Part 21

which is really the next part of Part 19 which I skipped over.  It is hard trying to keep track of what is put to paper -  particularly since I don't post every day.

In any event  -- going back to what happened after a discussion took place about teaching -

It was suggested that I contact AR who appeared to be in charge of the curriculum.  He was not a chiropractor.  In fact, as I recall he was a chemist by training from Europe.

In any event after a short conversation, I was directed to the Dean to have an in person meeting.  I remember clearly attending at this office.  He was on the phone and directed me to have a seat.  (the usual nonsense from people of importance).  While he was chatting away, I spent the time observing all of his photos of military aircraft.  I was actually quite impressed.

When he finished his phone call he apologized.  I told him that it was not a problem and that I was enthralled by the photos particularly since my uncle had been in the air force.

That was sort of enough.  It turned out that HV had also been in the air force and proceeded to describe in detail his term of office in the military.  It went on for about 45 minutes after which we concluded the interview by him offering me the position of lecturer and telling me it was about the best interview he had experienced  -  probably since he never asked me a question.

I was told that I would be teaching a course on jurisprudence.  For the life of me, I couldn't figure out why chiropractic students would need to learn jurisprudence since the definition of jurisprudence is basically the study of law (or its history).  Only later did a jurisprudence course get defined as subject matters involving tort law etc.

After creating a number of lectures on the Napoleon Code, Civil Law, etc did I get sent a previous course outline dealing with intentional torts, negligence etc.  So I started writing the lectures again.

By the first day, I was full of vim and vigour.  I actually thought that I knew what I was talking about.  I was received with curiosity but more importantly with some of fear - a lawyer in a class room of 150 potential doctors.  

 Part 20

My journey into CMCC and chiropractic:

I was to start teaching in September of 1976.  I was 27 years old.  A large group of students in the class were the same age or only a few years younger.  

I actually wrote out my lecture - showed up in class and started reading the lecture.  Very occasionally I would be asked a question or be questioned on the information that I was presenting.  I quickly learned that the key to success is sincerity and once you can fake sincerity you can be successful.   I also learned that never show fear when teaching.  A large number of the students in the class of 1977 went on to become leaders in the profession.

I survived the first year and as I recall I was then asked to assist in the business course in the next year.  The students were not very happy with the course material which included how to write a cheque.

By the third year I was teaching both the jurisprudence course and the business course.  They became two hours lectures each and were back to back.  I began every lecture when the clock struck 12 and ended exactly when the clock struck 10 before the hour.  The lectures began with the words -  It's showtime!   And I wasn't kidding.

I began inviting guest lecturers to assist with the course material.  This involved the lawyers for the regulatory body, the defence insurance company, bankers, accountants, planners, etc.  I would sit at the back of the room and it would be about 15 minutes into their presentation when I started asking questions that would be pertinent to the students' future as practitioners.

I made sure that students understood that while they were professionals, they could only be successful if they could properly operate their practices ensuring that everything from starting up a practice, accounting and billings were done properly.

The most memorable event that occurred in the first year took place in December of 1976 at the CMCC Christmas party.  There were a lot of sick people the next day  - at least those who ate the potato salad.  I don't eat potato salad so I was in great shape.

 Part 19

The next very major adventure in my life started in about the spring of 1976 just before or just after I got called to the bar.

The history of the event goes back a number of years but jelled while I was in law school.  I had a serious what I considered an ear ache.  I went to the doctor who decided that it was probably just tension and prescribed valium - albeit the lowest dosage.  With the benefit of valium I was able to focus on studying even though the ear pain - which was more like neck pain - persisted.

When I cam back to Toronto in the spring of 1974, my friend AG thought that he might be able to assist me with my problem.  He was going into 4th year at the Canadian Memorial Chiropractic College.  When he started his internship I visited the college clinic.  The first thing was providing a history, then the physical examination and an x-ray.

I was advised that I had a subluxation.  Obviously, being ignorant, I asked where I caught it and did I have to tell my wife to get checked.  It got a laugh.  I was told that I would benefit from an upper cervical adjustment and all I remember is being told that besides relieving me of pain it would move some joints.  I don't listen well after hearing any health care diagnosis.

So I provided my consent and AG was to provide the adjustment.  I am not happy with anyone touching me anywhere. I was told to put my head at the top of the table.  I did but was then told that I had to lie down on the table.  You can try and figure out what I was doing  -- and that also got a laugh.  I take instructions very very literally.

