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June 24, 2026
What purpose does imprisonment serve when a person’s body has already become its own prison? That question lies at the core of Canada’s compassionate release laws under s. 121 of the Corrections and Conditional Release Act (CCRA). More than 30 years after its enactment, however, the provision remains rarely used, raising concerns that it exists more in theory than in practice.
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June 24, 2026
Being accused of sexual assault in Canada is an extremely serious matter with potentially life-changing consequences. Under s. 271 of the Criminal Code, sexual assault involves any sexual activity or contact without voluntary and informed consent.
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June 23, 2026
The Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs has publicly weighed in on a Supreme Court of Canada nomination, stating they “wholeheartedly endorse” Manitoba Court of King’s Bench Chief Justice Glenn Joyal’s candidacy and are “confident he will bring fairness, wisdom and humility to Canada’s highest court.”
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June 23, 2026
B.C. is launching a province-wide program aimed at disrupting street disorder and retail crime. The province is investing $16 million over two years in the Chronic Property Offending Intervention Initiative, which will focus on people involved in repeat offences, such as theft, shoplifting, vandalism and street disorder.
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June 23, 2026
On June 2, the Ontario legislature rose for its summer recess and will not return until late October. Twenty-one weeks. For most people, that is a scheduling note. For the clients I represent in family court, it means the legal framework that is already failing them will continue to fail them, unreformed, for the rest of the year.
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June 23, 2026
Appeal by appellant S.M. against his convictions for sexual assault and assault; cross-appeal by the Crown on the sentence imposed. The complainant alleged that throughout the parties’ marriage there were numerous incidents of non-consensual sexual activity and assaults.
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June 22, 2026
On June 19, the Government of Manitoba appointed Judge Jerilee Ryle as the provincial court of Manitoba’s first associate chief judge of reconciliation. “The creation of an associate chief judge of reconciliation marks a historic step toward building a court system that better reflects and respects Indigenous traditions, values and lived experiences,” said Justice Minister Matt Wiebe.
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June 22, 2026
Manitoba Court of King’s Bench Chief Justice Glenn Joyal, widely reputed in recent years to be a leading candidate for appointment to the Supreme Court of Canada, has been nominated to fill the western vacancy that opened up with the May 30 retirement of Supreme Court of Canada Justice Sheilah Martin, Prime Minister Mark Carney announced on June 22.
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June 19, 2026
The federal government has been advised by the majority of a 17-member parliamentary special committee to amend the Criminal Code to “indefinitely” bar access to medical assistance in dying (MAID) to persons suffering solely from mental illness, with the Bloc Québécois and three dissenting senators recommending that the government direct a reference to the Supreme Court of Canada to clarify the applicable law.
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June 19, 2026
Canada’s stricter bail rules will come into effect on July 15, 2026. The sweeping legislation (Bill C-14), the Bail and Sentencing Reform Act, received Royal Assent on June 15, 2026. Proponents of the new legislation said it would stop the “catch and release” mindset of Ontario courts. But was there a real need for reform?