Author’s Note: The author would like to thank Professors Benjamin Berger, Signa Daum Shanks, and Bruce Ryder for their generous and thoughtful contributions, without which this post would not have been possible. It has now been a few months since the retirement of the Right Honourable Beverley McLachlin from the role of Chief Justice of […]
You would be forgiven, said Justice Rosalie Silberman Abella at Chief Justice Richard Wagner’s swearing-in ceremony, for forgetting that it is possible for men to become the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Canada (“SCC”). A female justice has overseen the SCC for so long that it is tempting to consider male leadership a […]
In 2011 in Saskatchewan, the complainant C.D. was 14 years old, although according to the evidentiary record he looked older (R v George, 2017 SCC 38 at para 10 [“SCC”]). He engaged in intimate activity with George, a 35-year-old female acquaintance. C.D. never complained to the authorities about the sexual encounter; rather, it came onto […]
In the case of BC Freedom of Information and Privacy Association v British Columbia (AG), 2017 SCC 6, the Supreme Court once again wrestled with the uniquely Canadian issue of limiting election advertising. The appellant was a non-profit from Vancouver named the BC Freedom of Information and Privacy Association (“the Association”). Its mandate is to […]
It is an uncanny convenience that immediately following Prime Minister Trudeau’s abandonment of his electoral reform promise, the announcement of a revamped Court Challenges Program emerges. The Program provides some (or perhaps only a semblance of) comfort and recourse to the very same groups that feel marginalized by the first-past-the-post system. It is the perfect […]
Canada’s eighth Chief Justice, Sir Lyman Duff, sits in his easy chair by the roaring fire in his home at 488 Wilbrod Street. Kenneth Campbell, his assistant, occupies a familiar place by his side. Campbell pores over the books that range in topic from the latest works on atomic energy to the political philosophy of […]
Election financing law reform was a hot topic in several Canadian provinces throughout 2016. The trend looks likely to continue through 2017. On October 11, 2016 the Supreme Court of Canada (“SCC”) heard a challenge to British Columbia’s Elections Act, RSBC 1996, c 106 [EA]. Closer to home, new election financing rules came into effect […]
On Monday, October 17th, Prime Minister Trudeau announced his first nominee to the Supreme Court of Canada: Justice Malcolm Rowe. Set to fill the seat of Justice Cromwell who retired from the Court in September, Justice Rowe—provided his nomination succeeds—will become the first appointee from Newfoundland and Labrador. To add to historic firsts, Justice Rowe […]
Today marks Justice Russell Brown's official welcoming ceremony (you can watch the ceremony online here), and yet, I highly doubt Justice Brown feels welcome. His appointment has caused a flurry—no, a torrent—of public disapproval, online frustration on the politicization of the judiciary, and think-pieces on the demise of the Supreme Court of Canada ("SCC"). Some […]