U of O Watch mission, in the words of Foucault...

"One knows … that the university and in a general way, all teaching systems, which appear simply to disseminate knowledge, are made to maintain a certain social class in power; and to exclude the instruments of power of another social class. … It seems to me that the real political task in a society such as ours is to criticise the workings of institutions, which appear to be both neutral and independent; to criticise and attack them in such a manner that the political violence which has always exercised itself obscurely through them will be unmasked, so that one can fight against them." -- Foucault, debating Chomsky, 1971.

U of O Watch mission, in the words of Socrates...

"An education obtained with money is worse than no education at all." -- Socrates

video of president allan rock at work

Saturday, October 13, 2012

How to find the room number to attend a public Court hearing at the Ottawa Courthouse

The open court principle is a right in a democratic society, including in Canada and Ontario. This means that the court is open to public attendance and scrutiny. The main reason is to secure just behaviour of the courts themselves.

Cases before the Ontario Superior Court of Justice in Ottawa are heard at the Elgin Street Courthouse, corner of Elgin and Laurier.

Even though you know the date and time of a hearing, the court does not publish the room number until the morning of the hearing.

To attend a hearing, therefore, you must arrive early at the Courthouse and find out the room number where the hearing will be held. There should be a list of all the day's hearings and room number's at the security desk (in front of the elevators) on the second floor (main Elgin Street entrance level).

Go to the security desk and consult the list to find the room number. For example, room "34" is on the third floor, and so on. If security does not have the list, then ask them when they will get it or how else you can find the room number. You can always go to the "Civil Counter" on the second floor, as they should also have the list for the day's hearings.

You will need to know the name of the case, such as "St. Lewis v. Rancourt". The list also tells you the name of the judge.

Good luck.