Supremes Drawn into Securities Fight The federal government recently pulled the Supreme Court into the middle of its spat with the provinces over whether Ottawa has the power to create a national securities regulator. "In the best courtroom manner, the Harper Conservatives are taking care to ask a question to which they already know the […]
If at first you do not succeed, try, try again. These words of wisdom convey the ethos of human rights advocacy: paucities of political power, limited financial resources, public indifference (if not outright hostility), and the slow pace of social change regularly conspire to cast those who persist in the fight for justice as idealistic […]
Last Tuesday, the U.S. Supreme Court granted leave in the politically charged case of Kiyemba v. Obama, 555 F.3d 1022 (D.C. Cir. 2009). The main legal issue is whether the federal courts have the jurisdiction to order that Guantanamo detainees be released into the United States. For anyone with a strong commitment to liberty and […]
Last Thursday, the Supreme Court denied leave to appeal in C.D. v. A.B., 2009 BCCA 200, affirming the statutory requirement that even allegedly “delusional” spouses must possess the necessary intent to live separate and apart before the courts will grant a divorce. Circumstances precipitating family breakdown are almost always distressing. In this case, the husband […]
Based on the outcry from all sides of the political spectrum, it is no wonder that the Supreme Court of Canada took a middle-of-the-road approach in its decision in Nguyen v. Quebec (Education, Recreation and Sports), 2009 SCC 47. (A comprehensive factual background of the case was provided on TheCourt.ca in May 2008 by representatives […]
Sotomayor's Sartorial Splendor The clothes make the justice, or so the White House seems to think, suggests Jennifer Forsyth over at the WSJ Law Blog. Justice Sonia Sotomayor, known for her gift of gab, told a private audience at her 30th Yale Law School class reunion that the White House tried to script her entire […]
With a ruling soon to come regarding Roman Polanski's legal woes in Switzerland, the topic of extradition has once again grabbed the public's attention. Closer to home, the Canadian Supreme Court recently released its judgement in Canada (Justice) v. Fischbacher, 2009 SCC 46, regarding the correct process in surrendering an individual charged with a foreign […]
Canada recognizes and affirms existing Aboriginal and treaty rights in section 35(1) of the Constitution Act, 1982. The SCC, following this constitutional recognition, devised a jurisprudential regime setting out standards for defining, identifying and violating Aboriginal rights. This regime incorporates the duty to consult and accommodate Aboriginal rights. The SCC in Haida Nation v. British […]
On September 18, the Supreme Court of Canada released its decision in Bell Canada v. Bell Aliant Region Communications, 2009 SCC 40. Touching on areas such as administrative and communications law, the case concerned the extent and proper exercise of the authority of the Canadian Radio-Television and Telecommunications Commission ("CRTC"). Background In May 2002, the […]
Two appeals heard by the Supreme Court last week and now under reserve give the justices an opportunity to revisit an issue dear to many law students' hearts (at least, the ones who sleep with a copy of Peter Hogg's Constitutional Law of Canada under their pillows): interjurisdictional immunity. The cases, Attorney General of Quebec […]