This story is published in YFile’s New Faces feature issue 2025. Every September, YFile introduces and welcomes those joining the York University community.
Osgoode Hall Law School welcomes three new full-time, permanent members this fall.
“These scholars bring a remarkable breadth of knowledge and experience to our faculty,” says Osgoode Dean Trevor Farrow. “Their diverse perspectives and outstanding research will enrich our community and inspire our students as they prepare to lead in an evolving legal landscape.”
Étienne Cossette-Lefebvre
Cossette-Lefebvre is an assistant professor at Osgoode, where he teaches and conducts research in property law, trusts, comparative private law and legal theory. His scholarship explores foundational legal concepts related to personhood, privacy, obligations and inheritance. His work has been referenced by the Supreme Court of Canada and he is also a collaborator with the Observatory on Human Rights at the United Nations.
Before joining Osgoode, Cossette-Lefebvre taught property law at Queen’s University and the law of trusts at McGill University. He previously served as assistant director of the Paul-André Crépeau Centre for Private and Comparative Law at McGill, worked as a research lawyer for the Court of Appeal of Québec, and clerked for Justice Russell Brown at the Supreme Court of Canada.
He is currently completing a doctoral degree at the University of Toronto. His dissertation presents a trans-systemic approach to self-ownership, examining how individuals exercise rights over their bodies, images, voices and personal data. He is a former Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation Scholar and recipient of the Joseph-Armand Bombardier Canada Graduate Scholarship Doctoral Award in Honour of Nelson Mandela.
Martin Petrin
Petrin holds the Jarislowsky Dimma Mooney Chair in Corporate Governance at York University, with a joint faculty appointment at both Osgoode and the Schulich School of Business.
Before joining York, Petrin was the inaugural holder of the Dancap Private Equity Chair in Corporate Governance at Western University. His international academic experience includes roles as the Kwa Geok Choo distinguished visitor at the National University of Singapore, distinguished fellow and visiting professor at Notre Dame London, visiting professor at NYU London and visiting scholar at the University of Cambridge Faculty of Law and the Max Planck Institute for Comparative and Private Law.
In addition to his academic work, Petrin has practised law at a major international business law firm and is licensed to practise in both New York and Switzerland.
Anthony Sangiuliano
Sangiuliano is an assistant professor at Osgoode, where he teaches and researches in legal, moral and political philosophy, with a focus on equality, constitutional law, torts and bioethics. He co-directs Osgoode’s juris doctor (JD)/MA in Philosophy program and is an associate member of York’s graduate program in philosophy.
He holds a JD from Osgoode and a PhD in philosophy from Cornell University. Prior to joining the Faculty, he held postdoctoral fellowships at the University of Toronto and York University, and taught at both institutions. His scholarship has been published in leading law and philosophy journals and cited by the Supreme Court of Canada.
Sangiuliano has also worked in legal practice and public service, including roles with the Ontario Court of Appeal, the Ministry of the Attorney General and the Ottawa Light Rail Transit Public Inquiry. He continues to advise on Supreme Court interventions.