Access to Justice
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July 10, 2025
What’s in a name? Including femicide in the Criminal Code
Recently, federal Justice Minister Sean Fraser indicated he would be “open” to including the term “femicide” in the Criminal Code, possibly as part of a number of reforms he expects to present to Parliament in the fall.
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July 10, 2025
‘External monitor’ sees progress & challenges in military’s handling of its sexual misconduct crisis
Ottawa has renewed its pledge to abolish, for the most part, the military justice system’s jurisdiction over sexual offence investigations and prosecutions involving military members. Meanwhile, the military has not delivered on the government’s aim to transfer most existing military sexual offence cases to Canada’s civilian courts — explaining that complainants and provincial authorities have not agreed to the transfers, according to a new report released by the Department of National Defence (DND).
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July 07, 2025
Investigation of Robert Pickton’s death: Are some people of lesser value?
In the early 1990s, Canadians were rightfully shocked by the disappearance of about 20 female sex workers from Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside. By 1991, relatives and social activists were speculating that a serial killer was at work. Police initially dismissed this idea, suggesting that the women’s transient lifestyle meant they could be anywhere. The number of missing women grew without any clear explanation. Most of them were involved in prostitution.
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July 07, 2025
A common mistake in statutory interpretation
In the training that I deliver on statutory interpretation, I caution against relying on prior interpretations of a statutory provision or a related provision without first doing your own interpretive analysis of the provision. In Pepa v. Canada (Citizenship and Immigration), 2025 SCC 21, the Supreme Court of Canada overturned a tribunal decision that made this mistake.
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July 04, 2025
B.C. increases staffing of RCMP hate crimes unit
In an effort to address hate-motivated offences, British Columbia is increasing the staffing capacity of its hate crimes unit, led by the B.C. RCMP.
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July 03, 2025
Court: B.C.’s new arbitration ban doesn’t apply in Rogers customer dispute over $1M hacking loss
In one of the first tests of British Columbia's amended consumer protection law, the B.C. Supreme Court has allowed a bid by telecom giant Rogers to block court action in favor of arbitration in a case where a customer’s phone was hacked, allegedly resulting in her losing an estimated $1 million in Bitcoin. The court found that the amended legislation, which prohibits mandatory arbitration clauses and class action waivers in consumer contracts, did not apply retroactively despite a transitional provision.
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July 02, 2025
New N.S. real estate rule has sellers disclose erosion, flooding issues with coastal properties
Nova Scotia has new real estate rules enabling potential buyers of coastal homes to find out from sellers if a property has been impacted by erosion or flooding.
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June 30, 2025
LSO awards honorary degrees to six distinguished individuals
The Law Society of Ontario (LSO) honoured six individuals with a degree of doctor of laws, honoris causa (LLD) at the June Call to the Bar ceremonies, in recognition of their achievements in the legal profession, the rule of law or the cause of justice.
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June 30, 2025
Saskatchewan furthering commitment to national plan tackling gender-based violence
Saskatchewan is providing more than half a million dollars to several initiatives as part of the province’s ongoing rollout of a national plan to eradicate gender-based violence — with a chunk of the funds going toward an event promoting the “exchange of ideas” between lawyers, law enforcement and advocates.
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June 30, 2025
Ontario judge warns of dire impact of split Appeal Court decision expanding s. 7 liberty rights
In a split decision, the Ontario Court of Appeal has quashed a residency requirement under the Canada Elections Act, finding it infringed on a returning officer’s s. 7 liberty rights under the Charter when he was disqualified from his position after moving outside the district.