Criminal
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June 18, 2025
Flawed police testimony leads to successful appeal
It seemed to be an impulsive trip from Guelph, Ont., to Sudbury, Ont., for three young men. On Dec.1, 2017, OPP officer David Desroches stopped Adam Chiarelli, who was speeding in his mother’s car on Highway 400. After impounding the car and taking the three men to a nearby gas station, officer Scott Orsan noticed the scent of cannabis. He discovered marijuana and related items during a search of the vehicle. All three men were arrested.
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June 17, 2025
Canada ramps up sanctions against Russia for Putin regime’s ‘continued aggression’ against Ukraine
Canada announced new sanctions against Russia as leaders of the G7 Western countries met for a second day in Kananaskis, Alta.
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June 17, 2025
CBA backs constitutional amendment to constrain federal use of Charter’s ‘notwithstanding’ clause
In a rare move, the Canadian Bar Association (CBA) has thrown its support behind a Senate public bill (S-218), which proposes a constitutional amendment to restrict and structure the discretion of the federal government to breach Charter rights via the contentious s. 33 “notwithstanding” clause.
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June 17, 2025
Legal harmonies: Exploring law through the lens of symphonic masterpieces
Symphonic music, with its grand scale and emotional depth, has long been a powerful medium for expressing complex societal themes. As a mirror to society, symphonic music has long reflected cultural, political and legal norms.
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June 17, 2025
Your job as lawyers? Take the A out of AI
You may have heard news recently that the driving law in Canada will be changing federally. You’ve probably seen a Facebook post, an Instagram story or even a news story on a website indicating that there will be national changes to driving laws in Canada beginning on July 1, 2025.
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June 16, 2025
CBA awards Jeanne Mayrand-Thibert the Viscount Bennett Fellowship
The Canadian Bar Association (CBA)’s Fellowship Committee has selected Jeanne Mayrand-Thibert as the recipient of the 2025-2026 Viscount Bennett Fellowship.
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June 16, 2025
Horror of provincial jails in Canada
Much to my surprise, on my first day in a provincial jail after my arrest, the two prisoners with whom I shared a cell (I slept on the floor with my head by the toilet) both told me that the conditions in this jail were much worse than in the federal prisons where they had served time.
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June 16, 2025
Ontario Court of Justice appoints 10 new judges
The Ontario government has announced the appointment of 10 new judges to the Ontario Court of Justice, effective June 16, 2025.
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June 16, 2025
Bill C-5: A legal feeding frenzy at the expense of Indigenous jurisdiction
The federal government’s proposed Bill C-5 — which includes the Building Canada Act — sets a two-year timeline for major project approvals. On the surface, it promises efficiency and economic momentum. But from the perspective of many Indigenous leaders and legal professionals, this legislation signals a looming crisis: the sidelining of Indigenous law, the erosion of meaningful consultation, and a surge of culturally incompetent legal advocacy that risks deepening colonial harm.
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June 13, 2025
SCC rules admissibility of Crown-led ‘sexual inactivity’ evidence must be decided in a voir dire
Holding 9-0 that evidence of a complainant’s “sexual inactivity” forms part of their “sexual history” — and is therefore presumptively inadmissible at trial — the Supreme Court of Canada has also clarified that the common law screening procedure for Crown‑led sexual history evidence “should mirror” the s. 276 Criminal Code regime that applies in a voir dire for defence-led sexual history evidence.