Canadian Lawyer InHouse

39 CANADIANLAWYERMAG.COM/INHOUSE JANUARY 2016 The food court shooting, although accidental, was the latest in a series of violent incidents to rock York. The plaintiffs retained Diamond & Diamond Personal Injury Lawyers, who alleged in the Statement of Claim that York failed in its duty to protect students on campus. "The movement of [the case] is more in the hands of the plaintiffs," says Armstrong. "Counsel for the plaintiffs is now pursuing an amendment to their revised Statement of Claim. Following its acceptance by the court, we will submit our Statement of Defence. But the university is always open to looking at opportunities for a settlement." York is represented by external counsel Thomas Gold Pettingill LLP, selected by Canadian University Reciprocity Insurance Exchange — an insurance system for universities across Canada. Meanwhile, York is the plaintiff in a $3-million civil suit against two former managers whom it alleges defrauded the university of more than $1.2 million through a complex web of fake invoices, transactions, and kickbacks whereby York paid for services that weren't performed. The two defendants were cleared of criminal wrongdoing after prosecutors deemed a pair of key witnesses (also former York employees) unreliable in October 2013. The civil trial is set for June 2016. Lenczner Slaght LLP is acting for the university. ACCESS COPYRIGHT TRIAL SET FOR MAY Armstrong, however, has bigger litiga- tion worries. A trial date in May 2016 has been set for a lawsuit launched in 2013 by Access Copyright against York over a copy- right dispute. Access Copyright is a non-profi t that collects royalties on behalf of writers and publishers. It alleges in its lawsuit that York professors made copies of "a substantial part" of several copyright-protected works for which the university didn't obtain permission or pay royalties. It argues that new fair-dealing guidelines that York relied on, in part, to make the cop- ies are "arbitrary" and too broad. This is the fi rst legal test of the guidelines, which York and more than 20 other universities are fol- lowing (rather than adhering to a model li- cence agreement negotiated in 2012 between Universities Canada and Access Copyright). "The choice of York [as the target of the lawsuit] is a little random," says Armstrong, "in that York was not the only univer- sity moving toward using the fair-dealing guidelines." York has succeeded in having the case bi- furcated, so the fi rst phase of the trial will focus on the photocopying practices of fi ve York professors rather than all of the faculty. "It's more effi cient to zero in fi rst on fi ve pro- fessors than do a full sampling of the univer- sity's 1,400-plus professors," says Armstrong. York University is represented by external counsel from Osler Hoskin & Harcourt LLP. The university's legal fees, which Armstrong says will amount to "hundreds of thousands of dollars, if not a million," are being partially defrayed by contributions from other institutions through Universities Canada. Another high-profi le issue across academe that occupies Armstrong's attention is awareness, prevention, and response regarding sexual assault on campus. A few months before her appointment as general counsel, York settled a libel action against Toronto Life magazine. The magazine had published an article that characterized York as "a hunting ground for sexual predators." Armstrong is part of a 15-member working group at the university that is drawing up guidelines and procedures for a sexual assault policy that was approved by the board of governors last February. "The issue of how do you ensure fairness in the university's processes in response [to an accusation of sexual assault] is obviously something the working group is looking into," she says. Any party appearing before a York tri- bunal on a matter involving alleged viola- tion of the student code is already allowed to have legal representation. "The working group may consider how to ensure that the option of participation by legal counsel is communicated to parties in sexual assault matters," she says. EARLY DESIRE TO PURSUE THE LAW Armstrong originally decided to become a lawyer when she was nine years old, and never wavered. "The inspiration was Ben York was looking for someone with experience managing in a legal environment who respected the diversity of the population that York has in its student body and faculty and staff. MAUREEN ARMSTRONG, York University SECOND SNAPSHOT '' T H E L A W Y E R Maureen Armstrong T H E C O M P A N Y York University • General counsel and university secretary (since July 2014) • Chair, Criminal Injuries Compensation Board (2008 - 2014) • Vice president, Legal Aid Ontario (2007 - 2008) • Director general, Canadian Human Rights Commission (2003 – 2007) • Senior counsel, Canadian Human Rights Commission (2001 – 2003) • Legal advisor, Canadian Human Rights Commission (1999 – 2000) • Legal researcher, investigator, conciliator, Canadian Human Rights Commission (1994 – 1998) • Analyst, The Somalia Commission of Inquiry (1995 - 1996) • Articling student, Nelligan Power LLP (1993 - 1994) '' P r o f e s s i o n a l P r o f i l e

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