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QUID NOVI

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McGill University Faculty of Law Faculté de droit de l’Université McGill

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Vol 44 No 12 7 February 2023

quid.law@mcgill.ca @quidnovi.mcgill

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF RÉDACTEUR EN CHEF Zack Goobie ART DIRECTOR DIRECTRICE ARTISTIQUE Souang Wu LAYOUT EDITOR ÉDITRICE DE MISE EN PAGE Camille Duhaime COPY EDITORS SECRÉTAIRES DE RÉDACTION Marie-Ève Ouellet Thomas Power COLUMNISTS CHRONIQUEURES ET CHRONIQUEUSES Alanna Molzahn Meagan Beattie Pablo Mhanna-Sandoval CONTRIBUTORS TO THIS ISSUE COLLABORATEURS ET COLLABORATRICES David Searle Léa Brousseau-Bellavance Special thanks to Prairie Koo for designing the layout. ~ The Quid Novi is published weekly by the students of the Faculty of Law at McGill University. Production is made possible through the direct support of students. All contents copyright © 2023 Quid Novi.

Les opinions exprimées sont propres aux auteurs et ne réflètent pas nécessairement celles de l’équipe du Quid Novi. The content of this publication does not necessarily reflect the views of the McGill Law Students’ Association or of McGill University. Envoyez vos commentaires ou articles avant jeudi 17h00 à quid.law@mcgill.ca. Toute contribution doit indiquer le nom de l’auteur, son année d’étude ainsi qu’un titre et un sous -titre pour l’article. Les images doivent être soumises séparément. L’article ne sera publié qu’à la discrétion du comité de rédaction, qui basera sa décision sur la politique de rédaction disponible sur notre Facebook @quidnovi.mcgill.

QUID NOVI

CETTE SEMAINE...

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Vol 44 No 12 7 February 2023

INSIGHTS

COMMUNAUTÉ

EVENTS

2 | LETTER FROM THE EDITOR

3 | MEET THE TEAM

6 | HOCKEY NIGHT AT MCGILL!

2 | ON BEING A BEGINNER

Why I’m learning New Things This Year

4 | TO B, OR NOT TO B

The Pluses and Minuses of the Grading Scheme at McGill Law. Part One.

8 | WHAT LEGACY WILL

CAREY PRICE LEAVE? #31 Leaves Lasting Memories for Hockey Fans

10 | PIGEON-HOLED

Misconceptions about our Friend, the Pigeon

Copy Editor, Marie-Ève Ouellet

3 | ÉTUDIANT.E.S, SOUMETTEZ VOS RECHERCHES EN DROIT DU LOGEMENT The Housing Crisis

11 | AFTER PERSONS, ANIMISM, ANIMALS AND LAW Yoriko Otomo

6 | MEET THE TEAM

Columnist, Pablo Mhanna-Sandoval

7 | APPEL À COMMUNICATION/CALL FOR PAPERS Mini-conférence BLG sur la recherche étudiante/BLG Student Research Mini-Conference 9 | BLAST FROM THE PAST Coin des SPORTS Corner

Vol 44 ● No 12

LETTER FROM THE EDITOR Zack Goobie | 3L

Welcome back for another week of your favourite newspaper. This edition punches above its weight. In the following pages, you’ll see articles about pigeons and stand-up comedy. With every page turned, you will become a more well-rounded human being. Notably, it brings me much joy to see columnist Meg Beattie using her math background to analyze the secretive approach to grading at McGill Law. We have also received submissions that will help students get involved in the McGill Law community, make sure to take a look. We continue to get queries about prospective articles. The Quid generally accepts all submissions from the McGill Law community unless they don’t abide by our editorial guidelines (check out our Facebook page for details). I am amazed how students vigorously debate contentious issues while remaining respectful. It is important to understand opposing viewpoints, and I think the Quid has enabled many people to speak their minds. If you have any questions about the submission process or how to get involved with the paper, feel free to send Anna or I an email at quid.law@mcgill.ca.

ON BEING A BEGINNER Why I’m Learning New Things This Year

QUID NOVI • 7 FEB 2023

Pablo Mhanna-Sandoval | 1L

On February 1st, I tried stand-up comedy for the second time. It went alright.

bombing on my second try. I had come, I had seen, I had conquered, and gotten the hell out. Until Wednesday night.

