Life skills and career tips for Canada's lawyers in training
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Finch area schools — three middle schools and one high school. Th e principal of each school has hand-picked a group of 20 to 25 students that the Osgoode students meet with each week to teach confl ict-res- olution skills. "As a law student, they better understand and can apply the skills," ex- plains Shafi r. "Th ey learn about confl ict in theory, and they read academic literature, then they have to go and teach the skills to students, creating a refi nement of the learning process." Of course, mediation is largely based on facilitation and working with diff erent groups and understanding other cultures. All of that is also reinforced through the in-school teaching sessions. Th e sessions are tweaked for the needs of each school. Some are using the op- portunity to train peer mediators, while others are looking for straightforward confl ict-management and anti-bullying content. Meanwhile, Osgoode is currently working with the Toronto District School Board to create a referral system that would see the clinic mediate disputes to avoid suspensions. Th e program has also developed relationships with community organizations, such as local Early Years Centres and several others serving fami- lies and youths in the Jane-Finch commu- nity. Shafi r views all of these off erings as an opportunity not only to serve the com- munity, but to expand the clinic's presence by raising awareness of its existence and demonstrating that it can be a more viable option than the courts. At the clinic, parties to a dispute can receive assistance from students Shafi r as- signs to handle the intake. Individual stu- dents meet separately with each party to the dispute, and when a formalized medi- ation session takes place, Shafi r or another mediator supervises the students. While many other staff , students, and faculty at Osgoode have made signifi cant contributions to the clinical mediation throughout its development and imple- mentation, Shafi r has not lost sight of the fact that none of it would have happened if not for Lakhani and her peers in Th e ADR Project. "One of the reasons this has been so novel is that it was a program that got off the ground due to the energy and eff orts and desire of a group of students. When you talk about mediation being interest-based, this is a program that was really created based on the interests of students, and then the development of the need for alternative dispute resolution in our justice system, and as a skill set for students entering the practice of law," she says. "Students can make things happen. Th ey're so bright and they're really ener- getic, and they're an amazing catalyst." Th at energy appears to have translated into overwhelming demand for Osgoode's clinical mediation program. Twelve stu- dents were admitted to the program for the 2010-11 school year, although about 35 applied. "Th ere's a lot of student inter- est; more than what we can satisfy at this point in time in the program," says Shafi r. "Students are interested in experiential learning and clinical education. And they are really interested in mediation and confl ict-resolution skills. Th ese students that apply to the program are interested in working and making a diff erence and hav- ing some kind of meaningful contact with people, rather than just case law." Th at's exactly what attracted Chris- tine Dank, Vanessa Decker, and Nick Van Duyvenbode. As the Osgoode students explained before leading a recent media- tion skills session at Oakdale Park Middle School's library, law students want courses that off er real-life experiences. "I really enjoy the intensive programs," says Dank. "You're not just learning from someone that's standing at the front of the class, just spewing information at you. Instead you're actually doing things, and so you're mixing learning skills with the real world. It's more practical in my opinion." Th e Osgoode students have helped middle-school pupils learn eff ective con- fl ict-resolution skills through role-playing games and brainstorming sessions, and also by discussing how they approach con- fl icts with their parents or peers. Decker believes the Grade 6, 7, and 8 students are at a prime stage to learn better ways to handle disagreements. "Adolescents are at an age when opinions matter more than any time in their lives, and they have a lot of confl icts," she says. "I think the thing that we're trying to off er is that everybody gets into fi ghts, but obviously there are more productive and eff ective ways of re- solving a confl ict." Th e Osgoode students have been impressed by how quickly the teens have learned the confl ict-resolution skills that have been presented to them. "Th ey're very quick and articulate," says Van Duyvenbode. Just as Osgoode's students realize the benefi ts of learning mediation skills through a combination of theoretical and real-life experiences, so too has the facul- ty's leadership. Dean Lorne Sossin points out that the mediation clinic follows a similar vision to other Osgoode pro bono clinics like the Community & Legal Aid Services Program and Parkdale Commu- nity Legal Services. He envisions similar programs becoming part of the school's lineup in due course. "You just get great value from the student and learning per- spective, and from the community impact point of view," says Sossin. "It's really hard to argue with bang for the buck." While the LFO grant for the clinical mediation program is up at the end of the year, Sossin is confi dent the course will continue to grow well into the future. He says the only question is how much of an impact it can have, which will largely be determined by the level of support off ered by the ADR and legal communities. "Th e question mark is how much you can grow it, and how big its impact can extend," he explains. "Th e potential is tremendously exciting, but we're going to need partners to take it to that level." Osgoode's commitment to the pro- gram comes as a relief to Lakhani, who has kept ties to her brainchild. Now busy with a bustling family law practice in Markham, Ont., — where she uses her ADR and mediation expertise to divert 90 per cent of her cases away from the courts — she has returned to serve as a guest lec- turer to Osgoode mediation students. "It's kind of like the full circle — you're going back to the school teaching for a program that we started in the cafeteria," she says. "I'm really thrilled with the way it's go- ing. It sounds like we've had two good, full academic years. Th e school has really embraced the program, so I have a feeling the ADR intensive is going to be there for many years to come." ■ C ANADIAN Lawyer 4STUDENTS SPRING 2011 21 *