UnLeadership

34Leadership Practice

Alex Battick is an education lawyer who practices in Ontario, giving legal advice and support to stakeholders in the education system. His clients include students, families, employers, and organizations from kindergarten to higher education. His firm, Battick Legal Advisory, has built its reputation as leaders in Ontario’s educational law landscape, providing expert advice and representation in administrative, employment, human rights, and regulatory issues.

(Highlights from our interview, recorded July 10, 2023.)

IN ENGLAND, WHERE I STUDIED law, there was a unique opportunity for law students to advocate for and support students who had been excluded (synonymous with expulsion here). The program allowed us hands-on experience advocating for students and their families without “training wheels,” or established lawyers doing the work. I come from a family of educators, so perhaps there was always this silent push; I knew I didn't want to be a teacher, but working within education was something I enjoyed and wanted to focus on more. I returned to Canada and went to work at a legal aid clinic, and although education law was a part of the practice, I found no type of service with that specific and exclusive focus. Any area of law with a descriptor, like sports law, health law, etc., is industry-specific. The law you're practicing might be contract, constitutional, or administrative—all these different areas of law brought under the context of a specific ...