It may have gone better than alright. I’m sometimes my own worst critic. I was the first to go on to warm up the crowd. We were gathered in the basement of the McConnell Engineering Building at a little past 8pm for McGill Improv’s biweekly Comedy Revue. Some of my jokes landed and a few didn’t, but overall I felt the same way that had drawn me to the format in the first place. I had command of the crowd and was doing my favourite thing: making them laugh. Why had I kept pushing back against trying it a second time?

I don’t know when I started hating trying new things. Was I always so uncurious as a child? Or was it somewhere along the way, after years of perfectionism and warped reinforcement patterns, that I lost my interest in trying new things and inevitably being terrible at them?

The first time was last year at Yuk Yuk’s Amateurs’ Night in Ottawa. People had paid to see the show. This made me nervous. I had customers to whom I owed something, despite not being paid myself. I had a responsibility to these people (along with the other comics in the line-up, of course). For my first time trying stand-up, it was a success. I even got a few swells of laughter, something I had thought unthinkable. It went so well that I guess I didn’t want to taint my experience with the format by 2

My New Year’s resolution this year is to give my hobbies time in my daily routine instead of thinking about them. This includes stand-up, trying out acting, writing, and hiking. We’ll see how it goes. But I’m proud of my show, of the good bits and those needing a little workshopping. I’m happy that it led to a bar to talk shop with other comedy people afterwards. I’m satisfied I kept a promise to myself, for once. Are you interested in stand-up comedy, as either a comic or a watcher? Follow @McGillComedy on Instagram, the campus stand-up comedy club that a friend and I are reviving. We’re planning a first show in March and we would love to have you there.

MEET THE TEAM Copy Editor Marie-Ève Ouellet | 2L

Where are you from/where have you lived?

Was law school a dream come true or a happy accident?

Je viens de Rimouski, dans le Bas-Saint-Laurent. J’ai déménagé à Montréal lorsque j’ai commencé mes études en droit.

À la fin de mon secondaire, je souhaitais déjà étudier en droit à l’université. Je voulais toutefois explorer d’autres domaines, notamment les sciences, avant de me décider, ce que j’ai fait au cégep.

What drew you to the Quid? J’ai toujours aimé lire et éditer des textes. Le Quid me permet de faire cela tout en découvrant une variété de sujets. What did you do before McGill Law? Avant mes études en droit, j’ai étudié en Sciences de la nature au Cégep de Rimouski. Quel était ton cours préféré avant de commencer à la faculté de droit? Il est difficile pour moi de choisir un cours en particulier, mais j’ai particulièrement apprécié mes cours de mathématiques et de littérature au cégep.

Qu’aimes-tu faire quand tu n’étudies pas? Dans mes temps libres, j’aime particulièrement cuisiner, aller dans des cafés et écouter de la musique. As-tu un quartier préféré à Montréal? Le Plateau-Mont-Royal est un quartier que j’affectionne particulièrement. Cependant, il me reste encore plusieurs endroits à découvrir à Montréal. Où aimerais-tu travailler dans cinq ans? J’espère travailler dans un endroit qui m’amènera à me dépasser et à apprendre constamment. Je souhaite également rester à Montréal pour les prochaines années.

ÉTUDIANT.E.S, SOUMETTEZ VOS RECHERCHES EN DROIT DU LOGEMENT POUR APPUYER LES ORGANISMES COMMUNAUTAIRES! David Searle, Léa Brousseau-Bellavance | 2L

The Housing Crisis In the context of the housing crisis, a better understanding of housing law is essential for front-line workers. In fact, workers in community organizations must explain the current state of this constantly evolving field of law on a daily basis. However, housing law is one of the least studied areas of law. Therefore, it is a real challenge! Contribution des étudiant·es Justice décodée met de l’avant une nouvelle plateforme gratuite en ligne afin que les étudiant·es en droit puissent appuyer davantage le monde

communautaire. Comment? Dorénavant, les intervenant·es qui œuvrent au sein d’organismes communautaires, tels que l’aide juridique, les comités de logement et les centres de justice de proximité de ce monde, peuvent consulter les recherches les plus récentes rédigées par des étudiant·es.

majeurs, la fixation du loyer, l’expulsion d’un logement et les compensations moyennes accordées par le Tribunal administratif du logement en matière d’insalubrité. All accessible free of charge at www.justicedecodee.com.

