The images in this collection are collected from several series of historical photos throughout Osgoode Digital Commons.
If you would like to view the images in their original galleries please follow the links below:
Osgoode@125 Historical Photo ExhibitOsgoode Catalysts
Remembrance Day
Graduating Class Composites
-
Helen A. Kinnear ’20 (1894-1970)
Described as generous and self-effacing, Port Colborne native Helen Kinnear was the first federally appointed woman judge in Canada. Before attending Osgoode Hall Law School, she received a BA from the University of Toronto in English and History. She set up practice with her father and participated in numerous Liberal political associations. She was even nominated to run as a federal candidate but declined. Kinnear was the first woman to plead a case in the Supreme Court of Ontario, the first woman to be appointed a King’s Counsel in the British Commonwealth (1934), until finally she became the county court judge for Haldimand. She also served on the Council of the Canadian Bar Association, was the honorary president of the Women’s Law Association of Ontario, and was appointed by the Province of Ontario as a member of the Minister’s Advisory Council on the Treatment of the Offender. In 1965, she became the first woman to receive a medal from the John Howard Society of Ontario in recognition of her contributions to the profession and concern for the rights of the offender.
-
1920 - A “Portia” Made Good
A second summer session is held for returning veterans. Convocation then suspends the veterans’ blanket exemption, stating that sufficient time had elapsed for veterans to seek to benefit from their service. Helen Kinnear, the first woman in the British Commonwealth to be appointed King’s Counsel, and John Robert Cartwright, future Chief Justice of Canada, graduate.
-
1919 - A Return to Normalcy?
After years of low enrolment, Osgoode is coping with its largest classes. The Law School creates a special summer session for returning veterans that allows them to complete an academic year in a few months. The Law Society of Upper Canada waives school and articling requirements for veterans, students receive one year of law school credit in recognition of their service.
-
1919 - “… to encourage the interchange of ideas and co-operation between women with legal training.”
Laura Denton Duff and Helen Currie gather together a handful of young women lawyers and law students in the offices of Frank Denton, K.C., Laura's father. They create the Women’s Law Association of Ontario. Barred from professional organizations, the WLAO’s monthly meetings provided the sole source of continuing legal education for women lawyers. This is a toast card from a dinner held in 1927.
