Criminal

  • July 13, 2026

    Somalian refugee with mental illness eyeing Supreme Court in fight against deportation

    Lawyers for a Somalian refugee with schizophrenia may turn to Canada’s highest court in a bid to keep their client from being deported due to a sex assault conviction — citing potential dangers awaiting him in his native land because of his mental illness.

  • July 13, 2026

    Magali Bernier appointed to Court of Quebec

    Quebec’s Justice Minister Simon Jolin-Barrette has appointed Magali Bernier as a judge of the Court of Quebec.

  • July 13, 2026

    Miscarriage of justice in the Gerald Klassen case

    Canada rightly prides itself on having one of the world’s fairest criminal justice systems. Yet one of its greatest shortcomings is revealed not when an innocent person is convicted, but when the government refuses to make that person whole after admitting the conviction cannot stand.

  • July 10, 2026

    Supreme Court upholds 6-month mandatory minimum for soliciting or obtaining sex with children

    The Supreme Court of Canada has affirmed 7-2 the constitutional validity of the mandatory minimum penalty (MMP) of six months’ incarceration for those who pay to obtain — or communicate to buy — sex with persons under age 18. On July 10, Justices Suzanne Côté and Michelle O’Bonsawin, in joint reasons for the majority, allowed the appeal of the Attorney General of Quebec and set aside the Quebec Court of Appeal’s 2024 decision that struck down s. 286.1(2)(a) of the Criminal Code as a violation of the Charter’s s. 12 prohibition against cruel and unusual punishment: Quebec (Attorney General) v. Denis, 2026 SCC 25.

  • July 10, 2026

    B.C.’s racist incident helpline expands to support 2SLGBTQIA+ callers

    British Columbia’s Racist Incident Helpline is expanding support to those experiencing hate based on sexual orientation and gender identity.

  • July 10, 2026

    Many trial judges overworked and stressed — but not as much as lawyers: new national survey

    Many federally appointed trial judges report stress from excessive workloads, limited control over their time in the workplace and too few support resources, according to a new national survey of judges’ physical and psychological health. On July 9, the Canadian Judicial Council (CJC) reported on extensive research commissioned from the Université de Sherbrooke between 2024 and 2026 by the council of 44 chief and associate chief justices.

  • July 10, 2026

    SENTENCING - Obtaining sexual services of a person under 18 - Maximum or minimum sentence available

    Appeal by the Attorney General of Quebec from a judgment of the Quebec Court of Appeal which declared the mandatory minimum sentence under s. 286.1(2) of the Criminal Code (Code) constitutionally invalid. During a police operation, whose purpose was to combat the sexual commodification of children, Denis believed he was communicating with an underage escort to obtain sexual services for consideration.

  • July 09, 2026

    N.B. inquest makes recommendations following inmate’s suicide

    A coroner’s inquest in New Brunswick has made recommendations on improving suicide prevention in health-care settings and correctional institutions after an inmate committed suicide in one of the province’s jails.

  • July 09, 2026

    Boots, brands and broken bodies: Law and morality meet the myth of progress at Calgary Stampede

    Modern corporate rodeos like the Calgary Stampede’s animal events are not benign traditions. They are disciplined spectacles of risk transfer: animals absorb the danger while humans collect status, sponsorship visibility and curated views of the consequences.

  • July 09, 2026

    Alberta Court of Appeal assesses where provincial highway overlaps federal criminal law

    The term “cooperative federalism” is rarely used nowadays. It is a concept that both federal and provincial lawmakers need not work in “watertight compartments.” Each level of government can enact laws addressing specific problems within its own jurisdiction.