Fonctionnement et exemple

In the course of your studies or volunteer work, have you completed any research that would be of interest to the housing law community? Dans le doute, n’hésitez-pas à nous contacter à justicedecodee@gmail.com et il nous fera plaisir de réviser votre texte et/ou de répondre à vos questions! We accept submissions in English and French.

Each text published on the website is reviewed by a team of students and lawyers. This team of volunteers ensures the relevance and quality of the content for the community. Par exemple, on retrouve sur Justice décodée des recherches concernant les travaux

Your turn: Submit a paper

Vol 44 ● No 12

TO B, OR NOT TO B

The Pluses and Minuses of the Grading Scheme at McGill Law. Part One. Meg Beattie | 3L

I don’t remember the exact moment when I learned about McGill’s grading method. Probably because I refused to believe that Integration Week was really mandatory and was thus not, strictly speaking, present to receive that particular bit of information. It’s entirely possible that I missed that crucial info session where someone had to explain to a Zoom call full of chronic over-achievers that their next three to four years would be riddled with more Bs than they’d ever seen on a transcript before. What I do remember was the general feeling of confusion tinged with righteous indignation as students wondered what this would mean for our future academic and professional prospects. And of course, the question permeating it all: why? Why couldn’t we keep getting the As we’d become addicted to, that we felt almost entitled to?

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My relationship with the B “curve” (though it’s not a curve—more on that later) has had its own ups and downs. At first, my initial shock and suspicion were replaced by hesitant understanding… after all, if B means average then it just makes sense to award the average McGill Law student a B, right? But late last semester, my feelings shifted into something more bitter and resentful. Not because the concept of the average student getting the average grade stopped making sense, but because I’d come to believe that the rules in practice were not at all in line with the proclaimed philosophy. And so, I set off to write an exposé, a denouncement, an indictment, of the notorious “B curve”. My background in mathematics (and of course, my own hubris) led me to believe that I would be able to uncover the root of the problem and propose a solution. Somewhere out there, there had to be a grading system better than our current one, and I was determined to find it. But like any adventurer, I have returned 4

from my quest much changed. It turns out it’s much easier to point out the problems with something than it is to fix them! Still, I think my venture was a worthwhile one; I know I’m far from the only student who has had beef with the Bs, and if what I learned can help others come to grips with it then maybe it will all have been worth it. What IS the grading policy? It seemed to me that before I could write an article criticising the grading policy I should know what it actually was, and here’s a few of the things I learned: 1. The average for most classes must be a B or a BThis you probably already knew, but I would be remiss if I didn’t state the obvious. The well-known exception is that classes of fewer than 25 students may have a class average of B+. However, even this is somewhat misunderstood: profs handing in marks for a small class do not have to give a B+ average. (As an aside, if you’re wondering why this only applies to classes of 25 students or more, no official reason is given, but I have a feeling it has to do with the Central Limit Theorem. If you’re bored enough to look it up then you, like me, can ask why McGill seems to have gotten confused between ‘25’ and ‘30.’ But I digress.) As I alluded to earlier, the Faculty of Law does this because B is right in the middle of all the passing grades you can get, which range from C- to A. Making B the class average means that there are three levels of distinction both above and below.

average on the transcript,1 so anyone reviewing your transcript doesn’t just see your grades, but how well you stack up against your peers. And since McGill has an international reputation for having a top-notch law program, the people looking at your transcript are likely aware that those peers are pretty smart cookies. 2. The policy does NOT require conformity to a curve! This is the point that I, the Math Major,tm felt (and feel) most strongly about. We may call it the “B curve”, and even in this article I have referred to it as such, but it is not a curve. I know, this is already getting gross; you definitely did not open this edition of the Quid looking for a math lesson. But this is important! A curve implies there are rules about what proportion of students have to fall a certain distance from the average. If you imagine (or google) what a bell curve looks like, you can see that most data points are clustered in the middle (the average), and as you get further from it, closer to the extremes, the data points are fewer and fewer. If McGill enforced a bell curve (as many institutions do) this would mean that most students would get close to the average grade (with the largest proportion getting the average itself) in any given course. As you move closer to A and to D, you would see a dramatic and sharp decrease in the number of students getting those grades. Why is this the point that I feel so strongly about? Well, because this is the way data tends to work in the real world. I really “Handbook of Academic Regulations, Resolutions and Policies” (2020-2021) at 18, online (pdf): McGill University, Faculty of Law Academic Regulations, Resolutions and Policies < https:// www.mcgill.ca/law-studies/files/law-studies/ academic_regulations_resolutions_policies_ handbook_mcgill_faculty_law_2020-2021.pdf > 1

