Weldon law students get answers during live podcast recording

The vast array of questions heard at a recent live podcast recording of Wards Legal Matters is best illustrated in two questions that were posed by one student of the Grade 12 law class at I.E. Weldon Secondary School. His first had to do with rules surrounding lot severances. It prompted real estate lawyer, Hamid Asrar, to first point out, “Wow! I’m impressed that you know what a severance is. Back when I was in high school, I didn’t even know there was such a thing.” The student’s second question, posed to criminal lawyer Alex McLeod, had a more pop-culture tone. “Have you dealt with lawyers who are, like, the ruthless TV type lawyers?”

Indeed, the expert legal panel from Wards Lawyers, which also comprised Sam Drebit, Victoria Smith and Audrey Gregory, addressed questions – and curiosities – about everything from separation agreements and child custody, to how juries are selected and “the weirdest case you’ve ever handled.”

Moderator and host of Wards Legal Matters, Denis Grignon, says he was impressed with how the students came prepared. “Often, at these kinds of events, I have to jump in with questions, just to keep things moving. That wasn’t necessary, here. These students probably could have kept that panel talking for hours! And that enthusiasm from these teens is a credit to their teacher, for sure.”

That teacher, Richard Bergman, was eager to host the panel, he says, because it provided students with an insight beyond what he can offer. “This class is absolutely my favourite to teach. But I have no academic background in law,” he concedes. “We look at stuff in class superficially; so having experts in the room to talk to them is a pretty significant experience.”

It’s an experience Melissa Wemyss, Wards Lawyers CEO, hopes to revisit in future episodes. “I’d say that taking this show on the road to a high school was a bit of an experiment,” says Wemyss, who’s also the podcast’s executive producer. “And an experiment that worked, because it achieved what we set out to do: to get young people in our community asking questions about how the law works and the variety of career opportunities in law.”

Episode 5 of Wards Legal Matters – “All right, students. Pencils (and phones) down” – is now streaming wherever you find your podcasts. Or by going to Wardlegal.ca.