wrap up project and remind organization to confirm completion with us
January
February
March
April Break for Exams Be available for
monitoring late Feb/early March
+
Last year’s coordinators at the PBSC Final Appreciation Event at McCarthy Tétrault LLP
+Student Testimonial: PBSC @Kensington-Bellwoods Legal Clinic Placement project: Motion, on behalf of three
community organizations, seeking leave to intervene in Charter case regarding right to subsidized housing.
Three takeaways: 1. Exposure to real-life legal work:
Meetings regarding cost consequences; Legal analysis of respondent facta;
2. Exposure to oral advocacy in an adversarial setting. Judges make mistakes, too.
3. Pro bono and Bay St. are not mutually exclusive, and better knowing what type of firm I want to work for.
++ A multi-disciplinary project with a broad mandate to document discrimination against sexual minorities abroad.
Project goals include facilitating the development and enhancement of LGBT rights by supporting international partners and activists with legal and social research.
The Envisioning Global LGBTRightsProject
+
15
+How does the Envisioning Project work? The Envisioning Project has 3 subcommittees:
Africa, the Caribbean, and India. Students will be assigned to their first choice where possible.
Students will develop reports on their jurisdiction and assist foreign legal challenges by providing research assistance (including comparative constitutional law).
Ben Vandorpe is the Volunteer Coordinator for 2013/2014; he is also a returning student researcher. You can contact him at [email protected]
15
++ Six students with an interest in Health Law are exposed to the work of HPARB, the board responsible for hearing the concerns of over 23 self regulated health professions in Ontario, including doctors, nurses, and dentists
Exercise legal analysis and writing skills while getting behind-the-scenes experience with an administrative appeals tribunal
The HPARB Headnotes and ClerkingProject
+How does the HPARB Project work? Students must be able to attend a mandatory training
session on Oct 4. from 1pm-4pm. Headnotes: Students write summaries of HPARB
decisions Clerking: Students work directly with Vice-chairs of
HPARB by participating in pre-hearing discussions. Students review pleadings, attend Tribunal hearings to ‘clerk’ and sit with the Vice-chairs as they deliberate after the hearing
Students may also be asked to research related topics of draft parallel decisions
++ Help set the foundation for a new project to be launched in Sept 2014
Year 1: Research potential class action files, perform legal research related to the project (e.g. cy pres orders)
Year 2: Work on a class action file with lawyers from a partner firm to be identified
The Class ActionsProject
+METRACA community-based, not-for-profit organization committed to preventing violence against diverse women and youth
+
METRAC
Research and Writing One student will provide an article or
research memoranda on a topic of use to survivors of intimate partner violence and woman abuse for the Ontario Women’s Justice Network website
The student will gain skills in legal research and writing, as well as experience in social justice, feminist theory and anti-oppression work
++
What is the General Application Process?
General Application Process:
Download the general application form from our website, rank your projects in order of interest. Submit the application along with your CV by email to [email protected]
Important Deadlines:
U of T students must apply by September 18th at 5 pm.
+
Projects Exclusively for 1L
PBSC-McCarthy Tétrault Public Interest Internship 2 students work on pro bono files
under the supervision of business lawyers from McCarthy Tétrault’s Toronto office
Receive specialized training (mandatory Friday Oct 11, 1-3pm)
Attend Continuing Legal Education program with articling students
Mentorship (matched with McCarthy’s articling student)
Pro bono writing assignments of your choice (e.g. interview associate/partner, “a day in the life an intern”, etc.)
+How Do I Apply? Shauvik Shah is the Volunteer Coordinator
([email protected]) To apply e-mail Shauvik a Cover Letter
describing your interest and qualifications, and a Resume by Friday September 13, at midnight.
Process: Shauvik will develop a short list of 10 students with the PBSC Program Manager at the National Office.
McCarthy Tétrault will select two students from the short list who will be notified by Sept. 20, 2013.
+
Projects Exclusively for 1L
Family Law Rotation Project The project consists of two
components: (1) Rotation – Students
participate in a series of lunch sessions with 5 different family law organizations (fall semester)
(2) Pro Bono – Students participate in either conducting PLE seminars to women’s shelters in the GTA, or working on pro bono files alongside lawyers at a family law firm in downtown Toronto (winter semester)
+
+How Do I Apply?
Download the application posted on the PBSC U of T website, or email Mariko Rivers the FLRP Coordinator at [email protected] and ask for an application form.
The Application deadline is Sunday, September 15, 2013 at 5 p.m.
+
Projects Exclusively for 1L
Union-Side Labour Rotation
This project consists of three components. Students will: (1) Shadow a labour
lawyer at one appearance per semester
(2) Attend lunch time seminars with local labour firms and unions
(3) Research and draft PLE materials on Occupational Health and Safety
+How Do I Apply?
Please send a brief cover letter explaining your interest in the project and any relevant experience to Lauren Pearce at [email protected]
The application deadline is Sunday, September 15th, 2013 at 5:00 PM.
Six students will be selected to participate
+
Is There Room for Growth in this Organization?
+
Snapshot of Upper-year Volunteer Opportunities
Family Law Program (FLP) Award-winning program
developed in 1998 in order to provide support and assistance to individuals who cannot afford legal services and who do not have access to legal aid
Under supervision of Legal Aid Ontario lawyers, students help unrepresented litigants navigate the family law justice system by drafting their court documents and providing them with legal information
+
Snapshot of Upper-Year Volunteer Opportunities
Advocacy Projects: Tax Court of Canada
Advocacy Project Medico-Legal Society of
Toronto Advocacy ProjectPLEs: Immigration and Refugee
Detention Centres Project LRW and Drafting: Wills Project Deputy Judges Clerkship
Project
+
Summer Jobs at PBSC
Summer Program Coordinator (1) and School Year-Coordinator (1)
FLP Coordinator (Summer and School) (1)
Ontario FLP Coordinator (1)
FLP Summer Student (3)
+How do I Apply to the 50+ positions described in the application form?
Download the General Application Form from our website
Rank projects in terms of preference
Include a CV Important Deadlines:
Applications are due by e-mail to the Program Coordinators at [email protected] by WED. SEPTEMBER 18 at 5pm.
An electronic signature is acceptable!
+Before we take your questions, thank you to PBSC’s sponsors:
+
Any Questions? Check out our Facebook pages:
www.facebook.com/PBSCToronto National: Pro Bono Students Canada / Réseau national d'étudiant(e)s pro bono
(“Like” us too!)
Follow us on Twitter: @PBSCToronto
Email: [email protected]
Phone: 416-946-0397