Liliya Baranova fell in love with law in her grade 11 law class and it continued to be her passion throughout her undergraduate years. In a few short months, she will complete her degree and graduate from the University of Ottawa Faculty of Law.
Liliya became involved in the Apps for Justice Challenge this year as a research assistant for Associate Professor, Dr. Amy Salyzyn. Dr. Salyzyn is an expert in the use of technology in the delivery of legal services and access to justice. She developed the mini-course from which OJEN’s Apps for Justice program was derived. For the past four years, uOttawa law students have worked with OJEN to create scenarios for the program.
In choosing themes for this year’s Apps for Justice scenarios, Liliya wanted to use realistic situations that students might encounter themselves. She has crafted two scenarios based on areas of law that affect everyday life for many individuals – housing and workplace law.
For the first scenario, Liliya drew from her experience working at a legal clinic. While she was there, she helped several clients who were experiencing a variety of landlord-tenant problems. She realized that many tenants didn’t know what their rights were.
“I thought this would be an interesting scenario because it affects so many people at some point in their lifetime. Post-high school, students might be moving out to attend university and might be struck with these issues right off the bat. I thought this would be a great introduction to the legal field for students.”
The second scenario Liliya developed involves workplace law and AI. As a new and evolving area in law, she wanted to explore what issues AI brings into the legal environment.
“This scenario involves workers rights. Again, I wanted something that an every day individual might experience. In this case, someone who works for a delivery service is tracked [by their employer] using AI and this becomes a compulsory aspect of their employment.”
Liliya looks forward to seeing the technology-driven ideas students come up with in this year’s Apps for Justice Challenge. She encourages everyone to give it a try and have fun with it. According to Liliya, having a technology background isn’t necessary for this activity. The most important aspect of the exercise is coming up with ideas for making information accessible for the people who need it most.
For students who are wondering whether or not to pursue post secondary-law studies, Liliya offers this advice:
“Entering a career in law, whether you become a lawyer or anything law-adjacent, is a long process. It’s a marathon, not a sprint. Keep law in the back of your mind. You don’t need any particular undergraduate degree to get into law school, so take something you’re interested in, something you can succeed in. If you’re applying to law school, grades do matter to some extent. If you’re passionate about something you tend to excel in it. If there are extracurricular activities that you’re interested in then join – always explore your interests. There are so many intersections between law and other professions that you can find something that you love within the legal field. Expand your outlook and your path will always lead you to law if that’s what you’re truly passionate about.”
This year’s Apps for Justice Challenge promises to be thought-provoking, informative and fun.
OJEN sends a huge “thank you” to Liliya for coming up with scenarios that are sure to spark students’ imaginations and perhaps lead to a brilliant Access to Justice solution!