Family
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May 22, 2025
Trial prep 101: A practical guide for lawyers (and a message for clients who want to win)
Preparing for trial is not something that begins a month out, or while drafting the trial scheduling endorsement. It begins the moment a lawyer first opens a file. This article walks through the foundational elements of strong trial preparation in the context of family law.
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May 22, 2025
Opening Iran to tourism and technology: Economic potential, strategic implications
This article examines the transformative potential of opening Iran’s tourism and technology sectors to international investment and co-operation.
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May 22, 2025
Testamentary capacity: Principles and practice
In the majority of cases, determining whether a prospective client has testamentary capacity is not as simple as discerning between midnight and noon; rather, it is like determining the precise moment at which twilight turns to dark. This article considers some of the issues on point.
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May 21, 2025
Struggle, hatred and alienation: The tragic tale of Chyher v. Al Jaboury
In an ideal world, separation between spouses should be a mature and respectful transition. Even more so when children are involved; the aspiration is for a shared parenting arrangement that honours the bond each parent has with the children and protects their best interests.
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May 21, 2025
Drafting a will for an Indigenous client who lives on a reserve
Any time a lawyer undertakes to prepare a client’s will, it is imperative to obtain salient information about the client and their estate. The information required to prepare an effective will is often more complex and nuanced than simply obtaining a list of the client’s assets and confirming how they are to be distributed.
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May 20, 2025
High-conflict parenting and the unique circumstances of adult children with disabilities
In the recent Ontario Court of Appeal decision, D.F. v. R.W.F., 2025 ONCA 129, Justice Steve Coroza addressed the issue of parenting orders concerning an adult “child of the marriage.” This decision follows J.F.R. v. K.L.L., 2024 ONCA 520, where Justice Lois Roberts emphasized that the meaning of “capacity” is context-dependent and that there is a rebuttable presumption of capacity, including for an adult child with a disability.
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May 16, 2025
Federal Court extends deadlines for immigration JRs due to surging cases, inadequate gov’t funding
Contending with far too many immigration cases for its tight budget, the Federal Court this week extended by 45 days its regulation 30-day deadlines for litigants to perfect their applications for leave and judicial review of immigration decisions (ALJRs). Why? Because the registry’s beleaguered staff simply can’t keep up, and now often needs weeks rather than days to intake and process the ALJRs — which have more than quadrupled the average volume the court experienced over the five years immediately preceding the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic.
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May 16, 2025
Ontario case highlights human oversight function in generative AI which cannot be ignored: law prof
An Ontario judge has criticized a lawyer for the apparent use of generative artificial intelligence (AI) in a factum which provided several incorrect case citations, and legal experts are saying the judge's admonishments highlight the need for human oversight of AI and increased attention to the guidance provided by law societies and courts on the use of the technology by legal professionals.
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May 15, 2025
Ottawa welcomes ‘historic’ international ruling that Russia shot down Malaysian civilian airliner
As Canada pursues a separate case against Iran at the UN’s International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) — for the illegal downing of a Ukrainian civilian airliner in 2020 — Ottawa said it “welcomes” the ICAO’s recent determination that the Russian Federation shot down Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17 in 2014, in breach of Russia’s obligations under international law.
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May 15, 2025
Women in the practice of law
We as a profession are quite rightly proud of the influx of women to the practice of law. The small minority of women in my graduating class in the 1970s has given way to equality of numbers or better in today’s graduating classes. But, as my daughter points out, that is not the test. The test is retention: how women in the profession are treated and how their different needs are addressed.