Family
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April 24, 2026
SCC upholds sex assault conviction, ruling Crown did not have to prove exact time of offence
Prosecutors are not required to prove precisely when a sex assault occurred, but rather that it happened “on or about” a certain time — unless the timing of the offence is essential to the case or crucial to the defence, says Canada’s highest court.
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April 24, 2026
Court certifies hearing implant class action where 50% were defective
The Ontario Superior Court of Justice has certified a national class action alleging that the corporate defendants’ medical devices — cochlear implants surgically implanted for hearing impaired patients — were “risky, defective, and require users to undergo invasive revision surgery to have the device removed and replaced.”
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April 24, 2026
Ontario FOI changes ‘one of the most serious attacks on the public’s right to know’ in years: expert
The Ontario government has fast-tracked legislation through the provincial legislature that makes significant changes to the province’s freedom of information (FOI) laws, a move observers are calling “undemocratic” and dangerous.
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April 24, 2026
To be, or not to be ‘in-person,’ that is the question
It may seem overly dramatic to compare the court’s dilemma about mandating “in-person” motions in family court to Hamlet’s musings about whether to suffer the hardships of life or succumb to the unknown of death.
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April 24, 2026
The hidden stress of workload management on young lawyers
Young lawyers expect to spend their early years learning how to research, draft, negotiate and advocate in court. Those skills are difficult, but at least they are taught openly. A senior lawyer will hopefully demonstrate how to structure a factum, mark up your work and explain what “good” looks like.
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April 23, 2026
Saskatchewan introduces bill to bring in associate judges for King’s Bench
Taking its cues from a handful of other provinces, Saskatchewan has introduced legislation that would add associate judges to its Court of King’s Bench.
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April 23, 2026
Relocation law is stacked against mothers — Bill C-223 can fix it: Addressing bias
On Feb. 10, 2026, one of the deadliest mass shootings in Canada’s history occurred in Tumbler Ridge, B.C., where Jesse Strang killed her mother and half-brother in addition to several students of the local secondary school. We were surprised to find out that, in 2015, a court had denied Jesse’s mother’s request to relocate with her children from British Columbia to Newfoundland.
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April 22, 2026
Alberta law institute report maps out how children can be heard in court
An Alberta-based legal institute has issued a report it says will help lawyers and the public understand the ways in which the voice of the child can be heard in family court proceedings.
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April 22, 2026
When courts turn back the clock: Rethinking the return to in-person family hearings
A recent article by Steve Benmor (The Zoom paradox: When a judge’s words and his court’s actions collide) draws attention to an emerging inconsistency within Ontario’s family justice system — one that warrants closer examination.
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April 22, 2026
Relocation law is stacked against mothers — Bill C-223 can fix it
Lucy is a 10-year-old child who spends most of her time in the care of her mother but also spends significant time with her father. Lucy’s mother just got a job across the province and asks the court to authorize the relocation of the child. The father objects.