So far, so good. Things get messier when we start thinking about grades going out to prospective employers or schools to whom we’re applying. But McGill has thought of this too; every class of 25 students or more must include its class

don’t want to get any more mathematical than I already have, but basically it is extremely well-documented that when you take 30 or more variables (variables of the sort that grades should fall into, in a perfect world) you should end up with something that looks close to a bell curve. When I began this research this was my sticking point, because why does McGill Law think it can beat a mathematical theorem almost 300 years old? If McGill wants its grading scheme to make sense and reflect actual student performance—which doesn’t seem like that much to ask—why not use the tool that has been proven to do that very thing? 3. The policy is an enforced average!!! Instead of being a bell curve, the actual policy is an enforced average. This means that there are not set rules about how many students must get the average grade, or close to it. If the average must be a B, then all the enforced average means is that when you add up all the grades and divide it by the number of students, the resulting number has to round to a B (i.e. 3.0). The big, important point here is that this does not require any student to actually get a B. I’m going to say that again. NO ONE IS GUARANTEED A B! If you are shocked, sceptical, or even scandalised, I get it. The belief that Bs are practically our birthright here at McGill Law has been a safety blanket for many of us—something we can desperately cling to when things are starting to go sideways. Of course, other times it has felt like a trap we can’t seem to escape from, no matter how hard we try. But it is very important to me that everyone understands: it is technically possible to have a class where half of the students get a B- and half get a B+; or even where half receive an A- and half a C+. While in practice this would probably require a unique group of students and a truly sadistic professor, my research doesn’t indicate that there is any rule against it… aside from a warning for professors “... against awarding excessive numbers of either fail grades or high marks unless there are unusually cogent reasons which

an examiner is prepared to support.”2 Now, the astute reader who hasn’t yet been put to sleep by all this talk of averages will also have realised by now that the enforced average allows for an entire class to receive a B. This is also true, and I could find no written rule against it, though the idea that an entire class is turning in work so similar in quality is suspect, at best. At this point, if you’re anything like me, you’ve now made it this far and are wondering “why on earth does McGill do an enforced average when a bell curve seems to make much more sense?” This is where I was at when I first began digging into these issues, so if this is you, you’re not alone. However, there is one more important thing to consider before we can really start weighing the pros and cons of this system: 4. Final grades require approval by Faculty Council There is a Marks Meeting at the end of every semester in which grades must be approved before they are finalised and sent back to students. If a professor’s grades are not approved, they can either be sent back for amendment or modified by Faculty Council themselves. So, yes; I was getting a bit carried away above when I started talking about all the horrifying possibilities available with the enforced average. One would hope that if a professor attempted to do anything too crazy with their grades, Faculty Council would see this as abusive and put a stop to it. One would hope, at least… Bell Curve v. Enforced Average I started researching this article with this one issue in mind, armed and ready to utterly eviscerate the enforced average. I mean, it’s by far the inferior approach, right? Well, maybe not. We have already seen how some of the biggest shortcomings of the enforced average are (hopefully) checked by the intervention of Faculty 2

McGill University, supra note 1 at 31.

