In-House Counsel
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August 11, 2025
‘The fight of our lifetime’: ABA president receives award for defending rule of law
“This is the fight of our lifetime,” said American Bar Association (ABA) president William Bay while receiving the Ontario Bar Association’s (OBA) President’s Award on behalf of American lawyers on Aug. 7. The award comes as the ABA has launched a lawsuit against the United States federal government for allegedly using its powers to coerce lawyers and law firms to abandon clients, causes and policy positions President Donald Trump opposes.
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August 11, 2025
Strategies for being selected to apply for Permanent Residency under Express Entry
Canada’s immigration landscape in 2025 is undergoing significant changes, with a focus on reducing overall immigration numbers, prioritizing temporary residents already in Canada for permanent residency, and managing the influx of international students. The Immigration Levels Plan for 2025 to 2027 outlines a gradual decrease in permanent resident admissions, with targets set at 395,000 in 2025, 380,000 in 2026 and 365,000 in 2027.
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August 11, 2025
What has Ontario’s law society’s CEO salary scandal really cost us?
As I wrote here in March, Ontario’s Law Society has recently been rocked by the biggest scandal in its existence. The genesis of the controversy was the approval of a massive compensation increase (ultimately worth substantially more than $1 million) to their former CEO by a single signature — that of former treasurer Jacqueline Horvat. I personally find it fascinating that anyone could possibly imagine that was how that worked, when the law society’s bylaws require 10 signatures on any motion a licensee may wish to bring at their AGM.
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August 11, 2025
Responsible AI in practice: Leveraging ISO and NIST frameworks
The growing use of artificial intelligence (AI) within organizations in Canada is bringing to light the need to balance AI’s innovative potential with stakeholder expectations for responsible AI use and data privacy. At the same time, with AI’s continued growth and use, government bodies, regulators and standards organizations are attempting to establish legislation and voluntary codes that assist organizations using and developing AI in implementing governance systems and practices.
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August 08, 2025
Federal judges seek $60K pay hike but Ottawa says no raise needed to attract senior bar to bench
Chief justices are pointing to newly disclosed data about private bar lawyers’ rising incomes and declining appointments to the bench to bolster the judiciary’s contention that inadequate judicial compensation and onerous job demands are deterring “outstanding” lawyers from seeking federal judicial appointments.
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August 08, 2025
New N.S. AI guidebook warns of over-reliance in legal practices
Nova Scotia’s law society is using a new guidebook to warn members against becoming over-reliant on artificial intelligence in their practices — and urging them to heed instances where lawyers ended up in hot water over its misuse.
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August 08, 2025
CJC issues expression of concern over Federal Court judge’s failure to disclose workplace probe
The Canadian Judicial Council (CJC) has issued a public expression of concern regarding Federal Court Justice Negar Azmudeh for failing to disclose an ongoing workplace harassment investigation during her judicial application process.
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August 08, 2025
Thinking out loud: Mulling changes to Canada’s Online News Act
In response to the seismic shift in how news is consumed and distributed in Canada and elsewhere in the world, Canadian policymakers embarked on a journey to try to rebalance the power dynamics between tech giants and domestic news outlets. With ubiquitous use of smartphones, audiences began accessing news online rather than through traditional print and broadcast channels.
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August 05, 2025
Ontario Superior Court judge receives reprimand for 14-month delay in correcting sentencing error
A review panel of the Canadian Judicial Council (CJC) has issued a public reprimand to Justice Andrew J. Goodman of the Ontario Superior Court of Justice for his failure to promptly correct a significant sentencing error, concluding that his 14-month delay in addressing the mistake constituted “injudicious conduct” that undermined public confidence in the administration of justice.
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August 07, 2025
Ontario court awards $291K to estate in promissory notes case, rejects corporate veil claim
In a decision offering guidance on multiple legal issues, an Ontario Superior Court judge has awarded summary judgment of nearly $291,000 to the estate of a deceased lender in a case involving two unpaid promissory notes, while rejecting attempts to hold a corporate executive personally liable for the debts.