RSS FeedDiscrimination at the University of Ottawa?
Khalid Aba-Alkhail, Manal AlSaigh, and Waleed Alghaithy, three physicians from Saudi Arabia, have filed a lawsuit against the University of Ottawa for over $150 million dollars. The doctors were enrolled in postgraduate medical education programs at the university, where they claimed the experienced discrimination and harassment resulting in the termination of their enrollment.
UofO Student Appeal Centre director Mireille Gervais appears to support the plaintiffs,
I’ve seen some of the evidence that supports the claim, and I am continuously in shock to see how far the university’s misbehaviour and egregious behaviour in this case has gone. There’s documented evidence to support the fact that there really was a conspiracy toward these students.
The university however released a statement yesterday denying the allegations. The CBC reports that the university spokesperson stated,
…the university “denies all allegations of wrongdoing made in the suit. The claims are entirely false, and the university will be vigorously defending itself against this suit, and defending the quality and the integrity of its medical education programs.”
The statement goes on to say that the faculty of medicine “has been welcoming foreign medical students for more than 30 years, and boasts one of the largest numbers of foreign residents and fellows in Canada, the majority of whom have successfully achieved the required academic standards for graduation.”
“We take pride in our diversity and high standards, and believe that they contribute to our excellence,” the university said.
The plaintiff’s Statement of Claim, which is over 120 pages long and was filed on November 24, 2011, is below.
ABA-ALKHAIL Et Al vs University of Ottawa Et Al
Update
A reader contacted us to provide the following materials. Although the veracity of the emails cannot be vouched for directly, the related motion is confirmed as an actual reported decision:
Neuroleaks Decision + materials
Don’t hate, U of O Provost warns U.S. pundit
When the University of Ottawa Campus Conservatives invited U.S. political pundit, Ann Coulter, to speak, they had to know she would attract attention. Coulter has always been outspokenly controversial with her political positions. But it’s unlikely that she, nor the Campus Conservatives, expected that her anticipated visit would provoke words of warning from the University of Ottawa Provost.
In a letter to Coulter, Vice President Academic and Provost François Houle wrote the following:
I understand that you have been invited by University of Ottawa Campus Conservatives to speak at the University of Ottawa this coming Tuesday. We are, of course, always delighted to welcome speakers on our campus and hope that they will contribute positively to the meaningful exchange of ideas that is the hallmark of a great university campus. We have a great respect for freedom of expression in Canada, as well as on our campus, and view it as a fundamental freedom, as recognized by our Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
I would, however, like to inform you, or perhaps remind you, that our domestic laws, both provincial and federal, delineate freedom of expression (or “free speech”) in a manner that is somewhat different than the approach taken in the United States. I therefore encourage you to educate yourself, if need be, as to what is acceptable in Canada and to do so before your planned visit here.
You will realize that Canadian law puts reasonable limits on the freedom of expression. For example, promoting hatred against any identifiable group would not only be considered inappropriate, but could in fact lead to criminal charges. Outside of the criminal realm, Canadian defamation laws also limit freedom of expression and may differ somewhat from those to which you are accustomed. I therefore ask you, while you are a guest on our campus, to weigh your words with respect and civility in mind.
There is a strong tradition in Canada, including at this University, of restraint, respect and consideration in expressing even provocative and controversial opinions and urge you to respect that Canadian tradition while on our campus. Hopefully, you will understand and agree that what may, at first glance, seem like unnecessary restrictions to freedom of expression do, in fact, lead not only to a more civilized discussion, but to a more meaningful, reasoned and intelligent one as well.
I hope you will enjoy your stay in our beautiful country, city and campus.
Sincerely,
François Houle
Vice-recteur aux études / Vice-President Academic and Provost
Université d’Ottawa / University of Ottawa
Given Coulter’s colourful history, I would think she would be grateful to learn more about a foreign country. However, even in Canada, some have been quick to criticize the letter. And in the National Post, Prof. Ed Morgan reminds us that, as far as hate speech goes in Canada, we criminalize only words conveying “emotions that belie rationality.” After all, even in Canada, we wouldn’t want to approach anything resembling censorship, now would we?
Osgoode Gets Down to Business
With all the negative press surrounding the York strike in recent weeks, it’s a welcome change to hear that something productive is going on at the northern Toronto university: Osgoode Hall is teaming up with fellow York faculty Schulich School of Business to create the Jay and Barbara Hennick Centre for Business and Law, an interdisciplinary learning centre which will aim to produce lawyers with sound business sense.
The initiative was made possible by a $3 million donation from Jay Hennick, the Toronto-based founder and CEO of FirstService Corporation, a real-estate service company with more than US$1.5 billion in annualized revenues.
Mr. Hennick, who attained a B.A. from York and LL.B. at the University of Ottawa, had previously donated $500,000 to his legal alma mater to establish the UofO’s Jay Hennick LL.B/MBA Program.
Unlike a joint J.D./MBA (formerly LL.B./MBA) format, the Hennick Centre will grant a business/law degree in just three years, as opposed to the joint degree’s four.
Additionally, the Centre plans to launch a business certificate program for already-practising lawyers, similar to the executive MBA currently offered at many business schools.
The Hennick Centre is allegedly modeled after a similar program at NYU, and, by taking advantage of faculty integration, aims to move beyond a current system which creates “good technicians grounded in the law, but who lack business judgment.”
The framework for this project has been being laid since at least June 2008, and the advisory board is still adding to its roster of big-business lawyers and entrepreneurs.
A formal launch for the Hennick Centre will take place tomorrow, Friday, February 6th 2008 at the Hilton Toronto Hotel. The reception will feature former Ontario Premier Mike Harris introducing the keynote speaker, current Federal Finance Minister Jim Flaherty. Perhaps if Mr. Flaherty (originally a small-town personal injury lawyer) had been able to take advantage of such an innovative program in his day, he would be exercising better business judgement while managing one of the world’s largest economies.
