U of T Law graduate Foti Vito (JD 2024) has been awarded the Arthur C. Helton Fellowship from the American Society of International Law (ASIL).
Established in 2004, the Arthur C. Helton Fellowship Program recognizes the legacy of Arthur Helton, a prominent refugee and human rights scholar and advocate.
Foti Vito is a Judicial Law Clerk at the Court of Appeal for Ontario. During his studies, Foti received several academic and leadership awards, including the Ludwik & Estelle Jus Memorial Human Rights Prize, Nelson Mandela Award, and International Human Rights Program Fellowship. He also holds a Certificate from The Hague Academy of International Law. Throughout law school, Foti pursued his interests in international law, public law, and advocacy through both professional and extracurricular activities. He served as a Senior Editor of the University of Toronto Faculty of Law Review, volunteered as a caseworker at Downtown Legal Services, and was a legal clinic student in the International Human Rights Program. He gained experience in international criminal law at the United Nations International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals in The Hague and in general litigation at McCarthy Tétrault LLP in Toronto. Foti also represented Canada at the international rounds of the Philip C. Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition, where he won the Richard Baxter Award for the best applicant memorial.
With the support of the Helton Fellowship, in Summer 2025, Foti will work with the Youth Initiative for Human Rights in Pristina, Kosovo on international human rights reporting and legislative reform initiatives as part of their Human Rights and Rule of Law Program. His work will involve legal research, policy analysis, and engagement with key stakeholders to strengthen human rights protections, transitional justice, and inter-ethnic co-existence. This includes supporting civil society networks monitoring the human rights situation in Kosovo and assisting efforts to align domestic anti-discrimination laws with international human rights standards.
