July 08, 2026
Mediation doesn’t always end with a handshake. After 39 years of handling commercial and employment disputes, I can tell you that a failed mediation is not necessarily a failure of the process; often, it is useful information. It tells you something about where the parties actually stand, and it forces a decision that matters as much as anything that came before it: arbitration or litigation?
July 08, 2026
Last week, I had a settlement conference scheduled at the Milton, Ont., courthouse on one of my “remaining” litigation files.
July 08, 2026
Prince Edward Island is bringing internet access to those who lack it with portable hotspot devices available through the library — and there is “no reason” they could not be used for virtual court appearances, says a government spokesperson.
July 07, 2026
The federal government has appointed Charlene J. Moore as a judge of the Supreme Court of Nova Scotia (Family Division) in Sydney.
July 06, 2026
Prime Minister Mark Carney has appointed new leaders to head two of Canada’s major trial courts. On July 6, Justice Alan Diner was appointed chief justice of the Federal Court, the national superior trial court that decides disputes in the federal domain. He succeeds Paul Crampton, who retired from the post Oct. 31, 2025.
July 03, 2026
In-person litigants Kelly Eccles and Justin Eccles are racking up more travel miles in Alberta’s Court of Appeal, following Ms. Eccles’ latest appeal — appeal number seven, but who’s counting?
July 03, 2026
Trial judges must be careful with their comments to lawyers and other parties to avoid the appearance of bias — particularly with family law matters, which often involve “difficult facts, difficult personalities and emotionally charged circumstances,” says a lawyer. The June 16 Nova Scotia Court of Appeal ruling in Stronach v. Stronach, 2026 NSCA 47 involved a parenting and child support dispute.
July 03, 2026
The International Bar Association’s (IBA) recent report marks a meaningful demographic milestone: women now form a majority of the Canadian legal profession. Combined with the historic female majority on the Supreme Court of Canada, it signals progress that deserves recognition.
July 03, 2026
Eleven years ago, elder law scholar Israel Doron described the movement for a United Nations convention on the rights of older persons as a journey to Ithaka, borrowing from C.P. Cavafy’s famous poem. The destination matters, but so too does the path toward it — one marked by setbacks, detours and incremental progress. At the time, an international treaty remained largely aspirational. Yet this year, the United Nations took a historic step forward when a working group began the drafting process. After years of debate about whether older persons required a dedicated human rights instrument, the conversation has shifted to what it might contain.
July 02, 2026
The Supreme Court of Canada’s newest judge says his key areas of legal expertise are constitutional and criminal law, including the rules of evidence and procedure, though he has also presided over many civil and administrative law cases in his generalist trial court. Glenn Joyal, a former federal and Manitoba prosecutor and the longtime chief justice of the Manitoba Court of King’s Bench, was elevated by the prime minister to the top court on June 30, succeeding Supreme Court Justice Sheilah Martin of Alberta, the highly respected constitutional and criminal law litigator, academic and judge who retired from the bench May 30.