Council, whom we believe are preventing the most abusive possibilities. But I’m only human, and there’s another thing I had failed to consider which, I believe, makes all the difference. You see, a bell curve must be symmetrical. That might not sound like a big deal, but when there are marks on the line it can have devastating consequences. Symmetry means that if one student gets an A, there must be another student who gets a C, or even a D. Every B+ must have its equal and opposite B-, and every A- its C+. One student’s exceptional success requires another student’s exceptional shortcoming, and vice versa. For a faculty which prides itself on the excellence of all of its students, you can see how this might feel unfair. But isn’t that also true of the enforced average? Luckily, no. Since all the average requires is a final result, one student getting an A could be offset by 3 students each getting a B- (as well as by other possibilities. MATH). Rather than forcing a student to the bottom of the pack, this approach allows professors to be more forgiving, only awarding extreme grades if they feel they are truly warranted, and not just because the curve demands it. But what’s the best system? When I reached this conclusion, I realised that my search for the best system would have to continue. Maybe the enforced average beat out the bell curve, but it is not without its own problems. The enforced average has led many of us to believe that we all get Bs when this is by no means guaranteed. It also, unfortunately, has put many of us through the frustration of feeling that our grades do not reflect either the effort we put into our classes or our capabilities—sometimes, it even makes us feel that our professors are giving out grades without considering our work at all. And so, the road goes ever on. There are nearly as many grading policies out there as there are universities, and I have a few more ideas about where to look next for a better solution. Tune in next time to hear why I think a pass/fail system might be the ultimate winner… 5

Vol 44 ● No 12

MEET THE TEAM Columnist Pablo Mhanna-Sandoval | 1L

Where are you from / where have you lived?

Quel était ton cours préféré avant de commencer à la faculté de droit?

I was born just up the hill from the Faculty at the Royal Victoria Hospital in Montreal. I lived in the city until I was nine, when we moved to Ottawa. I just moved back to Montreal and have been loving it.

A: L’histoire des relations internationales du Canada. C’était frappant de découvrir que tellement des débats politiques de notre temps ont été vus sous une autre forme il y a une ou deux centaines d’années.

What drew you to the Quid?

As-tu un quartier préféré à Montréal?

I enjoy writing and respect it as a way to live and engage with a community. Writing for the law student newspaper was a no-brainer; I’m thankful for the opportunity every time.

Les maisons d’Outremont sont si belles, mais en termes de vie nocturne, je préfère le Plateau.

What did you do before McGill Law? I have a Bachelor of Public Affairs and Policy Management from Carleton University. I threw in a Minor in History halfway through. The idea was to do a Master’s in International Relations and try for the foreign service, but plans changed.

Was law school a dream come true or a happy accident? It was a real dream come true. Whether the dream is intact after a semester here is for me and my therapist to unpack. On a serious note, my friends back home can vouch for how much I fantasized and idealized studying law at McGill in the second half of my undergrad. The pandemic affected everyone in different ways,

I guess. To be admitted to McGill Law, it’s a blessing, an opportunity I will always be thankful for. Qu’aimes-tu faire quand tu n’étudies pas ? Je vais dévoiler mon manque d’habileté en gestion de temps, évidemment. J’aime bien mon travail avec les Réserves primaires des Forces armées canadiennes, écrire, faire de la comédie, lire des romans et marcher ou aller en randonnées. Où aimerais-tu travailler dans cinq ans? Mon rêve était de passer du temps à Montréal puis ensuite m’essayer à New York. Mais, on verra. Les plans changent si souvent qu’il me semble presque dangereux de mettre mes rêves en noir et blanc. Je sais que le droit figure peut-être dans ces rêves, mais que je préfèrerais gagner ma vie en faisant rire le monde ou en écrivant ou comme comédien. On verra.

HOCKEY NIGHT AT MCGILL! QUID NOVI • 7 FEB 2023

Next week, the McGill Sports and Entertainment Law Association is teaming up with the McGill Men’s Hockey Team and hosting Hockey Night! We have a promo code for 25% off tickets. Use promo “msmc” at checkout! The game is at McConnell Arena (3883 rue University, right below Upper Residence, behind the football stadium and next to Parc Jeanne-Mance, by the gazebo), next Thursday, Feb 9th at 7pm. They serve food and drinks at the games!

