June 11, 2026
Appeal by Stark against his convictions for unlawful confinement and sexual assault. Stark confined the complainant in his residence and sexually assaulted her. She testified that he forced her to consume drugs, which rendered her unconscious. The complainant said she escaped from the suite Stark was renting because he left the door unlocked.
June 10, 2026
The Supreme Court’s controversial Jordan decision, which has sparked the dismissal of thousands of cases due to unconstitutional trial delay, is still good law, but stays of proceedings are not a cure for undue systemic trial delay, Canada’s top judge says. “One stay of proceedings is too many,” Supreme Court of Canada Chief Justice Richard Wagner stressed at his annual press conference in Ottawa June 9.
June 10, 2026
Ontario Attorney General Doug Downey has appointed Boris Bytensky, Carson MacDonald Coughlin and Vincent André François Paris as judges to the Ontario Court of Justice, effective June 18, 2026.
June 10, 2026
The federal government has announced that the Assault-Style Firearms Compensation Program has closed for businesses, while the amnesty period from criminal liability has been extended after the Supreme Court of Canada agreed to hear an appeal on the prohibition.
June 10, 2026
While in practice, a frequent question laypeople asked me was, “Do you support capital punishment?” My answer is that I am a staunch advocate of capital punishment — as long as nobody actually gets executed. In fact, I believe this is doable.
June 10, 2026
On April 27, 2026, the Government of Canada tabled legislation to enact a first ever federal law enforcement agency designed to investigate sophisticated financial crimes. Bill C-29, which proposes the establishment of a Canadian Financial Crimes Agency, represents an important step and an acknowledgment that Canada has long struggled with the investigation of complex financial crimes.
June 09, 2026
Ontario’s top court has ruled in favour of a provincial law aimed at trespassing on farms, saying it did not violate the Charter’s free expression protections.
June 09, 2026
The British Columbia Court of Appeal has dismissed an appeal and cross-appeal of a certified class action against video game company Electronic Arts Inc. (EA) relating to the sale of “loot boxes” bought by players in 77 games.
June 09, 2026
The adage that “the devil is in the details” may remind criminal defence counsel that a successful appeal may hinge on examining inferences rather than hard facts. A Saskatchewan man, Jeffrey Leonard Stark, was convicted by a jury of unlawfully confining and sexually assaulting a female complainant. He appealed his conviction. The appeal in R. v. Stark, 2026 SKCA 48 centred on the trial judge’s instructions to the jury rather than on denying the facts as alleged.
June 08, 2026
Prime Minister Mark Carney cited the extraordinary international and domestic legal experiences and deep constitutional expertise of Louise Arbour as a law professor, UN war crimes prosecutor and judge at all court levels as key attributes that led to her appointment as Canada’s 31st Governor General.