Orientation to Law
The objective of the class is to orient students to the study of law by introducing them to four fundamental perspectives in the law: the comparative, the historical, the philosophical and the professional. Within each perspective several Faculty members will lecture, both to convey information deemed essential and to give a sense of the variety and contingency within each perspective. Mandatory readings will be presented in advance by each faculty speaker.
Aboriginal & Indigenous Law
This course provides an introduction to both Aboriginal Law and Indigenous Law, and the historical and contemporary context that is fundamental to understanding these areas of law. Aboriginal law refers to “settler law”, that is, the law made by Canadian legislatures and courts that applies to Aboriginal peoples, and embodies all situations where the Aboriginal status of an individual or group may impact the legal outcome, or the process leading to a legal outcome. Indigenous laws and legal traditions (e.g. Mi’kmaq law) comprise the legal orders of specific indigenous communities. Indigenous societies used these laws to govern themselves prior to contact with Europeans and many continue to do so today. Along with the common law and civil law traditions, Indigenous legal orders are, therefore, among Canada’s distinctive founding legal traditions.
Introduction to Legal Ethics
This course has three objectives. First, it will start students on a journey of development of their ethical identity as lawyers. Second, it will introduce students to the core ethical values and principles governing Canadian lawyers. Third, it will provide an overview of the regulatory regime for the Canadian legal profession.
Contracts
This class has two primary objectives: the first is to provide an understanding of the process of development of the common law through judicial decisions; the second is to provide a basic knowledge of the doctrines and precepts of the law governing the making and performance of contracts. As a means of attaining the first objective, the “case method” of teaching is used to enable students to acquire a lawyer-like understanding of such concepts as “stare decisis”, the use of precedent, and the technique of distinguishing. A critical evaluation of judicial law-making is undertaken through an examination of the developing phenomenon of legislative intervention in the field of contract law. In order to fulfill the second objective, substantive rules of contract law are examined.
Criminal Law
Relationships among the state, individuals, and communities are considered in the context of Canadian criminal law. The legal rights provisions of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, selected topics in criminal procedure and the principles of the substantive criminal law will be the main focus of this class. The latter concentrates on elements of offences, justifications, excuses, non-exculpatory defenses, inchoate crimes and secondary liability for offences. Teaching is conducted by lecture and discussion of assigned materials including the Criminal Code (which is also used to illustrate methods and problems of statutory interpretation) and a volume of cases and materials.
Torts
The major objective of this class is to provide a basic understanding of the manner in which losses from injuries to personal, proprietary and economic interests are distributed through tort law. Materials to be studied include cases, appropriate legislation and doctrinal writings related to the problems of tort law and damage compensation in a diverse society.
Property Law
The purpose of this class is two-fold: first, to provide a basic understanding of property concepts and principles in both real and personal property; second, to provide a sense of the historical development of the law of property. This class introduces the student to the concept of property, its evolution, types and fundamental principles. It illustrates ideas such as possession and ownership by reference to the law of finders and bailment and to various transactions in which land or goods are the common denominators. It also explores the doctrines of aboriginal title and the principles of real property, including tenure, estates, future interests, matrimonial property, private and public controls on land use, the registry system and adverse possession.
Public Law
This class provides students with an understanding of the constitutional and administrative structures of Canadian law and government. An emphasis is placed on developing the skills required of lawyers whose public law work may range from appearances before administrative tribunals, to giving advice on the formulation and articulation of policy. Primary among the emphasized skills is the ability to work with and interpret constitutional, statutory and regulatory texts. A perspective on the administrative model of decision making will also be developed. As a necessary background for the development of these skills and for the general study of law, this class introduces students to the Canadian governmental and constitutional system. Students will explore the legislative process, statutory interpretation, and the administrative system using human rights legislation as a model. Further, students will develop an understanding of the analytical framework of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, through the study of the interpretation and development of equality rights.
Legal Research and Writing
This course — legal research and writing — will serve as the cornerstone of your legal education. While you'll learn a lot about a range of legal subjects in your first year, the skills that you will learn in this course will likely be the ones you rely on over and over again when you leave this school and enter the marketplace. The course has five inter-related objectives. First, it introduces you to some of the fundamentals of good writing, whether writing in law or any other discipline. Second, it assists you in developing your ability to read and comprehend legal materials. Third, you will explore the process of legal research with the aim of developing a basic understanding of primary Canadian legal materials and secondary sources in both print and digital form. Fourth, on completion of the course you should be able to draft a memorandum (one of the forms of legal writing), a client letter, a factum (a written appeal argument), and be able to cite legal sources flawlessly. Finally, you should develop your analytical skills in this course; most especially, the technique of using legal authorities to assist you in offering your opinion on the resolution of legal problems. This is a foundational skills course. You may not ever need to address a torts, contract, or property issue in your diverse futures. You will need to do research and be an effective writer, no matter where your law degree takes you.
