Civil Litigation
-
December 04, 2025
What to do when counsel is never available for urgent court applications?
One of the recurring frustrations in family law practice is the increasingly common tactic where opposing counsel is mysteriously “unavailable” for any proposed hearing date.
-
December 04, 2025
Using s. 35 of the Property Law Act to extinguish, modify easements in B.C.
Easements, being one of the most common non-possessory interests in land, are often essential for the proper use and development of a dominant tenement. However, over time, changes in the character of the land, the surrounding neighbourhood or the purpose of the original grant can render an easement obsolete, impractical or economically detrimental to the burdened land (the servient tenement). In British Columbia, if parties do not agree to privately extinguish an easement, the owner of the servient tenement must apply to the court for relief under s. 35 of the Property Law Act.
-
December 04, 2025
Court orders law firm to disclose client’s banking information
Parties may occasionally seek disclosure of information or documents from another party’s lawyer during the course of litigation. In such cases, solicitor-client privilege as well as a general duty of confidentiality must be considered. Lawyers who receive a request for disclosure of privileged information by a non-client will generally require that a court order for disclosure be obtained.
-
December 03, 2025
Federal judges ‘reluctantly’ take Carney gov’t to court in dispute over pay, judicial independence
In a pay dispute with Ottawa that raises questions about the requirements for judicial independence, the Canadian Superior Courts Judges Association (CSCJA) and the associate judges of the Federal Court separately filed Federal Court applications seeking judicial review of the Carney government’s recent refusal to implement the recommendations of an independent judicial pay commission, including its advice that a $28,000 salary boost (on top of mandatory annual indexing) is necessary to keep attracting outstanding lawyers to the federal benches.
-
December 03, 2025
Valerie Prather joins McCarthy Tétrault in Calgary
McCarthy Tétrault has welcomed Valerie Prather as a partner in its litigation and dispute resolution group in Calgary, according to the firm.
-
December 03, 2025
Federal Court of Appeal rejects percentage-based costs in IP appeal
The Federal Court of Appeal has declined to award costs based on a percentage of actual fees in an appeal arising out of a complex intellectual property (IP) dispute, finding that extending the elevated lump-sum trial approach to the appellate proceeding was not justified in the case.
-
December 03, 2025
Seeking leave to appeal: Top five considerations
Appeal rights in Ontario are “wholly a matter of statute” and there is no inherent right to appeal a decision (see Sutcliffe v. Ontario (Minister of the Environment), [2004] O.J. No. 277, at para. 23).
-
December 03, 2025
Lawyers raise concerns about Manitoba’s new detainment law for meth intoxication
Legal minds in Manitoba are concerned that new legislation allowing for the 72-hour detention of people “intoxicated” by drugs will possibly do more harm than good.
-
December 03, 2025
Mathews Dinsdale adds Kaelyn Burns as associate in Vancouver
Kaelyn Burns has joined the Vancouver office of Mathews, Dinsdale & Clark LLP as an associate, the firm has announced.
-
December 03, 2025
Success rate for injured applicants at Licence Appeal Tribunal continues to plummet
As a new associate chair with significant political connections is poised to take over, the Licence Appeal Tribunal (LAT) is facing criticism over the plummeting success rate for people injured in auto accidents who are appealing decisions by insurance companies — a success rate that has dropped precipitously to only eight per cent.