Civil Litigation

  • May 19, 2026

    Building the perfect divorce bonfire

    In my handy Wilderness Survival Guide, there is a step-by-step guide to building the perfect bonfire. I was reminded of it as I read last week’s Supreme Court of Canada decision in Ahluwalia v. Ahluwalia, 2026 SCC 16, which has created a new tort — the tort of family violence for coercive and controlling behaviour.

  • May 19, 2026

    You don’t get to double-dip: Ontario Court of Appeal clarifies mitigation

    For employment lawyers, failure to mitigate is almost always pleaded by employers, yet rarely succeeds. It remains a frustrating part of wrongful dismissal litigation. Employees are often upset to learn that if they find new work, their income will usually be deducted from what their former employer owes them. Employers, meanwhile, are dismayed by the heavy evidentiary burden they face when alleging failure to mitigate.

  • May 19, 2026

    Five significant Ontario class action rulings to start 2026

    Ontario’s class actions continued to evolve in Q1 2026, with five key rulings addressing certification standards for causation, preferability between overlapping proceedings and the limits of cross-border evidence, among other topics.

  • May 19, 2026

    CIVIL PROCEDURE - Appeals - Cross-appeals - Quashing or dismissal of

    Appeal by Pasquill and cross-appeal by British Columbia Securities Commission (Commission) from chambers judge’s forfeiture order. In 2014, Pasquill was found to have perpetrated one of the largest frauds on capital markets in British Columbia, in violation of the Securities Act. He was ordered to pay, jointly and severally with others, $36.7 million in monetary sanctions.

  • May 15, 2026

    Environmental law groups bash new Canada-Alberta carbon pricing deal, pipeline

    Environmental law groups are denouncing the new Canada-Alberta agreement on carbon pricing and an oil pipeline.

  • May 15, 2026

    Court rejects appeal in cryptocurrency scam case

    The British Columbia Court of Appeal has dismissed an appeal involving an individual who was subject to a cryptocurrency scam but ignored warnings from trading platforms when carrying out the transactions.

  • May 15, 2026

    Court strikes application regarding right to counsel in immigration cases

    The Federal Court has struck an application brought by the Canadian Immigration Lawyers Association seeking declaration for a right to counsel in immigration and refugee cases, allowing the motion by the responding ministers.

  • May 15, 2026

    SCC recognizes new common law tort of intimate partner violence in landmark family law judgment

    The Supreme Court of Canada has created 6-3 a new common law tort of “intimate partner violence” (IPV), which may be claimed separately or within family law proceedings. The far-reaching five-judge majority judgment, written by Justice Nicholas Kasirer (along with a separate lone concurrence by Justice Andromache Karakatsanis), not only recognizes a new tort, it elaborates on when novel torts should be created and on the roles of courts and legislatures in developing the law: Ahluwalia v. Ahluwalia, 2026 SCC 16.

  • May 15, 2026

    Gabrielle Poulin joins Langlois in litigation and insurance law

    After articling with Langlois, Gabrielle Poulin has begun her career as a lawyer with the firm’s litigation group in Montreal.

  • May 13, 2026

    Federal Court orders third CRA review of teacher’s CERB eligibility

    In a case that has now twice been overturned, the Federal Court has remitted the matter of an individual’s eligibility for the Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB) back to the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) for a third review.