Osgoode creates practical programming to build real estate transactions skills

It’s almost impossible for new lawyers to avoid real estate transactions as they begin their legal careers in practice areas as diverse as commercial, taxation, litigation, wills and estates or family law.

But for a topic so foundational to Canadian legal practice, it’s still relatively routine for fledging lawyers to emerge from their legal training with minimal practical experience in real estate law. Judy Wolf was no different.

“During my articles, I had very little exposure to real estate law,” Wolf says.  

It was only after working with a sole practitioner in a small Ontario town – where real estate transactions were a key service area – that Wolf discovered a passion for real estate law, thanks in part to the level of direct engagement it gave her with clients.    

“I really enjoyed helping people on their journey, which was typically a very happy one,” she says. 

In the following three decades, Wolf devoted her practice primarily to real estate transactions, approaching deals from almost every angle as she represented individuals buying and selling property, as well as acting as counsel to financial institutions and private investors in all areas of mortgage and mortgage remedy work.

She has also taught real estate law classes for Seneca College’s law clerk and paralegal programs and written several books with a practical skills focus, including Ontario Residential Real Estate for Practitioners and A Practical Guide to Mortgage Remedies in Ontario.

Almost 10 years ago, Wolf began working with OsgoodePD to create a Real Estate Transactions course for students enrolled in the Professional LLM in Canadian Common Law.

The core courses of the program are specifically designed to meet the requirements of the Federation of Law Societies of Canada’s National Committee on Accreditation, which makes it a popular choice for internationally trained lawyers seeking to begin or re-start their legal careers in their new home country.

“In creating a real estate course, I decided to make it very practical in nature, as I knew that would be beneficial to students,” Wolf says.  “The course goes through all of the steps in a real estate transaction and explains the relevant documents.”

Students on the course are taken on a step-by-step journey through the process of a real estate transaction, exploring the relevance of every stage in detail. Wolf says practice exercises are a key element of the class, enhancing students’ understanding of each phase in the process.

The course goes well beyond legal issues to ensure students are properly prepared for the realities of a real estate law practice.

“It is critical to understand the financial aspects of a real estate transaction when meeting with a client,” Wolf says. “The students are taught to prepare a statement of adjustments and do all of the calculations required for a real estate transaction.”

Students in Wolf’s classes will find that there is a lot of room left for discussion.

“The students have a lot of questions, and I am always interacting with them throughout the lectures, so that all questions get answered on a timely basis,” she says. “I like to make sure that they are up to date with each concept before I proceed to the next.”  

“Students should emerge with a comprehensive understanding of a real estate law practice. If they were to work in a firm or on their own doing real estate work, this course should provide a very good head start,” Wolf adds.