Harper nominates our next SCC Justice With Justice Morris Fish resigning from the bench on August 31 2013, speculation mounted on who would take his place as the next Supreme Court Justice. Well everyone, the nomination is in. On Monday September 30 2013, Prime Minister Harper announced that he has nominated Justice Marc Nadon to […]
In R v Griffith, 2013 ONCA 510, a decision released by the Ontario Court of Appeal on August 9, 2013, the court was faced with an unusual series of events. The trial judge in this case, having considered the available evidence and submissions, found the defendant guilty of firearm-related offences. Upon careful consideration, however, the […]
Normal 0 One of the most important criminal law cases decided under the Charter is R. v. Logan, [1990] 2 SCR 731. The case involved the robbery of a Becker's milk store, in which an 18 year old store clerk, Barbara Turnbull, was shot in the neck and became a quadriplegic. Four men involved in […]
In Part II of this comment on R v NS, 2012 SCC 72, I raise two additional implications of the case related to equity, inclusion and fairness. B. Religion and Culture in Bite-Sized Chunks The reasoning of the majority decision presents an incomplete picture of Canadian history and obscures “made-in-Canada” xenophobia in a way that impacts all racialized and […]
In May 2006, two police officers responded to a report of a possible break-and-enter. Inside an apartment they found a pound of marijuana alongside an open safe containing 90 grams of cocaine. Four people were arrested. At the station, a cellphone belonging to one of the detainees rang and was answered by a police officer. […]
Agraira v Canada (Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness) 2013 SCC 36 asked the Supreme Court of Canada (SCC) to determine whether the Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness (“Minister”)’s decision to deny ministerial relief to an alleged terrorist should be remitted to the administrative body. Yet, in trying to make sense of the Minister’s decision, LeBel […]
Section 6 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms (the "Charter") protects the mobility rights of Canadian citizens and, specifically, the right of every citizen to enter, reside in, and leave Canada. In essence, section 6 is “the right to have rights,” as it is only upon entering the country that Canadians enjoy the […]
On August 22, 2013, the Supreme Court of Canada agreed to hear an appeal from the Alberta Court of Appeal’s decision in Bhasin v. Hrynew, 2013 ABCA 98. The SCC’s granting of leave in Bhasin signals the Court’s eagerness to determine a longstanding legal debate about the judicial interpretation of contracts and the duty to […]
Can law firms represent clients with conflicting legal interests? The Supreme Court of Canada has unanimously said no in its latest judgment on the law of professions, Canadian National Railway Co v McKercher LLP, 2013 SCC 39 [McKercher]. The issue in this case was whether McKercher LLP (McKercher) could represent Canadian National Railway Co. (CN) […]
In R v Summers, 2013 ONCA 147 and subsequently R v Curry, 2013 ONCA 420, the Ontario Court of Appeal tackled the issue of exactly what circumstances allow for enhanced credit to be given for pre-sentence custody upon a finding of guilt. Following legislative changes in early 2010, the standard of giving 2:1 credit evaporated […]