August 13, 2026
I’ve made the case regularly in these columns that imprisonment, even for a short time, has long-term negative effects on people and makes it harder for people to live positive, pro-social lives. Yet most people who get imprisoned in Canada do not return to prison; high recidivism rates are mainly a result of a relatively small number of people who are imprisoned over and over again.
August 12, 2026
Quebec Court of Appeal Justice Geneviève Cotnam, who once recalled “my career as a lawyer didn’t always provide a smooth sailing to the bench,” is Quebec's new top judge, succeeding Quebec Court of Appeal Chief Justice Manon Savard who became a part-time (supernumerary) judge on Aug. 10.
August 12, 2026
According to an announcement from the office of Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada Sean Fraser, Linda A. Maj, K.C., general counsel at the Department of Justice Canada in Edmonton, has been named a justice of the Court of King’s Bench of Alberta.
August 12, 2026
Kaley Pulfer has joined Lawson Lundell as a new partner in its Kelowna office.
August 12, 2026
Julia Vilorio Peguero, Imtiaz Hosein, and Adam Kuciej have become partners at personal injury specialists Campisi Law. All three have been with the firm for several years.
August 12, 2026
As time went by and I got used to the realities of the parole board job, decisions came easier. But whenever we were seeing someone who had committed very violent offences, I could not help but be aware of the impact on others that a positive decision would have. My colleagues may have had different backgrounds but were equally concerned about possible ramifications from their decisions.
August 12, 2026
Estate trustees and beneficiaries can often be faced with estate disputes that include complex commercial issues. A litigation lawyer may be needed to assist clients through these thorny and complex issues. For example, what happens when a prudent estate freeze triggers an intense family fallout, resulting in oppression remedies, wrongful dismissal claims, or derivative actions? How should an executor manage the multifaceted responsibilities of serving as an officer or director of the deceased’s business, especially when facing allegations of mismanagement or delaying a sale, while also drawing compensation?
August 12, 2026
Parole. Not a weightless word, is it?
August 11, 2026
The current debate over Israel and Palestine provides a particularly difficult test of whether we can maintain those distinctions when political passions run high.
August 11, 2026
The Aboriginal Lawyers Forum (ALF), a section of the Canadian Bar Association’s B.C. Branch (CBABC), is set to become an independent association, according to an Aug. 11 news release.