Access to Justice
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January 17, 2025
Proposed class action launched against Indigo Park for alleged false or misleading prices
Burnaby, B.C.-based Evolink Law has launched a proposed class action lawsuit against Indigo Park Canada Inc. alleging that the Montreal-based parking giant is unlawfully charging customers obligatory “junk fees” that make the represented price unattainable.
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January 17, 2025
Yukon community groups get funding for crime victims
Numerous “community-led” projects aimed at helping crime victims in Yukon are benefiting from a dedicated trust fund.
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January 17, 2025
Federal Court of Appeal discourages Tax Court from sending out draft judgments to parties
Draft decisions are best kept behind closed court doors, the Federal Court of Appeal has indicated in a decision admonishing the Tax Court of Canada for sending out a draft copy of a decision for review by the parties involved. “We wish to comment on the practice the Tax Court followed here,” Justice David Stratas wrote for the three-judge panel in a recent decision in Doostyar v. Canada 2025 FCA 6.
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January 17, 2025
Sentencing appeal unveils harm-filled trail of fraudulence
In the movie Catch Me if You Can, Leonardo DiCaprio portrays the notorious con artist Frank Abagale Jr., who poses as a doctor, lawyer and airline pilot before being apprehended by the FBI. The movie makes for good entertainment, but we seldom appreciate the harm that fraudsters can do to their unsuspecting victims.
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January 16, 2025
Murder appeal raises question: Can judges overstep authority?
It is trite to say that the judge is the trier of law, and the jury is the trier of fact. Can judges in criminal jury cases overstep their authority by refusing to allow a jury to consider a lesser and included offence as part of the jury’s deliberation? This was the first argument raised by Toronto criminal lawyers Nathan Gorham and Breana Vanderbeek in the appeal of James Scordino’s conviction for first-degree murder. The Ontario Court of Appeal issued its answer to the question on Jan. 13, 2025, in R. v. Scordino, 2025 ONCA 12.
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January 15, 2025
Class action brought against Walmart, Loblaw, Sobeys for allegedly overpriced meat products
A proposed class action has been launched against Walmart, Loblaw and Sobeys alleging that the weight of packaged raw and cooked meat sold by the grocery giants is often misrepresented, making the product overpriced.
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January 14, 2025
Settlement of $7.3 million reached in Windsor highrise fire class action
A settlement of $7.3 million has been reached in a class action relating to a fire in a downtown Windsor, Ont. highrise apartment building that displaced its tenants.
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January 14, 2025
Manitoba organizations can apply for accessibility funding
Organizations such as charities, non-profits and “on-reserve entities” in Manitoba can now apply for “accessibility project” funding from the province.
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January 14, 2025
Spontaneous exculpatory statement examined in drug smuggling appeal denial
Both the RCMP and the Canada Border Services Agency investigate and prosecute narcotic smuggling. These agencies charged Narado Richardo Henry with importing a controlled substance when he arrived at Toronto’s Pearson Airport carrying 1.9 kilograms of cocaine hidden in the lining of his suitcase.
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January 13, 2025
Police are wrong: Deep-fake porn of teenage girls is illegal | Naomi Sayers
In the summer of 2014, I received an email. I was selected to testify at Canada’s Parliamentary Justice and Human Rights Committee and I would be testifying against the proposed bill coming down the pipeline after a successful Charter challenge to then-prostitution law provisions in the Criminal Code.
Access to justice: The language of the litigant counts | Ruphine Djuissi
Access to justice in French is a critical issue for Francophones across Canada, particularly with respect to the availability of legal services in French, the quality of interpretation and translation, and equal language rights. It also includes access to French-speaking lawyers and court documents written in French. It is important to ensure that Francophones have access to legal services in their mother tongue or first official language.
Ontario committed to expanding Unified Family Courts but Toronto still lacking
Ontario’s government is vowing to continue working towards the expansion of Unified Family Courts across the province. But a local lawyer says that until a UFC is placed in the Toronto area, millions are being left to navigate a confusing, “two-tiered” family court system.