An honourary doctorate was provided to Arkadi Kuhlmann of ING Direct, who spoke at the ceremony.

UWO Law June18 Convocation

After opening the Toronto Stock Exchange in the morning, Western Law celebrated its 50th Anniversary with its Golden Anniversary Reception at the Fairmont Royal York in the evening.

From the TMX website:

Thursday, April 29, 2010 – University of Western Ontario Law 50th Anniversary Opens the Market
Ian Holloway QC, Dean of Law at the University of Western Ontario joined Gary Knight, Vice President, Trading, TMX Group to open the market to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Western Law school. Founded in 1959, Western Law has grown, with a base of more than 6,000 alumni who occupy positions in the practice of law, business, and in community and public service. Western Law is commemorating their golden anniversary with a Grand Reception at the Royal York Hotel in Toronto tonight.

Photos from the event are available on Flickr.

See the article, First-Rate Mind, Third Rate Temperament in UWO Law’s Student Paper, Amicus Curiae, or hyperlinked on Slaw and Law is Cool.

UWO Law hosted the 2009 Labour Law Lecture & Conference on Equity in the Workplace: 25 Years After the Abella Report.

Hon. Justice Rosalie Abella of the Supreme Court of Canada delivered the keynote speech on Oct. 30, 2009. Kamila Pizon, a 3L at UWO Law, did a write-up on the speech available from Canadian Lawyer magazine and the school website.

The conference itself was held the following day, on Oct. 31, 2009.  Brian Burkett, partner at Heenan Blaikie LLP, provided the introduction and overview.

The first panel, on the evolution of employment equity, was chaired by The Honourable Madam Justice Rosalie Abella, and featured Carol Agocs of The University of Western Ontario, David Lepofsky, Chair of Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act Alliance, and Nan Weiner of NJ Weiner Consulting.

The second panel discussed policy perspectives on employment equity. It was chaired by Elizabeth MacPherson of the Canada Industrial Relations Board, and featured Patricia Hughes of the Law Commission of Ontario, Elizabeth McIsaac of the Toronto Region Immigrant Employment Council, and Tom Patch of the University of British Columbia.

Raj Anand of WeirFoulds LLP provided a keynote luncheon speech.

The third panel provided some international perspectives on employment equity. Kevin Whitaker, Chair of the Ontario Labour Relations Board chaired the panel that consisted of Harish Jain of McMaster University, who spoke of successes in Malaysia, India and elsewhere, Natasha Martin of the Seattle University School of Law, who covered the implications of President Obama’s election, and Michael Stein of Harvard Law School.

Raj Anand of WeirFoulds LLP chaired the fourth panel, providing legal perspectives on employment equity.  Mary Cornish of Cavalluzzo Hayes Shilton McIntyre Cornish LLP provided a union side perspective, while Nitya Iyer of Heenan Blaikie LLP gave a manager side overview. Michael Lynk, Associate Dean at The University of Western Ontario, also added his insight.

Justice Rosalie Abella of the Supreme Court of Canada

From the economy to the environment, from Afghanistan to trade, a public forum at Western Law will explore what the new Obama administration means for Canada/U.S. relations.

A panel discussion with:
Prof. Don Abelson (Centre for American Studies)
Prof. Michael Perry (Emory University)
Prof. Chi Carmody (Western Law)
Sue Barnes (Former Liberal M.P.)

Moderator: Prof. Michael Lynk (Western Law)

Wednesday January 28, 2009
Moot Court Room, Faculty of Law
University of Western Ontario