You argue the facts. In Leskun v Leskun, 2006 SCC 25, the facts clearly had the Supreme Court of Canada ("SCC") scrambling to justify a Chambers judge's foray into a place clearly forbidden by the Divorce Act, RSC 1985, c 3 - a consideration of conduct. Facts Sherry and Gary Leskun were married for 20 years. […]
We get the impression sometimes at law school that lower court judges can be either embarassed or irritated when their decisions are reversed by the Supreme Court of Canada ("SCC"). However, this won't be the case if the SCC overturns the Federal Court of Appeal ("FCA") decision in Kremikovtzi Trade v Swift Fortune (The), 2006 […]
and Martin Wilke The Constitutional Court The Federal Constitutional Court ("FCC") of the Federal Republic of Germany was created in 1951 and soon became a leading voice in a global judicial dialogue. The FCC decides only questions of constitutional law; that is, it does not function as a final instance and review court. Examples of […]
and John Kicoyne McGill University Health Centre (Montreal General Hospital) v Syndicat des employé de L'Hopital général de Montréal, 2007 SCC 2 [McGill Health Centre], dealt with "the role of a collective agreement in the assessment of an employer's duty to accommodate an employee who is absent for an indeterminate period owing to personal health problems." Although […]
While we normally concern ourselves strictly with the business of the Supreme Court of Canada, I recently read an article that could be of great interest to the people reading The Court. On Monday, the Globe and Mail reported that Owen Rees, Mr. Justice Frank Iacobucci, and Gregoire Webber are going to set up a […]
The Supreme Court of Canada ("SCC") released decisions in Resurfice Corp v Hanke, 2007 SCC 7 [Resurfice], yesterday, and Dickie v Dickie, 2007 SCC 8 [Dickie], today. In a 9-0 decision, the appeal in Resurfice was allowed and the trial judgment restored. Chief Justice McLachlin wrote the judgment of the Court, Bastarache, Binnie, LeBel, Deschamps, Fish, Abella, Charron […]
[Editor's note: the following is based upon the 2007 Laskin Lecture, "The Languages of Constitutional Dialogue: Bargaining in the Shadow of the Law," delivered on January 23 2007 by Dr Matthew S. R. Palmer, the 2007 Laskin Visiting Professor of Law at Osgoode Hall Law School. He is currently also the 2005 International Research Fellow […]
Where did all the cases go? A recent article in the Globe and Mail noted a dramatic decrease in the number of judgments handed down by the Supreme Court of Canada this past year. From 144 decisions in 1990, the output of the SCC declined to the puny figure of 59 decisions in 2006. This […]
In his recent comment on The Court, Tom Schreiter is right to draw a link between the decision in Little Sisters Book and Art Emporium v Canada (Commissioner of Customs and Revenue), 2007 SCC 2 [Little Sisters 2], and the recent decision to cut funding for the Court Challenges Program. Both decisions stopped important Charter cases in […]
Even if one is a member of the select group of folks holding more nuanced attitudes towards gender, it must be recognized that there are still areas in which work is needed. In the recently dismissed application for leave in Kimberly Nixon v Vancouver Rape Relief Society (B.C.), the Supreme Court of Canada ("SCC") dodged […]