Family
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January 31, 2025
Access to just us? Delineating legal services and justice | Daniel J. Escott
In a survey of 115 Canadian judges conducted with the Canadian Institute for the Administration of Justice (CIAJ) and Athabasca University, 13 reported that they believed judges would be replaced by artificial intelligence (AI) within the next 30 years. An additional 31 judges reported that they believed judges might be replaced by AI in the same time, adding up to 44 judges out of 115 (approximately 38 per cent) believing that judges at least may be replaced by AI within 30 years.
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January 30, 2025
Four Family Court judges appointed in Ontario
This week Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada Arif Virani announced the appointment of four new judges to Family Court in Ontario.
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January 29, 2025
Dividing family property by sealed bids and butterfly transaction awaits another day
Chapman v. Chapman 2024 BCCA 372 is an example of a family case that considered complex corporate assets and the unique valuation and division of property by way of sealed bids and a “butterfly” transaction, otherwise known as a “corporate divorce,” to facilitate the division of corporate property and eliminate an immediate capital gains tax liability.
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January 29, 2025
The maximum contact principle in family law
Some lawyers argue (as did one on a recent motion I argued) that the maximum contact provisions of the Divorce Act are dead. Certainly, the phrase “maximum contact” has been removed but wasn’t it always subject to best interests?
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January 29, 2025
How social media changed the practice and perception of law | Hodine Williams
A sense of duty, morality and impartiality once made serving on a jury a sacred act. In this epoch, to have such ideals is naïve, as the jury box is simply a venue for personal bias.
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January 29, 2025
B.C. bar association action plan aimed at strengthening public trust, president says
The B.C. bar association has issued a call to action to the provincial government to tackle pressing challenges in the justice system, which it says will help improve the everyday lives of British Columbians.
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January 28, 2025
Inquiry calls for new prohibitions, penalties against foreign interference in Canada’s democracy
The federal Public Inquiry into Foreign Interference has recommended new prohibitions, fines and stiffer administrative monetary penalties (AMPs), as well as other legislative changes, to strengthen Canada’s defences against foreign interference in the country’s democratic processes.
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January 27, 2025
Outgoing official languages watchdog cheers court wins, urges vigilance to protect language rights
In his swansong before ending his seven-year term this week, federal Commissioner of Official Languages Raymond Théberge celebrated his office’s litigation victories in support of language rights, while cautioning Canadians against complacency.
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January 27, 2025
Canada sanctions Belarusian regime supporters for ‘gross and systematic human rights violations’
Ottawa has announced new sanctions — immigration bans, estate freezes and related penalties — on 10 people and 12 entities who support the ongoing violations of human rights in Belarus by the authoritarian regime of Belarusian president Alexander Lukashenko, a key ally of Russian president Vladimir Putin.
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January 24, 2025
N.L. to form committee to address gender-based violence
The government of Newfoundland and Labrador is forming a ministerial committee to engage with communities in tackling gender-based violence. According to a Jan. 23 news release, the committee will be made up of ministers from several provincial bodies, including Justice and Public Safety; the Office of Women and Gender Equality; Immigration, Population Growth and Skills; and the Office of Indigenous Affairs and Reconciliation.