Student leader at Western strikes out in defending harassment claim, loses Charter argument

Student politics is a nasty business.  Universities, for their part, need to respect the process and keep a distance while having the courage and wisdom to act when a student’s conduct goes to far. The case of Tefler v. The University of Western Ontario (CanLII) involves one student leader who was elected president of the graduate students’ society, […]

Tips for students looking for advice on misconduct allegations

Increasingly, students are calling lawyers when their degrees are in jeopardy.  On a fairly regular basis, students at every educational institution are accused of academic or non-academic misconduct.  This includes cheating on exams, copy-and-pasting on essays without attribution, harassing another student, and so on.  Often, the professor or other staff member who notices or hears of […]

UBC medical school admissions procedures come under fire

Pamela Fayerman at the Vancouver Sun has been reporting over the past two weeks about accusations that high-profile or influential parents have crossed the line in their efforts to get their kids a seat in the University of British Columbia (UBC) medical school program. The story began with a memo obtained by the Vancouver Sun that was written by Denis […]

The wrong way to expel a student

One of the most important lessons in life is that how you do something can be just as, if not more, important than what you do.  Using an illegitimate process, particularly if you are in a position of power, can negate any benefits of a decision, no matter how wise or noble that decision may be.  This lesson was […]