LAWS was recently featured on the Toronto District School Board’s website
LAWS was recently featured on the Toronto District School Board’s website:
More than sixty grade 10 and 11 students, their parents, teachers, and principals met with several Crown Attorneys, Justices of the Peace, Duty Counsel and Judges on June 5, 2007 to celebrate the successful first year of the Court Experience Program, a program that partners the University of Toronto Faculty of Law with the Toronto District School Board to deliver an innovative law-focused high school program aimed at inner-city high school students.
Delivered through the Faculty of Law’s Law in Action Within Schools (LAWS) program to participating students at Central Technical School and Harbord Collegiate Institute, the Court Experience Program arranges for students to job shadow a legal professional for a full day at the Old City Hall and College Park court houses. Students gain a unique view of the Canadian legal system at work, spend time with positive professional role models, and are exposed to the wide range of justice careers available to them after graduation. Stephanie, a grade 10 student at Central Tech said that “job shadowing a duty counsel was fantastic – seeing and hearing all the things they do and knowing that could be me in a couple of years…”
It’s that spark of interest that can often lead to exploring other opportunities for further studies at school and even after graduation. “The Court Experience Program is a wonderful example of the unique learning opportunities the legal profession can offer to young people by working with local high schools”, said Alexis Archbold, Director of the LAWS program. “Many of our participating students have decided that they want to study law after spending a day with a legal professional in court”.
Held in the beautiful and historic court room 121 at Old City Hall court house, the special reception featured speeches from students, court house volunteers and the former Chief Justice R. Roy McMurtry, who praised the Court Experience Program for partnering the legal profession with local secondary schools to help young people learn about the legal system. Jutice McMurtry was on hand after the ceremony to meet parents and have his photo taken with several students. Each participating student received a certificate of participation stamped with the official seal of the Ontario Court of Justice.
