The assertion of Crown sovereignty is a question that has never been resolved in Canadian constitutional jurisprudence. The mindset of original settlers was that Aboriginal peoples did not count as inhabitants of the land, so discovery applied in order to assert sovereignty. As Canada moves to an era of equality of all peoples, ignoring a […]
As someone who came of age in the late 1990s, the HIV/AIDS epidemic of the past decade was always omnipresent. No sexual education class was complete without a candid discussion about HIV transmission, and the importance of practicing safe sex. But even though HIV was always a part of the conversation, I frankly felt a […]
On September 22, 2010, Toronto Police Constable Adam Josephs launched a lawsuit in the Ontario Superior Court: Adam Josephs v. YouTube et. al (2010) CV-10-410890 (Ont. Sup. Ct.) (“Josephs v. YouTube”). In the suit, Constable Josephs sues video sharing website YouTube for $1.25 million. He seeks damages for defamation of his reputation and disclosure of […]
Airport Security: The Bigger Picture The defining characteristic of liberal democracies is, of course, the respect they ascribe to individuals as rights bearers, chief amongst which is often a right to autonomy or some degree of privacy. Obviously, however, liberal democracies also face challenges to national security. Given the significance we attribute to both individual […]
Fair is foul, and foul is fair: an overview The latest development in the David and Goliath saga that is The Canadian Government v Alan N Young is as intriguing as always, yet also somewhat disheartening. It pits Osgoode Hall’s venerable criminal law professor in his role as Co-Founder/Director of the Innocence Project, an organization […]
The pressing need to modernize the federal Bank Act, SC 1991, c 46 [Bank Act] was recently highlighted in the Supreme Court of Canada’s ("SCC") decision in Bank of Montreal v Innovation Credit Union, [2010] 3 SCR 3. In this case, the SCC was forced to engage in legal acrobatics in order to remedy a legislative […]
In light of the Omar Khadr affair, this post will provide a brief overview of the royal prerogative power over foreign affairs. As discussed in previous posts on TheCourt.ca (here, here, here and here), the Supreme Court of Canada’s ("SCC") interpretation of the government’s prerogative over foreign affairs limited the judiciary’s ability to force the […]
The Ontario Court of Appeal has released its judgement in R v Huggins, 2010 ONCA 746, a hotly-contended case surrounding a notorious dogfight. In a decision that will be an extreme disappointment to dog-lovers everywhere, the Court ordered that “Ginger” the pit bull be put down immediately.
Corpse to Appear on Cigarette Packages in the U.S. In 2008, Canada became the first country in the world to adopt mandatory warning images on cigarette packages. With the passing of The Tobacco Act, bold graphical warnings demonstrating the harmful effects of smoking were placed on cigarette packaging. Although Canada’s warning labels have inspired many other countries […]
The Supreme Court of Canada has denied leave to appeal from the Quebec appellate decision of Bellemare v Lisio, 2010 QCCA 859 (French only), ending the well-publicized legal battle over the fate of a public inquest into the death of Michel Berniquez. Nearly eight years have passed since the night Mr. Berniquez died from cardiac […]