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RFWX a 2FWHM – +FHZQYऍ IJ IWTNY :SN[JWXNYऍ 2H,NQQ a +FHZQY^ TK 1F\ 2H,NQQ :SN[JWXNY^ Effectuez-vous un travail de recherche dirigé (term paper) ou rédigez-vous une dissertation dans le cadre d’un cours lors du présent semestre? Avez-vous rédigé un tel travail à l’été ou l’automne 2022? Acquérez une expérience enrichissante en présentant votre travail et en partageant vos idées à vos collègues et aux membres du corps professoral en participant à la conférence BLG sur la recherche étudiante, organisée par le Centre Paul-André Crépeau de droit privé et comparé à la Faculté de droit de l’Université McGill le 6 mars 2023. Nous sollicitons des propositions de communications (15 à 20 minutes) dans tous les domaines de droit. Cependant, une préférence sera accordée aux communications portant sur le droit privé ou comparé. Nous vous invitons à nous faire parvenir votre proposition de communication (maximum 250 mots) au plus tard le 17 février 2023 à : centre.crepeau@mcgill.ca La participation à la conférence est ouverte aux étudiant·e·s de 1er cycle. Informations : David D’Astous, directeur adjoint du Centre Paul-André Crépeau de droit privé et comparé (david.dastous@mcgill.ca). ***** Are you writing a supervised term paper or research essay for a seminar this winter? Or did you write one in the fall or summer terms just past? Get experience presenting your work and enjoy sharing your ideas with colleagues and professors by participating in the BLG Student Research Conference, hosted by the Paul-André Crépeau Centre for Private and Comparative Law on March 6, 2023, at McGill University’s Faculty of Law. Proposals are invited for papers (15-20 minutes) in all areas of law. However, preference shall be given to papers in private law or comparative law. Abstracts (maximum 250 words) should be submitted by February 17, 2023 at: centre.crepeau@mcgill.ca. Open to undergraduate law students. Information: David D’Astous, Assistant Director of the Paul-André Crépeau Centre for Private and Comparative Law (david.dastous@mcgill.ca).

Vol 44 ● No 12

WHAT LEGACY WILL CAREY PRICE LEAVE? #31 Leaves Lasting Memories for Hockey Fans Zack Goobie | 3L

Carey Price will likely never play another National Hockey League (NHL) game. As such, many pundits have begun evaluating his status among the best netminders. The 2015 recipient of the Hart and Vezina Trophies only has one knack on his record: he never won the Stanley Cup. Despite his success in 2015, 2007 might have been Carey’s best year. I think it is best to list his accomplishments: • American Hockey League (AHL) Champion (Calder Cup), AHL Playoffs Most Valuable Player (MVP) • U-20 World Junior Championship Gold Medal, MVP of the Tournament and Best Goaltender • Canadian Hockey League (CHL) and Western Hockey League (WHL) Goalie of the Year and CHL First All-Star Team

QUID NOVI • 7 FEB 2023

When the Canadiens’ 2005 fifth-overall pick joined the big club, the expectations could not have been higher. After some brief competition with Jaroslav Halak for the team’s starter, Price solidified himself as one of the top goalies in the league. The 2013-2014 year was a busy and successful year for Price. He backstopped Canada to an Olympic gold medal and was named the tournament’s best goaltender. He was again on the top of the international stage. These accomplishments showed that, despite his club team’s mediocre roster, he was the best goaltender in the world and arguably one of the best players. After the 2014 Olympics, it was time for his first deep playoff run; he backstopped his team to the conference finals before getting injured by Rangers’ forward Chris Kreider. It was an unfortunate end to the season for the team. Another former World Junior gold medalist, Dustin Tokarski, took over, but could not propel the team past the Rangers. 8

The following year was Price’s best in terms of individual accolades. Coming off of his injury in the playoffs, he sported a 1.96 goals against average (GAA) to go along with a .933 save percentage (SP) in 66 games. I suggest you peruse YouTube for his highlight reel from 2014-2015. I, again, think it is necessary to list his accomplishments for the 2014-2015 season: • Hart Memorial Trophy (League MVP) • Vezina Trophy (Best Goalie) • Jennings Trophy (Lowest GAA) • Ted Lindsay Award (NHL MVP selected by the NHL Players’ Association) • NHL First All-Star Team • Lou Marsh Trophy (Canada’s Top Athlete) • Lionel Conacher Award (Canada’s Top Male Athlete) This was number 31’s peak; the following year, he was injured for most of the season, but maintained a .934 save percentage in his twelve games played. 2016-2017 saw Price continue to shine for Canada on the world stage; he backstopped Team Canada to a World Cup of Hockey gold medal in 2016. Moreover, he was named a Vezina finalist for his regular season NHL play. The seasons that followed saw a drastic drop in Price’s regular season performance, while he still performed at a high level in the 2019-2020 playoffs, and the infamous 2021 Stanley Cup run where the Canadiens had no business making it to the finals, he could not replicate his former self. Legacy Carey Price leaves a Hockey Hall of Fame career behind him, and will be remembered as one of the Canadiens’ all-time great goalies. While his international success was never

