Civil Litigation
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March 25, 2026
N.B. to increase public trustee’s ability to administer small estates
New Brunswick has introduced legislation that would widen the scope of its public trustee’s ability to deal with smaller estates.
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March 25, 2026
Alain Paquet joins Lavery as senior associate
Lavery has added Alain Paquet as senior associate in its civil and commercial litigation group.
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March 25, 2026
Court dismisses former immigration officer’s vexatious litigant appeal
The Federal Court of Appeal has dismissed the appeal of a former immigration officer who had his licence revoked and was deemed a vexatious litigant.
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March 25, 2026
The joint expert playbook: Practical steps for counsel and a call to the bench
The first two parts of this series examined the framework under Rules 20.1 and 20.2, how courts have responded when the joint expert process breaks down, and the high bar for competing expert evidence. This final part turns to practice: structuring the retainer, managing the engagement, and how the bench can move financial disputes toward resolution.
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March 25, 2026
Top four mistakes made by respondents on appeal
When served with a Notice of Appeal to the Ontario Court of Appeal or the Divisional Court, respondents may be tempted to take a cavalier approach. After all, the respondent was already successful in the lower court or tribunal proceeding. Much of the appeal will concern justifying the respondent’s victory. The respondent may hold a sincere conviction that all that is required for the appeal is to repeat and rely on the materials, evidence, and law from the underlying proceeding.
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March 24, 2026
SCC judges probe what Charter s. 33 ‘override’ may mean for survival of Charter judicial review
The argument that a legislature’s use of the Charter’s s. 33 “override” clause can temporarily prevent judges from striking down a law but not from reviewing the law’s constitutionality or stating that the law infringes Charter rights and freedoms sparked a lively exchange between counsel and the bench as the Supreme Court of Canada kicked off its inquiry into the constitutionality of Quebec’s controversial “secularism” (Bill 21) law.
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March 24, 2026
Ontario court backs municipality’s decision on controversial bus shelter ads
Ontario’s top court has rejected efforts by a political party to put ads on municipal bus shelters expounding their views on gender issues, and a lawyer involved in the case is saying the decision provides a template for cities to follow when confronted with similar issues.
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March 24, 2026
Dalhousie U and King’s College to resurrect joint journalism-law program
Two universities in Nova Scotia are re-launching a joint degree program combining law and journalism in a bid to create professionals able to “cut through the noise” of today’s world.
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March 24, 2026
Cineplex Inc. v. The King: Negative proceeds of disposition?
In the decision of Cineplex Inc. v. The King, 2026 TCC 15, the primary issue was the characterization of a $26,610,551.98 payment related to a complex business restructuring. Was the payment on account of capital or income?
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March 24, 2026
The joint expert playbook: Why courts rarely let you walk away
The first part of this series examined what Rules 20.1 and 20.2 of the Family Law Rules require, when joint expert retainers make sense, and what Numair v. Numair and Zantingh v. Zantingh tell us about how courts respond when the process breaks down. This part picks up from that foundation: once a joint retainer is in place, courts set a high threshold before permitting competing expert evidence — and several well-worn failure modes can derail the engagement before the report is ever finalized.