AG then tried to provide the adjustment.  Once, twice and three times, but I tensed up every time he touched me and told me to relax.  He left the room for a couple of seconds and then came back with his supervisor.  A licenced chiropractor, BK whose nickname I later found out was "killer".

Dr. BK asked AG what the diagnosis was and the suggested treatment.  BK then took my head in his hands, didn't both to tell me to relax and then gave me my first upper cervical adjustment.  I saw stars and jumped to my feet - their expressions were probably priceless.  I asked what they had done, asked who owned the building in case of a lawsuit and then realized that the pain had instantly gone away.

Apparently, my pain was not caused by stress -- it was caused by years of bending my neck over a desk and reading, reading and reading textbooks and studying.  It was amazing!!!

I then asked AG what was next.  He indicated that I would likely need at least 8 more adjustments, and I asked whether I could get them at the same time.  I was serious but that also got a laugh.  We booked all of the appointments.  They were all necessary and many more but a little while later I found out why 9 visits was important - a patient would only be defined for the purposes of the intern's clinical requirements if there were nine visits.  

Many people who may be adverse to seeing a chiropractor use the excuse that once you see a chiropractor you will always see a chiropractor.  My reply, is -- of course.  Not unlike seeing a dentist.  The chiropractor allows a patient to maintain a level of wellness.  There is acute care and there is maintenance care.  But I am not going to deeply into the importance of the profession and what services they provide.  There are plenty of articles and publications dealing with those subjects.

So after I calmed down, I asked AG and BK who taught the subjects concerning consent to treatment, privilege information and other legal matters affecting chiropractors.  They told me that the individual, actually a chiropractor, had retired.  They asked if I had any interest in teaching and when I said yes, they gave me the name of the individual to contact - AR.

And that is where the next part of the adventure began.

 Part 18

So while I was waiting for the grade to be changed for Real Estate Transactions I moved into the next course which was Income Tax.  It was no small feat to learn tax from Monday to Thursday and write the exam on Friday.  Again, I had some perverse liking of income tax.  I did fine on the exam and then had to endure Estates and Trusts;  Corporate and Commercial and then Family Law  -- the order is kind of blinding in terms of what came after real estate and tax.

I ended up passing the course and was "called" to the Bar with about 900 individuals on April 8th, 1974.  I was allowed four guests so my wife, father, mother and grandfather.  (as an aside - I didn't mention anything about the graduation ceremonies at Western - they were pretty uneventful and I don't recall crossing a stage since there were thousands of graduates from law, medicine, business and engineering - or something like that).

Anyway, after the bar ceremonies were over, I mentioned to my family I was now a lawyer.  My grandfather being a very astute individual mentioned the fact that to my wife I was a lawyer, to my parents I was a lawyer but to another lawyer, chances are I wasn't a lawyer  -- at least not for a while until I could actually and really practice law.  Again, very astute.

I now went back to my daily routine.  It was in a two storey house which had been partially used by a psychiatrist.  I had his office which had white and blue wallpaper - very soothing.  Soon renovations were started (actually while I was at the bar).  By the time I was full time renovations were completed.  I recall that fact because the day after the call to the bar, a bottle of champagne was opened in the office library.  A momentous occasion because the cork just about took my ear off.

I ended up with an office on the second floor with a very large picture window and a very nice decor.  

 Part 17

And when articling, I was working about half a day  -- that is from 8 in the morning until about 8 at night.  Not unusual for articling students.  Weekends were for research at the law library.

In September, Judy gave birth to Darin and it was the beginning of me spending no less time at the job leaving Judy to figure out how to raise the baby.  It was the same thing when Ryan and Mitchell came along.  Not good.  Not nice and literally no excuses.

Near the end of my articling experience the law partners indicated that they would like me to join the firm.  So I went immediately from finishing my articles to working part time while going through the bar admission course.  Obviously I did not have the common sense or resources to consider that my life style was not conducive to a sensible life style.  If I was to do it all over again - I would probably do the same thing because I am what I am!  Only psycho analysis could provide an answer and that is definitely not an option.  

Articles were supposed to last 11 months.  Mine never ended.  Since I started on May 5 or so -  I could have been finished the first week in April.  However, that was not to be.  The two partners asked if I was interested in staying with the law firm after the bar admission course.  It was not a hard decision to make.