able to lead to a Stanley Cup, it just shows how the Canadiens squandered Price’s prime with spotty defence and no clear offensive weapons. When Price was at the top of his game, he challenged shooters by being positionally sound while convincingly athletic. The British Columbia native used his six-foot-three frame to cut down shooting angles while controlling his rebounds. He was the type of goalie who could get into teams’ heads by scaring shooters with his prowess in the crease. The goaltender will likely spend the rest of his career on long-term injured reserve (LTIR). This allows the Habs to exceed the salary cap limit while Carey still collects his $10.5M (average annual value) pay cheque. Carey Price should thank his agent, Gerry Johannson, for negotiating an 8-year $84M contract following Price’s last good season. I hope Price enjoys “retirement” (without saying he is retired, as he would lose his salary), while healing from his many injuries. I have been enamoured by his play since 2007, and I wish him all the best. His play in the 2011-2012 season led to the start of my sports journalism career when I wrote an article to The Hockey News deploring the fact that he was not in their top 50 players.

BLAST FROM THE PAST Take a look at Jordan Waxman’s (LLB’91 & BCL’92) sports reporting from 1990. He is the Founder and Managing Partner at Nucleus Advisors.

Vol 44 ● No 12

PIGEON-HOLED

Misconceptions about Our Friend, the Pigeon Alanna Molzahn | 2L

Last month, a pigeon carrying a little backpack filled with crystal meth was apprehended at a B.C. correctional institution. Fortuitously, the wannabe Walter White was released, and will not be subjected to the horror that is the Canadian criminal justice system. Prison staff are concerned about the use of pigeons trying to drop contraband into the prison, but I think this is a good opportunity to dispel some myths and misconceptions about our friend, the pigeon. 1. Pigeons are dirty

QUID NOVI • 7 FEB 2023

Because pigeons are often found in gutters eating garbage, there is a tendency to view them as unclean animals. Some go as far as to refer to pigeons as winged rats. Interestingly, pigeons aren’t as unclean as one would think (neither are rats).1 In the 1950s, it was discovered that pigeons can carry diseases, and the birds never recovered from this bad PR. It is estimated that pigeons carry up to sixty varieties of pathogens. However, it is highly unlikely that the average person will contract a pigeon-borne disease.2 Pigeons can also carry fleas, lice, and ticks,3 but so can dogs and cats. Pigeons regularly groom themselves by plucking feathers and taking baths or showers. Therefore, we can conclude that pigeons are no dirtier than any other wild animal. 2. Pigeons are ugly What makes a bird beautiful? I think most bird appreciators will agree that all birds are beautiful in their own way. There are more than 300 species of wild pigeons and doves, with a wide range of appearances.4 https://now.tufts.edu/2020/01/13/five-thingsknow-about-rats 2 https://pigeonpedia.com/do-pigeons-carry-diseases/ 3 https://pigeonpedia.com/are-pigeons-dirty/ 4 https://www.pigeonrescue.org/resources/ types-of-pigeons/

The species of pigeon we are most familiar with, however, is the rock pigeon. With iridescent green and purple neck feathers, slate gray breasts, and a regal stance, the rock pigeon is quite an attractive bird. To everyone who reads this article, please find a pigeon and notice some of the finer details of its appearance. It may not be your favourite bird, but it has a subtle beauty worthy of attention. 3. Pigeons are stupid. Being called a birdbrain isn’t as much of an insult as it used to be. Some birds, such as corvids, are way more intelligent than initially thought, with some species able to demonstrate complex cognition.5 Recent studies have demonstrated a pigeon’s ability to distinguish between four-letter English words and non-words6 as well as the ability to categorize and name both natural and manmade objects.7 B. F. Skinner, the famed behaviourist, was known to use pigeons in many of his studies on operant conditioning, and trained pigeons to pilot missiles during the war. Unfortunately for Skinner, the U.S. government did not want to entrust deadly weapons to pigeons, possibly because they also believed in the myth of pigeon stupidity. Other Skinner-led pigeon experiments included teaching pigeons how to play ping-pong and how to bowl. 4. Pigeons are government spies Maybe the government didn’t want to use pigeon-driven missiles because they were already using pigeons for something else: spying. The innocuous bird would make perfect spyware, however, we already willingly consent to near

