Insurance
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October 07, 2025
Small change, big impact: Ontario expands small claims jurisdiction to $50,000
As of Oct. 1, 2025, the monetary jurisdiction of Ontario’s small claims court has increased from $35,000 to $50,000 (exclusive of costs and interest). While it may appear a merely incremental change, the increase represents a significant procedural development in Ontario’s justice system, affecting not just new claims but potentially existing ones as well.
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October 07, 2025
Lawyer ordered to pay costs for non-disclosure of gen AI use and citing fake precedents in court
In a cautionary case for litigation lawyers who use generative artificial intelligence (AI) for court submissions, a Federal Court associate judge recently hit an immigration lawyer with personal costs for submitting two defective AI-generated precedents and for breaching the Federal Court’s requirement to disclose any generative AI use in court filings.
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October 06, 2025
Cox & Palmer expands Halifax team with 6 new associates
Cox & Palmer has welcomed six new associates to its Halifax office.
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October 06, 2025
Who is responsible when a dog bites? Part two
Everybody likes the dog until it bites.
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October 06, 2025
Saskatchewan to regulate non-lawyers in bid to increase access to justice
Saskatchewan has brought into force legislative changes that will allow “non-lawyer legal professionals” to deliver certain services to the public — something officials with the province’s law society say will enhance access to justice for “underserved” residents.
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October 02, 2025
Line crossed: IRCC’s proposed administrative monetary penalties should alarm all Canadian bars
The federal government is quietly implementing a regulatory framework that should alarm every lawyer in Canada, regardless of practice area. Under the guise of addressing immigration “ghost consultants,” Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has crafted administrative monetary penalties (AMPs) that grant it unprecedented authority to discipline lawyers — the same lawyers who routinely challenge that department’s decisions in court.
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September 26, 2025
Ontario opening of the courts ceremony highlights digitization, reform of Rules of Civil Procedure
On Sept. 25, judges, attorneys general, leaders of law associations and others met for Ontario’s opening of the courts ceremony, discussing various strategies that have been and will be undertaken to improve access to justice. This included digitization and reformation of the Rules of Civil Procedure.
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September 25, 2025
Joshua Koop joins McLennan Ross as Calgary litigator
McLennan Ross LLP has announced that Joshua Koop has joined the firm at its Calgary office.
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September 23, 2025
Getting to ‘yes’: Settlement approvals for persons under disability
No settlement involving a person under disability, which includes the elderly incapable of managing their property and personal care, is binding on that incapable person unless the court approves of the settlement. That is because, while settling disputes before a hearing is encouraged by our judicial system, the legislature also recognizes that the incapable person would not have been able to properly consent to the settlement, and the court ought to review settlement for appropriateness to safeguard the incapable person’s interests.
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September 19, 2025
SCC rules 5-4 in favour of Toronto homeowners’ adverse possession claim against municipal parkland
In a far-reaching adverse possession judgment that rejects a judge-made immunity for municipal parkland facing matured possessory claims in Ontario, the Supreme Court of Canada has ruled 5-4 that two Toronto homeowners own a piece of adjoining municipal parkland that was fenced into their backyard decades ago by the home’s previous owner.