Constitutional
-
June 20, 2023
Panel did not properly consider freedom of expression when recommending removal of JP: court
Ontario’s top court has overturned a ruling that removed a justice of the peace from office for an article she wrote that was critical of the operation of bail courts and some Crown prosecutors, saying the panel which recommended her removal did not properly consider her right to freedom of expression.
-
June 19, 2023
New JAG tasked by Ottawa with bringing ‘transformational change’ to military justice system
The Canadian Armed Forces’ acting Judge Advocate General (JAG) for almost two years, Col. Robin (Rob) Holman, will become the country’s 16th JAG June 28, the Department of National Defence (DND) announced.
-
June 16, 2023
SCC rules Safe 3rd Country Agreement with U.S. doesn’t infringe asylum seekers’ Charter s. 7 rights
The Supreme Court of Canada has ruled 8-0 that a regulatory provision designating the United States as a “safe third country” to which most asylum seekers arriving at the Canada-U.S. border can safely be returned to make their refugee claims is not ultra vires nor an infringement of their Charter s. 7 rights to liberty and security of the person.
-
June 14, 2023
Top judge says judicial council working on making ‘opaque’ judicial discipline ‘more transparent’
Amid public concern that the Canadian Judicial Council (CJC) is unduly secretive about the handling and outcome of its investigation of a misconduct complaint against recently resigned Supreme Court of Canada Justice Russell Brown, Chief Justice of Canada Richard Wagner says he has asked a CJC committee of chief justices to devise a new and less restrictive disclosure policy to guide the federal judicial disciplinary body on how and when it should inform the public about its judicial complaint investigations and outcomes.
-
June 13, 2023
Lawyers, judges urge Ottawa to refuse any Diab extradition
A legal scholar hopes mounting public pressure will convince Canada’s government to refuse yet another controversial request from France to extradite an Ottawa sociology professor convicted of being involved in the bombing of a Paris synagogue in 1980.
-
June 13, 2023
Access to justice in French making strides in Manitoba
When the Provincial Court of Manitoba Chief Judge Margaret Wiebe recently issued a notice requiring briefs filed by parties to a proceeding include both English and French versions cited from bilingually enacted legislation, it was the latest initiative to make access to justice in French more accessible in the province.
-
June 12, 2023
SCC’s Russell Brown quits amidst judicial council conduct investigation; opens up Western vacancy
Alberta’s Justice Russell Brown has quit the Supreme Court of Canada in the midst of a Canadian Judicial Council (CJC) investigation into a widely publicized misconduct allegation against him related to a late-night physical altercation involving an American complainant — opening up a Western vacancy on the nine-member top court, which has been shorthanded since last February.
-
June 09, 2023
SCC’s LeBel left his mark on diverse areas of law during three decades on bench
Among Canada’s most multi-talented and prolific jurists, Louis LeBel, who died on June 8 at age 83, leaves a rich bijural legacy of important Supreme Court of Canada judgments in the areas of criminal, administrative, labour, family, bankruptcy, tax and private international law.
-
June 09, 2023
Federal Court upholds drug, alcohol testing for ‘safety critical’ nuclear workers
The Federal Court has dismissed an application challenging the constitutionality of pre-placement and random alcohol and drug testing provisions applicable to certain workers in nuclear facilities under the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission’s (CNSC's) compliance framework.
-
June 09, 2023
Report calls for changes to Canada’s extradition process
As others have done, the House of Commons’ Standing Committee on Justice and Human Rights is calling for changes to Canada’s extradition process — including giving courts the power to bring it to a halt in cases of abuse of process by partner countries.