The Complete Brief
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December 12, 2025
Washington jury decides: Hero sandwich or assault sub?
Murder by mustard? You are all no doubt wondering about the outcome of the recent trial in Washington, D.C., of Sean Charles Dunn. A jury found him not guilty of assault for throwing a Subway sandwich at a federal agent who Dunn thought was going to arrest some illegal immigrants.
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December 12, 2025
The push and pull between testamentary freedom, familial obligations in dependant relief claims
One of the hallmarks of Ontario’s estate planning regime is testamentary freedom. It gives individuals, when drafting and executing their wills and estate plans, the ability to distribute their assets in the manner they see fit.
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December 12, 2025
Lawyers’ year end 2025 and upcoming legal challenges 2026
As 2025 comes to an end and everyone attends their holiday parties, let’s prepare for the challenges that will be faced by legal professionals in the upcoming year. Here are a few that come to mind:
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December 12, 2025
COMPELLING APPEARANCE, DETENTION AND RELEASE - Arrest - Without a warrant
Appeal by Crown from a judgment of the Quebec Court of Appeal which set aside Carignan’s conviction for sexual assault and ordered a new trial. Carignan was arrested without warrant inside his educational institution and taken to a police station.
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December 12, 2025
B.C. Court of Appeal rules UNDRIP part of provincial law
British Columbia’s top court has held that the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) is part of B.C. law and that the province’s mineral claims regime is inconsistent with UNDRIP.
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December 12, 2025
Alberta Court of Appeal weighs in on medical privacy
How far does the privacy of medical records restrict police in their investigation of impaired driving? That question was at the heart of a decision recently released by the Alberta Court of Appeal (R. v. Ouellette, 2025 ABCA 340).
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December 12, 2025
WILLS - Variation - Contestation of claims - Adequacy of bequests to dependants
Appeal by Lee Everett Stuart (Lee) from application judge’s decision. Vernon Sanford (Mr. Sanford) passed away. Following his death, two versions of his will were discovered: an unexecuted copy dated 2002, and an executed will, dated May 5, 2006.
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December 12, 2025
How to fix the policy mix that’s killing Canadian productivity
Canada has a productivity crisis. Last year, Bank of Canada senior deputy governor Carolyn Rogers called Canada’s declining productivity an “emergency,” and the situation has only continued to worsen since.
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December 11, 2025
CRA doubles client responses, completes 100-day Service Improvement Plan
The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) has announced it has made significant progress in reducing client wait times and improving its service standards since the launch of its 100-day Service Improvement Plan earlier this year. However, the Taxpayers’ Ombudsperson noted improvements still need to be made.
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December 11, 2025
Proposed Alberta independence question violates Charter, Indigenous treaty rights: judge
A judge has ruled that a proposed referendum question on Alberta independence is unconstitutional — and has called out the provincial government for proposing a law that would take away the future ability for a court to determine whether such a question would violate Charter rights.