I agreed to be part of the firm, and even more, I continued to work full time right to the start of the bar admission course and while at doing the course, still working part time.   So I would go to downtown Toronto for classes from 9 to 12 and then go to Richmond Hill from 2 to 6 or 7.  That doesn't sound too bad until it is noted that courses went from Monday to Thursday with an exam on Friday except for a couple of courses that went for two weeks.  

Since I had spent a great deal of time doing real estate transactions I was ready for the first exam on the first Friday.  The exam was held in an armory at Jarvis and Dundas in Toronto.  It had a track above the floor and was manned by proctors.  I recall about 1100 students taking the exam.  

After we finished we could go to Osgoode Hall at Queen and University and see the answers to the questions.  When I did the review I almost fainted.  I had about a 55 on the exam.  60 was a pass.  I was distraught along with a number of other individuals including FK who stood 2nd in law school and eventually became a judge.

We set up a meeting with the course instructor and reviewed the exam.  Apparently the course instructor had delegated or abdicated his responsibility in preparing the exam.  One of the junior lawyers in his firm prepared the exam.  He obviously was neither a real estate lawyer or a rocket scientist.  

We were able to correct about 75% of the answers.  I ended up with about a 75 which did not make me happy.  It turned out that the less you knew the better you did.  They did not bother to lower any of the marks of persons who had passed the exam.

and that was my introduction to the class of '76 bar admission course.

 Part 16

So, I survived law school and getting married.  So how hard could articling be.  It involved everything from review of files, attending court, closing real estate transactions, incorporating companies, preparing wills, taking the bosses car for a wash, picking up laundry etc etc.

I finished law school and started articling about 4 days later.  On my first day I was handed a file for a trial that was to take place on Friday, five days after starting.  I recall that it involved a sick horse.  Anyway, it was a "trial by fire" for me.  I had a great case but the judge was an "ass".  I would not normally say that, as I have great respect for the judiciary but history proved me right for a couple of decades later, the judge resigned just prior to being taken off the bench for having received a contempt order involving his divorce.  As fate would have it, we came face to face again when I was acting for an estate and he was a beneficiary.  The matter went on for about 4 years and it gave me great pleasure to give him no indulgences whatsoever.  Karma is truly a bitch!

My articling experience was amazing in that I was involved in such things as a bankruptcy hearing to which I was sent because it was an absolute loser.  I actually won the case and was trying to hold back the laughter when the Bankruptcy Registrar was giving his judgment.

I did a mental incompetency case involving an elderly individual.  I never met the person and only had to deal with the doctors on whom I had to rely on as being truthful in their diagnosis.  It was kind of sad.

I had a couple of criminal matters.  One involving "bad cheques".  I had to meet the person at the Don Jail.  Because there had been a riot a couple of weeks earlier, I had to meet the client in his cell.  It was quite an experience when the shut the door cell (locked of course).  It has been the only time that I have been behind bars.  (I did get called to the bar).

I acted for a native Canadian of about 19 years of age.  He had gone on a break and entering spree in York Region even partially destroying a bowling alley.  I was sent to have him plead guilty.  The matter was held in courtroom 20 on University Avenue which is the big courtroom.  This is because of all the victims.  I recall there being approximately 20 charges.

Since it didn't matter how many pleas of guilty that would be agreed to, since the penalty would be the same, the crown agreed to my client pleading guilty to one charge.  The only case before the judge involved my client and that meant the dozens and dozens of people in the courtroom were the victims.  Anyway, the case was called and I stood with my client while each charge was related to the court with details of the crime.  My client was then asked how he plead and I instructed him to plead not guilty.  The people in the courtroom were not happy.

The same scenario took place for charges, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11 and 12.  When charge 13 was read, I instructed my client to plead guilty.  The 14, 15, 16 etc etc etc involved a not guilty plea was rendered.  I have a rather sick sense of humour.  The victims were not pleased.

The judge had accepted the guilty plea and the crown withdrew the other charges.  The victims were not pleased.  The judge then ordered a pre-sentence report and the case was adjourned.

However, I had an experience few defence counsel receive.  I was allowed to leave through the judges exit -- because the victims were still not happy and like most situations if you can't kill the message then try and kill the messenger.

That was my experience in criminal law until many decades later.  A story for another day. 

 There are sayings:  be careful what you ask for   and   a lawyer should never ask a question that he doesn't know the answer to.

That being the case  --  this blog has been getting a serious amount of hits but not one comment in two years!  I guess fear is a great detractor  ;-)

allan