The Complete Brief
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March 21, 2025
Saskatchewan investing in community safety via policing, staffing, border security
As part of its 2025-26 budget, Saskatchewan is investing more than $800 million in the areas of policing, prisons, public safety and border security. According to a March 19 news release, the investment will include $679.4 million for the Ministry of Corrections, Policing and Public Safety; $118.9 million for the Saskatchewan Public Safety Agency (SPSA); and $8.8 million for the Saskatchewan Firearms Office (SFO).
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March 21, 2025
Recipients announced for 2025 Law Society on Ontario Awards
Eleven members of Ontario’s legal profession will be recognized for their achievements and contributions at this year’s Law Society Awards ceremony, to be held on May 28, 2025. Additionally, two individuals will receive the Human Rights Award for their outstanding contributions to the advancement of human rights.
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March 21, 2025
Charter breach, conditional sentence order overturned by British Columbia Court of Appeal
The Court of Appeal for British Columbia has overturned a lower court decision mitigating the prison sentence of a man found guilty of two counts of possession of a loaded shotgun, and one count of possession in contravention of a firearm’s prohibition. The unanimous decision, in R. v. Jaramillo, 2025 BCCA 77, announced March 12, found the trial judge erred in law and principle in applying s. 7 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, and also incorrectly applied the law in imposing a conditional sentence order (CSO).
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March 21, 2025
The Vento decision and the future of bias standards in international arbitration
On Jan. 30, 2025 in Law360 Canada, I wrote regarding the Ontario Court of Appeal’s decision in Aroma Franchise Co. v. Aroma Espresso Bar Canada Inc., 2024 ONCA 839 (Aroma):
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March 21, 2025
Can a dog cause a Charter breach?
The use of a police service dog during an arrest became a key concern in a recent British Columbia appeal. Preston Hale Jaramillo pleaded guilty to two counts of possessing a loaded handgun in contravention of a firearms prohibition.
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March 20, 2025
Digital democratic commons: Evolution of public discourse in networked age | Murray Simser
The conceptual underpinnings of democratic governance have long incorporated the metaphor of the “commons” as essential civic space. From the Athenian agora to colonial town squares, democracies have required physical spaces where citizens gather, deliberate and exercise collective agency. As society transitions deeper into digital interaction, we face a profound question: how can we translate these democratic functions into virtual domains without surrendering them to extractive commercial interests?
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March 21, 2025
SENTENCING - Criminal harassment - Abduction of person under 16 - Theft and offences resembling theft
Sentencing of Balasooriyan for possession of stolen property exceeding $5000, attempted abduction of a minor below 14 years, mischief and criminal harassment and breach of release order.
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March 20, 2025
Quebec roadworks company to pay $150k for illegal paving contract allocation scheme
A Quebec roadworks company, Pavex Ltd, has agreed to pay $150,000 for entering into illegal agreements with competitors through a former employee to allocate territories for paving contracts awarded by the ministère des Transports du Québec.
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March 20, 2025
B.C. Court of Appeal affirms B.C. jurisdiction over Quebec companies in opioid class action
The B.C. Court of Appeal has affirmed British Columbia’s jurisdiction over Quebec-based opioid suppliers in the province’s class action to recover healthcare costs linked to the opioid crisis.
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March 20, 2025
Federal plan aims to end over-criminalization of Indigenous people & support Indigenous legal orders
The minority Liberal government has rolled out its “Indigenous Justice Strategy”— the first federal roadmap toward revitalizing Indigenous laws and legal orders and ending the over-criminalization of Indigenous people in Canada, Ottawa says. The single-spaced 46-page document was developed by the federal government over more than four years, taking into account extensive consultations with Indigenous community members, representative organizations and governments, as well as with provincial and territorial governments.