June 10, 2026
The Supreme Court’s controversial Jordan decision, which has sparked the dismissal of thousands of cases due to unconstitutional trial delay, is still good law, but stays of proceedings are not a cure for undue systemic trial delay, Canada’s top judge says. “One stay of proceedings is too many,” Supreme Court of Canada Chief Justice Richard Wagner stressed at his annual press conference in Ottawa June 9.
June 10, 2026
For far too long coercive control was an insidious yet unrecognized form of social depravity and abuse, largely perpetrated against women in intimate relationships. Until recently, coercive control was ignored by professionals, including lawyers, though this is rapidly changing.
June 10, 2026
Ontario Attorney General Doug Downey has appointed Boris Bytensky, Carson MacDonald Coughlin and Vincent André François Paris as judges to the Ontario Court of Justice, effective June 18, 2026.
June 10, 2026
The federal government has announced that the Assault-Style Firearms Compensation Program has closed for businesses, while the amnesty period from criminal liability has been extended after the Supreme Court of Canada agreed to hear an appeal on the prohibition.
June 09, 2026
Newfoundland and Labrador has passed legislation giving its seniors’ advocate the powers of “individual advocacy and investigation.” According to a June 5 news release, the move aligns the role of the province’s seniors’ advocate with that of “similar statutory officers,” such as the citizens’ representative and the child and youth advocate.
June 08, 2026
The Law Society of Saskatchewan turned out a “solid” annual report for 2025 — and members should pay particular attention to the implementation of limited licensing in the province, says the regulator’s past president.
June 05, 2026
Yukon’s Supreme Court has issued a directive on the use of generative AI “in written and oral representations” in a bid to reinforce the “integrity and credibility of legal proceedings.”
June 05, 2026
In the usual course of estate administration, one of the preliminary steps is often obtaining a Certificate of Appointment of Estate Trustee with a Will (often referred to as “probate”). Generally, this is an administrative, over-the-counter process. The applicant files the original will, the prescribed application forms, any supporting materials required by the court, and pays the applicable Estate Administration Tax. If the application is in order, the court issues a Certificate of Appointment confirming the authority of the estate trustee named in the will.
June 05, 2026
When a Canadian court or tribunal finds that a party has relied on a case that does not exist, the consequence is far from uniform. In one decision, the lawyer responsible was ordered to pay $17,550 in costs personally. In another, the order was $100. In 60 of the 177 decisions we reviewed, the adjudicator identified the problem but imposed no consequence at all.
June 04, 2026
The Tax Court of Canada has “reluctantly” upheld a finding that a father who cannot be removed from Canada but is not a “protected person” under immigration law is ineligible for the Canada Child Benefit (CCB), noting he had fallen through a crack in the legal system that the court first identified nearly 25 years ago.