The Law Society of Upper Canada

Région touristique : Toronto

The Law Society of Upper Canada was founded in 1797 and is one of the oldest professional organizations in North America. The Society was created with a legislated mandate to ensure that the people of Ontario are served by lawyers who meet high standards of learning, competence and professional conduct and to uphold the independence, integrity and honour of the legal profession for the purpose of advancing the cause of justice and the rule of law.

The Law Society is the original owner and one of the custodians of Osgoode Hall, a national historic site. It also maintains a portrait collection, an artifact collection and archives to preserve and communicate the heritage of Ontario's legal profession. The Law Society has recently opened an exhibition space on the mezzanine level of Osgoode Hall.

Renseignements sur les collections

Artifact Collection

The Archives collects artifacts relating to the legal profession in Ontario, the Law Society, and Osgoode Hall. Holdings include items ranging from objects relating to the practice of law, such as legal robes, office equipment and supplies, the 1898 Ontario Hockey Association Champions trophy hockey stick won by the Osgoode Hall Law School team, to pieces of Osgoode Hall's fence and furniture.

Nombre approximatif d'objets ou de spécimens dans la collection : 500

Archives

Law Society Records
The majority of the Archives' holdings are corporate records documenting the administration, policies, decisions, activities, and functions of the Law Society of Upper Canada since its origin in 1797.

Included in the corporate records are:

Minutes of Convocation (meetings of the Law Society's board of governors) from 1797 to the present
Member files on past lawyers
Standing and Special Committee records
Departmental records
Records of several Treasurers (president of the Law Society)
Records tracing the growth of the Great Library, established in 1832
Osgoode Hall Law School records (from 1891 to 1968)
Records of the Osgoode Hall contingent of the Canadian Officers Training Corps

Manuscript Collection
In addition to corporate records, the Archives welcomes donations of non-Law Society records significant to the legal history of Ontario. Among the Manuscript Collection are the records of several organizations and individuals, including:
The Lawyers Club
The Juvenile Advocate Society, the early nineteenth-century law students' club
William Osgoode
Sir John Graves Simcoe
John Beverley Robinson
Chief Justice William G.C. Howland

Photograph Collection
The Archives houses over 50,000 photographs, including an almost complete set of Osgoode Hall Law School class photographs from 1893 to 1968. The collection also includes photographs of Ontario lawyers and judges, a variety of images of Osgoode Hall from different eras, and a comprehensive photographic record of Law Society events.

Architectural Plans and Drawings
The Archives holds an extensive collection of architectural plans and drawings relating to the numerous additions and renovations to Osgoode Hall, a designated heritage building. Most of the plans and drawings date from the late nineteenth century to the present. The work of a number of prominent Canadian architects are represented.

Special Collections
The Archives collects published and printed material about or by the Law Society that is deemed significant. This includes staff newsletters, special reports, pamphlets, government reports, and copies of the Osgoode Hall Law School students' newspaper, Obiter Dicta. Special Collections also includes a poster collection, postcard collection, and ephemeral items created to publicize or accompany an event, such as programs and menus.

Architectural Records • Electronic Records • Prints and Drawings • Manuscripts • Microforms • Films and Videos • Photographs • Textual Records

Arts décoratifs

Costumes • Furniture or Furnishings • Glass
Autre : etched and stained glass

Beaux-arts

Fine Art Collection
The Law Society began commissioning portraits of Treasurers of the Law Society and the Chief Justices of the province in the mid-1840s. Over the next 150 years, the collection was added to through further commissions, purchases, and donations and has become an invaluable visual record of the history of the Law Society and the legal profession in the province, and also of the evolution of portraiture in Canada. The portraits (painting and bronzes) form the core of the Law Society's art collection; other holdings include artwork in various media relating to the history of the legal profession in Ontario, and to the law more generally.

Culture :
Canadian

Période :
Contemporary • Modern • Historical

Média : Painting • Photography • Prints and Drawings • Sculpture

Histoire humaine

Legal history

Ceremonial Objects • Costumes and Accessories • Furniture or Furnishings • Local History • Manuscripts • Medals • Memorabilia
Autre : Law; history of office work

Services

Services de recherche

Archival Records • Genealogical Research • Information Centre • Library
Autre : Legal History Research

Programmes Éducatifs

Customized tours

School Programs : Age 12-17 (7-13)(Quebec: Secondary 1-CEGEP) : Age 18 and up (Post-Secondary) • Seniors Programs

Information aux Visiteurs

Bilingual Services • Guided Tours : English : French • Accessible by Public Transportation • Meeting Room Rental • Nature Trails, Walks or Gardens • Special Needs Facilities : Washrooms : Wheelchair access • Washrooms
Autres visites guidées : Customized tours by appointment (Sept.-June); Doors Open Toronto (May); summer tours (July - August)

Services de restauration

Reservations required for restaurant

Cafeteria • Catering Services • Reception Facilities • Restaurant

Services Internet

General Information • Collections • Virtual Exhibitions

Publications et produits

Brochures

Carte

Consultez le site Web

Emplacement

Adresse :	Osgoode Hall 130 Queen Street West Toronto, Ontario M5H 2N6 Voir la carte
Téléphone :	(416) 947-4041
Télécopieur :	(416) 947-3478
	Écrivez-nous