The objective of the class is to orient students to the study of law by introducing them to four fundamental perspectives in the law: the comparative, the historical, the philosophical and the professional. Within each perspective several Faculty members will lecture, both to convey information deemed essential and to give a sense of the variety and contingency within each perspective. Mandatory readings will be presented in advance by each faculty speaker.
Aboriginal & Indigenous Law
This course provides an introduction to both Aboriginal Law and Indigenous Law, and the historical and contemporary context that is fundamental to understanding these areas of law. Aboriginal law refers to “settler law”, that is, the law made by Canadian legislatures and courts that applies to Aboriginal peoples, and embodies all situations where the Aboriginal status of an individual or group may impact the legal outcome, or the process leading to a legal outcome. Indigenous laws and legal traditions (e.g. Mi’kmaq law) comprise the legal orders of specific indigenous communities. Indigenous societies used these laws to govern themselves prior to contact with Europeans and many continue to do so today. Along with the common law and civil law traditions, Indigenous legal orders are, therefore, among Canada’s distinctive founding legal traditions.
Introduction to Legal Ethics
This course has three objectives. First, it will start students on a journey of development of their ethical identity as lawyers. Second, it will introduce students to the core ethical values and principles governing Canadian lawyers. Third, it will provide an overview of the regulatory regime for the Canadian legal profession.
Contracts
This class has two primary objectives: the first is to provide an understanding of the process of development of the common law through judicial decisions; the second is to provide a basic knowledge of the doctrines and precepts of the law governing the making and performance of contracts. As a means of attaining the first objective, the “case method” of teaching is used to enable students to acquire a lawyer-like understanding of such concepts as “stare decisis”, the use of precedent, and the technique of distinguishing. A critical evaluation of judicial law-making is undertaken through an examination of the developing phenomenon of legislative intervention in the field of contract law. In order to fulfill the second objective, substantive rules of contract law are examined.
Criminal Law
Relationships among the state, individuals, and communities are considered in the context of Canadian criminal law. The legal rights provisions of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, selected topics in criminal procedure and the principles of the substantive criminal law will be the main focus of this class. The latter concentrates on elements of offences, justifications, excuses, non-exculpatory defenses, inchoate crimes and secondary liability for offences. Teaching is conducted by lecture and discussion of assigned materials including the Criminal Code (which is also used to illustrate methods and problems of statutory interpretation) and a volume of cases and materials.
Torts
The major objective of this class is to provide a basic understanding of the manner in which losses from injuries to personal, proprietary and economic interests are distributed through tort law. Materials to be studied include cases, appropriate legislation and doctrinal writings related to the problems of tort law and damage compensation in a diverse society.
Property Law
The purpose of this class is two-fold: first, to provide a basic understanding of property concepts and principles in both real and personal property; second, to provide a sense of the historical development of the law of property. This class introduces the student to the concept of property, its evolution, types and fundamental principles. It illustrates ideas such as possession and ownership by reference to the law of finders and bailment and to various transactions in which land or goods are the common denominators. It also explores the doctrines of aboriginal title and the principles of real property, including tenure, estates, future interests, matrimonial property, private and public controls on land use, the registry system and adverse possession.
Public Law
This class provides students with an understanding of the constitutional and administrative structures of Canadian law and government. An emphasis is placed on developing the skills required of lawyers whose public law work may range from appearances before administrative tribunals, to giving advice on the formulation and articulation of policy. Primary among the emphasized skills is the ability to work with and interpret constitutional, statutory and regulatory texts. A perspective on the administrative model of decision making will also be developed. As a necessary background for the development of these skills and for the general study of law, this class introduces students to the Canadian governmental and constitutional system. Students will explore the legislative process, statutory interpretation, and the administrative system using human rights legislation as a model. Further, students will develop an understanding of the analytical framework of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, through the study of the interpretation and development of equality rights.
Legal Research and Writing
This course — legal research and writing — will serve as the cornerstone of your legal education. While you'll learn a lot about a range of legal subjects in your first year, the skills that you will learn in this course will likely be the ones you rely on over and over again when you leave this school and enter the marketplace. The course has five inter-related objectives. First, it introduces you to some of the fundamentals of good writing, whether writing in law or any other discipline. Second, it assists you in developing your ability to read and comprehend legal materials. Third, you will explore the process of legal research with the aim of developing a basic understanding of primary Canadian legal materials and secondary sources in both print and digital form. Fourth, on completion of the course you should be able to draft a memorandum (one of the forms of legal writing), a client letter, a factum (a written appeal argument), and be able to cite legal sources flawlessly. Finally, you should develop your analytical skills in this course; most especially, the technique of using legal authorities to assist you in offering your opinion on the resolution of legal problems. This is a foundational skills course. You may not ever need to address a torts, contract, or property issue in your diverse futures. You will need to do research and be an effective writer, no matter where your law degree takes you.