On Saturday, October 3rd, 2026, WiCCD once again broke new ground.
We held our first ever WiCCD’s Experiential Mentorship in Oral Advocacy Training program – an intervention moot.
20 women junior lawyers, law students and licensed paralegals appeared before two panels of WiCCD’s Supreme Court, presided over by 18 fabulous Judges. 10 senior women counsel, drawn from WiCCD’s defence members and from our friends who are Crowns and counsel to Courts and tribunals, supported our mooters through weeks of run-throughs and crafting their intervener submissions based on Facta as filed in the real life case of R v. Harry Arthur COPE in the Supreme Court of Canada. The case considers principles of sentencing of Indigenous offenders and those with serious mental health issues.
Thank you to All Participants and in Particular our Judges who so generously gave us their time and shared their wisdom!
Thank you to everyone involved with our Morning Session
All Participants: Justices, Mooters and Mentors in WiCCD’s Supreme Court’s Morning Session of EMOAT 2026Judges and Mooters, Morning Session WiCCD’s EMOAT Oct 3 2026Our Wonderful Justices of WiCCD’s Supreme Court – Morning PanelMorning Mooters and Mentors WiCCD’s First EMOAT Oct 3 2026
Thank you as well to Tom Nichini for our Keynote Address!
Power Point Presentation during our Keynote Address about Who Presents Oral Argument at the Supreme Court of CanadaTom Nichini – Keynote PresenterTom Nichini and Anita Szigeti
Thank you to Everyone Involved with our Afternoon Session!
All participants: Judges, Mooters and Mentors pictured above-AFTERNOON Session, WiCCD EMOAT
Afternoon Panel Justices and Our Mooters only, pictured above
• Called to the Bar (1992)
• U of T Law grad (1990)
• Sole practitioner (33 years)
• Partner in small law firm (Hiltz Szigeti) 2002 - 2013
• Mom to two astonishing kids, Scarlett (20+) and Sebastian (20-)
• (Founding) Chair of Mental Health Legal Committee for ten years (1997 to 2007)
* Founding President of Law and Mental Disorder Association - LAMDA since 2017
* Founder and Secretary to Women in Canadian Criminal Defence - WiCCD - since 2022
• Counsel to clients with serious mental health issues before administrative tribunals and on appeals
• Former Chair, current member of LAO’s mental health law advisory committee
• Educator, lecturer, widely published author (including 5 text books on consent and capacity law, Canadian civil mental health law, the criminal law of mental disorder, a law school casebook and a massive Anthology on all things mental health and the law)
• Thirty+ years’ experience as counsel to almost exclusively legally aided clients
• Frequently appointed amicus curiae
• Fearless advocate
• Not entirely humourless
