In this course, we will explore the duties, responsibilities, relationships, and commitments that inform and govern our work as legal professionals. The course will combine critical/conceptual and practical/applied approaches. We will reflect critically on the foundational principles of legal ethics, and on the role of lawyers and the legal profession within society. We will consider what it means to be a self-governing profession, and we will learn about the institutions and rules that govern us (including the Law Society of Ontario and the Rules of Professional Conduct). We will also use problem-based learning to explore some of the complicated legal ethical issues that can arise for lawyers. Here, our aims will include: recognizing and characterizing problems of legal ethics; identifying tools, resources, and strategies that can help us resolve (and, in some instances, avoid) those problems; and determining how we may—or must—respond to those problems, including by applying the Rules of Professional Conduct and governing caselaw.
Please note that, given the learning objectives and pedagogical structure of this course, in-person attendance will be mandatory, and a restrictive AI policy will be enforced.
The evaluation structure for this course includes an in-term research assignment with two parts, one written and one verbal. Working individually, students will produce a research-based, actionable policy memorandum, accompanied by a reflective “background” document, on an assigned topic in legal ethics. Students will then participate in a “roundtable” meeting with a small group of class colleagues who have written on the same topic. The “roundtable” will be facilitated by the instructor and will take place during the final weeks of the teaching term. While no formal presentation will be required, students will be expected to participate actively in the roundtable by sharing, elaborating, debating, and/or reevaluating their policy recommendations.
Method of Evaluation:
• Participation & Engagement (20%)
• Research Assignment (in-term deadline): policy memorandum & roundtable (25%)
• Final Exam (sit-down) (55%)