The Runnymede Society is a membership-based organization that invites speakers from all across the ideological spectrum to debate legal ideas that engage the rule of law, constitutionalism, and individual liberty. The goal is to focus on these age-old principles in the context of real issues that are not often explored in the law school classrooms.
Have the courts become political? In this encore episode from Law & Freedom 2025, Professor Ted Morton argues that changes in how Canadians view the role of our courts and the purpose of our constitution have politicized our courts. The full panel discussion, featuring three other speakers, can be found on our Member Area. Further reading: The Charter Revolution and the Court Party.
How does the Supreme Court of Canada decide which cases it hears? Paul-Erik Veel, adjunct professor at the University of Toronto, shares a fascinating quantitative analysis on the Court’s decision-making, exploring everything from case selection and output to judicial agreement. Watch this full session on Runnymede’s Member Area: https://runnymedesociety.ca/en/account/.
(La version française suit) CALGARY: The Runnymede Society is pleased to announce the expansion of its graduate legal fellowship program, offering two prestigious awards to exceptional Canadian students pursuing graduate legal studies. This year, in addition to the established Jack Major Fellowship, the Society will award a new Marshall Rothstein Fellowship. Both fellowships provide a $25,000.00 award. These fellowships are designed to support students who demonstrate a commitment to constitutionalism, fundamental freedoms, and the rule of law, principles central to
Can free expression be limited based on an administrative body’s prediction of resulting harm? Can a university expel a student for having an opinion on a particular social issue that it considers unprofessional? Lia Milousis, lawyer with the Acacia Group and leader of our Ottawa lawyers’ chapter, discusses two cases involving the prevention of harm as a reason for limiting freedom of speech.
Why were property rights excluded from the Charter? Professor Dwight Newman of the University of Saskatchewan joined students at the University of British Columbia’s Peter A. Allard School of Law to discuss his research on this subject and the opportunity for further study on this topic. Further reading: Dwight Newman & Lorelle Binnion, “The Exclusion of Property Rights from the Charter: Correcting the Historical Record” (2015) 52:3 Alta. L. Rev. 543
We provide funding for debates, symposia, and panel discussions with external speakers and refreshments. We are able to assist with reaching out to speakers and fund out-of-town speaker travel expenses.
We host regular networking events with local members of the legal profession, academics, journalists, and other students.
We aim to connect first-year students with upper-years who can provide mentorship and academic guidance, as well as course summaries.
In 2016, we founded the Runnymede Society as a national student membership organization dedicated to exploring the ideas and ideals of constitutionalism, liberty and the rule of law. We provide outstanding support and opportunities for intellectual enrichment, networking, and professional development, including by providing members opportunities to meet and enrich their legal knowledge with professors, practitioners, and judges.
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