Family
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July 30, 2025
Expert panel recommends 24 pre-1970 Supreme Court precedents for priority translation
The Supreme Court of Canada — which drew fire last year for its posting, and then removal, of some 6,000 pre-1970 untranslated (mostly English) judgments from its website — says it has started to translate some of the court’s “most significant” decisions rendered before the 1970 Official Languages Act (OLA) required all new judgments to be issued simultaneously in both official languages.
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July 29, 2025
Trudeau Liberals increased diversity of federal benches; female jurists made big gains: report
The former Trudeau government’s nine-year push for diversity in federal appointments since 2016 saw big progress for female jurists — who now make up 49 per cent of all federally appointed judges — along with significant gains for jurists who self-identify as Indigenous, racialized, ethnic, 2SLGBTQI+ or as having a disability, according to the latest information from the Office of the Commissioner for Federal Judicial Affairs.
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July 29, 2025
N.B. funding programs for victims of gender-based violence
As part of its ongoing efforts to tackle gender-based violence, New Brunswick is spending millions on emergency transition programs, outreach initiatives and “second-stage” housing.
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July 29, 2025
Shifting Canadian attitudes toward immigration
For much of its modern history, Canada has stood out as a beacon of openness and multiculturalism, with immigration widely embraced as a key pillar of economic prosperity. However, in recent years, this long-standing support has begun to show signs of erosion.
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July 28, 2025
How your kids can access the ‘Bank of Mom and Dad’ to buy a home
Even though the housing market in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) and elsewhere is currently undergoing a downturn due to economic uncertainty, homeownership likely remains out of reach for many. For young Canadians, a home purchase is often supported (at least partially) by the “Bank of Mom and Dad.”
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July 25, 2025
Is generative AI a threat to the integrity of the justice system?
The use of generative artificial intelligence in the legal profession is continuing to grow. Although its application may have value in some areas of practice, its use in litigation has raised significant ethical questions because of the tendency for AI platforms to hallucinate cases. In circumstances where a court relies on fake cases to influence a decision, the integrity of the administration of justice and the legal profession can be irreparably tarnished.
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July 24, 2025
Alberta expands family justice strategy to more municipalities
The Alberta government is expanding its family justice strategy — which aims to give Albertans a more streamlined and consistent process to access family justice services — to more municipalities in the province.
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July 24, 2025
Divorce, second time around — it can hit your clients twice as hard
Everyone knows that marriages don’t always last. But it’s not just first marriages that struggle to survive — many second and third marriages end in divorce as well. According to Statistics Canada’s most recent General Social Survey (2017), more than one-quarter of Canadians aged 35-64 were on their second or subsequent marriage — but only about half of those couples were still together a decade later.
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July 23, 2025
The Friendly Bar Series, No. 6: The weight we carry — On intimacy, identity and family law practice
Since launching this series, many lawyers have reached out, some in DMs, others at conferences or after court, to share the quiet burdens they carry. The words of one lawyer, a senior member of the Friendly Family Bar who wished to remain anonymous, landed squarely in the centre of my chest. They shared the following reflections:
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July 23, 2025
Harper Grey welcomes Jimmy Peterson
Harper Grey has added a new associate, Jimmy Peterson, to its health and insurance law groups.