LogoutMr. James Lillico
James Lillico (1921-) provides a comprehensive account of his legal career from 1948-1989 in Peterborough, Ontario. Born to a car dealer father and educated at University College, University of Toronto, Lillico served in the Royal Canadian Naval Volunteer Reserve during World War II before attending Osgoode Hall Law School from 1945-1948. He articled with Ludwig, Fisher & Holness in Toronto but found the experience unproductive, gaining more practical training during summers with Ford Strickland in Peterborough.
After briefly practicing with Currelly and Foster, Lillico joined W.B. Gordon in 1949, forming a successful 30-year partnership until Gordon’s retirement in 1978. The firm handled general practice work including Veterans Land Act matters, real estate, estates, and litigation. Lillico was active in the Peterborough Law Association, served as director of the local volunteer legal aid service before formal Legal Aid was established, and participated in various civic organizations including Kiwanis Club and the Victorian Order of Nurses.
The interview provides valuable insights into post-war legal practice in a mid-sized Ontario city, the evolution of legal education, the development of legal aid services, and the social dynamics of the legal profession in the 1940s-1980s. Lillico’s career exemplifies the general practitioner model common in smaller centers, while his observations illuminate changes in legal practice, client relations, and professional organization over four decades.
This description was written by AI and may contain some inaccuracies.
References
The following are a selection of topics discussed in this oral history.
- County Courts
- Ontario Court of Appeal
- Provincial Courts
- Small Claims Court
- Supreme Court
- Supreme Court of Canada
- Osgoode Hall Law School
- University of Toronto Faculty of Law
- University of Windsor Law School
- Bank of Montreal
- Ministry of Trade and Industry
- North American Life Insurance Company
- Ontario Labour Relations Board
- Veterans Land Act
- Church Union 1925
- Great Depression
- Legal Aid Development
- Patriation of the Constitution
- Veterans Land Act Implementation
- World War II
- Baltimore
- Canada
- Maryland
- Ontario
- Peterborough
- Toronto
- Currelly & Foster
- Gordon & Lillico
- Hall and Gillespie
- Kerr McElderry
- Levinter, Grossberg
- Lillico and Bazuk
- Ludwig Fisher & Holness
- McCarthy Tétrault
- John Wray case
- Kulla v. Yeates
- Arthur Fair
- Bill Grant
- Bora Laskin
- Caesar Wright
- Charlie Dubin
- Dean Falconbridge
- Ford Strickland
- Frank Foster
- Frank Kerr
- G.N. Gordon
- Jacob Finkelman
- James Bryce Lillico
- John Currelly
- John Robinette
- John Wray
- Lloyd Houlden
- Norman MacKenzie
- Paul Macchiocci
- Peter Lillico
- Stephen Barrett
- Stephen Bazuk
- W.B. Gordon
- W.P.M. Kennedy
- Walter Howell
- Canadian Bar Association
- Law Society of Upper Canada
- Ontario Medical/Legal Association
- Peterborough Law Association
- York Law Association
- 1920s
- 1930s
- 1940s
- 1950s
- 1960s
- 1970s
- 1980s
- Administrative Law
- Constitutional Law
- Contract Law
- Criminal Law
- Estate Law
- Family Law
- Labour Law
- Legal Aid
- Real Estate Law
- Tort Law
- Veterans Benefits Law
Some of these references were generated by AI and may contain inaccuracies.
Archive Details
File consists of oral history records documenting the life and career of James Lillico (b. 1921), partner of Gordon, Lillico & Bazuk in Peterborough, Ontario. Interview topics include: University of Toronto; World War II; Osgoode Hall; articling; early practice; professional organizations; Legal Aid, director; select cases. Interview conducted by Christine J.N. Kates. File includes four audio cassette recordings from a series of three interviews and a transcript with index (140 p.).