On May 24, 2012, the Ontario Court of Appeal ("ONCA") released a sensitive and nuanced judgment that promises to polarize opinions and provide plenty of fodder for thought regarding the handling of criminally accused mentally ill persons. On the one hand, the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) v Ontario, 2012 ONCA 342 [CAMH], on […]
Having taken criminal law courses in law school, and having written numerous commentaries on criminal cases before the courts for TheCourt.ca, I have developed a rather strong stomach. Not much gets under my skin anymore. One case decided by a lower court in Ontario earlier this month stood out for me, though. The case of […]
Bill 78 – No Surprise It’s Having the Opposite Effect Responding to what some have coined anti protest legislation, protestors outside of Quebec have joined in on the Montreal student protest. On May 22, 2012, demonstrators in Montreal, Vancouver, Calgary, New York, and even Paris united in red to show their support for the protestors. The […]
University students across the country held their breath this week when the Alberta Court of Appeal released its decision in Pridgen v University of Calgary, 2012 ABCA 139 [Pridgen]. While on its face, the case decides whether universities are subject to Charter scrutiny, and whether the University’s discretion to impose disciplinary sanctions on theses students was […]
The law of causation is scrutinized frequently in Canadian criminal law, frequently leading to its revision and redefinition; Canadian courts have often attempted to fine-tune approaches that enable the determination of causation. The enormous emphasis the courts place on this determination is reflected in issues of public policy. Even more important is the underlying philosophy […]
The NDP critic, Francoise Boivin, seemed rather ambivalent about the Bedford v. Canada (Attorney General), 2012 ONCA 186 [Bedford] decision, which was released by the Court of Appeal of Ontario in April of this year: "I'm not even sure that having the decision — having to rewrite some aspect of the Criminal Code — will have that […]
The Court Won’t Hear Court versus Church Earlier this week, the Supreme Court of Canada ("SCC") refused to hear the case of Hart v. Roman Catholic Episcopal Corporation of the Diocese of Kingston, in Canada 2011 ONCA 728 [Hart]. While the church and the issue may be different, this case can be placed alongside Bentley v. […]
The Trial of a “Monster” is Over Despite claiming he is not guilty, a jury and judge have said otherwise. After being found guilty of a jury on all three counts of kidnapping, sexual assault causing bodily harm and first degree murder of Victoria (Tori) Stafford, Michael Rafferty was sentenced on Tuesday morning by Justice […]
One of the primary considerations that Canadian courts have dealt with when confronting issues of private international law is that of the choice of jurisdiction— whether the court in which the case is being brought in is the one that is legally entitled to hear it. If this is deemed so, the next consideration is […]
Any law student could probably tell you that it is the trial courts that determine matters of fact (who did it, how did he/she do it, when did it happen, etc.), while it is the appellate courts that review cases on matters of law. Whether a verdict is unreasonable is certainly a question of law. […]