https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/birdbrain-turns-from-insult-to-praise/ 6 Ibid. 5

https://now.uiowa.edu/2015/02/pigeon-power

conscious surveillance by using our phones and computers constantly, so it seems like it would be a waste of money for the government to add an additional surveillance mechanism. Then again, the government does love to spend money on stupid things, as we can see from the recent Montreal police budget increase. For more information on how pigeons and birds in general can function as spyware, refer to birdsarentreal.com. Do people hate pigeons because there are so many of them? Because of the aforementioned misconceptions? Nonetheless, the widespread dislike of pigeons says a lot about our society. Cities craft hostile architecture to keep pigeons off stoops and rooftops, and people shoo them when they get too close. Have we created an imagined geography in which pigeons ‘pollute’ our spaces, and wherein attempts to control them mimic attempts to control and dominate the land? In what ways do pigeons and other ‘pests’ come to symbolize undesirable humans? Cities employ hostile architecture against humans (predominantly unhoused people), too. We seek to push ‘nuisances’ and ‘pests’ out of our line of sight. We could argue prisons function in a similar way, as a large part of the carceral system’s function is to remove ‘undesirables’ from the general population. By pushing pigeons and socially unacceptable types of people to the periphery, we fail to perceive them (and treat them) as living beings, relegating them to pest status. It becomes a radical act to show kindness to anything or anyone deemed gross, stupid, or unwanted. Challenge the status quo and ruffle some feathers by learning to appreciate pigeons and their role in society, while simultaneously reconsidering your perception of pests. At the end of the day, we are all just little creatures who deserve love and kindness.

Yoriko Otomo, « After Persons, Animism, Animals and Law » Le 13 février 2023, de 13h00 à 14h30 (HNE), 202 du Pavillon New Chancellor Day, Format hybride (En anglais seulement) This lecture critically examines a current tendency in human-animal, critical animal studies and social anthropology to look towards the ‘animism’ of indigenous communities as an alternative to the dominant ontological and legal distinction between ‘person’ and ‘thing’. It contributes to an ongoing conversation hosted by McGill Faculty of Law on legal personhood, and to a broader conversation about the ethics of global governance. I first describe how ‘animal personhood’ is relevant to a discussion about legal personhood in general. I then look at the current jurisprudence on the granting of personhood to nonhuman entities and animals, explaining the tensions this produces for law more generally. The final part of my talk reflects on the ‘ontological turn’ in human-animal studies in recent years, including the temptation to transpose this approach to the courtroom. In my conclusion, I will suggest an alternative – perhaps radical – way forward in our ongoing efforts to make global governance fit for purpose. Yoriko Otomo is a Research Associate at SOAS, University of London, where she was a Senior Lecturer for a number of years before becoming Director of the Global Research Network and Think Tank, an organisation that promotes collaboration and knowledge transfer between North-South academics. She holds a Ph.D in Law (University of Melbourne) and has received numerous fellowships and awards. Yoriko has authored Unconditional Life: The Postwar International Law Settlement (Oxford University Press, 2016) and co-edited Law and the Question of the Animal: A Critical Jurisprudence (Routledge, 2014) and Making Milk: The Past, Present and Future of Our Primary Food (Bloomsbury, 2017) and is currently co-editing Routledge's Handbook on Law and Animals (forthcoming, 2024). Recent interdisciplinary projects include a collaboration with architects on a permanent installation for the Court of Aarhus in Denmark, 'Silent Parties'. Alongside academia, she has undertaken international environmental law consultancies over the last two decades for U.N., NGOs and government bodies. Her current research tries to go beyond critique to suggest practical ways of transforming current environmental law discourse.

Vol 44 ● No 12

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