Pulse
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June 16, 2025
Openness, transparency focus of LSO treasurer candidates
The choice will be between continuity or change as benchers with the Law Society of Ontario (LSO) decide this week who will lead them over the next year.
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June 16, 2025
Horror of provincial jails in Canada
Much to my surprise, on my first day in a provincial jail after my arrest, the two prisoners with whom I shared a cell (I slept on the floor with my head by the toilet) both told me that the conditions in this jail were much worse than in the federal prisons where they had served time.
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June 16, 2025
Ontario Court of Justice appoints 10 new judges
The Ontario government has announced the appointment of 10 new judges to the Ontario Court of Justice, effective June 16, 2025.
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June 16, 2025
The Friendly Bar series, No. 1: Do not define a lawyer by one case
In the legal profession, it is all too common for lasting impressions of a colleague to be formed based on a single file or interaction. Whether it is a difficult case, a tense negotiation or an adversarial court conference, that one experience often comes to define a lawyer’s entire professional identity. Informal whispers such as “They are unreasonable” or “They are unprofessional — avoid them” circulate rapidly, ultimately hardening into a reputation that may be undeserved and unrepresentative.
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June 16, 2025
I care very little about what you think of me
Don’t be distracted by criticism. Remember: the only taste of success some people have is when they take a bite out of you. — Zig Ziglar, American author and motivational speaker
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June 16, 2025
Bill C-5: A legal feeding frenzy at the expense of Indigenous jurisdiction
The federal government’s proposed Bill C-5 — which includes the Building Canada Act — sets a two-year timeline for major project approvals. On the surface, it promises efficiency and economic momentum. But from the perspective of many Indigenous leaders and legal professionals, this legislation signals a looming crisis: the sidelining of Indigenous law, the erosion of meaningful consultation, and a surge of culturally incompetent legal advocacy that risks deepening colonial harm.
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June 13, 2025
Supreme Court Kinamore ruling clarifies rules on sexual history in trials
A fair match in sports requires teams to confront each other on a level playing field. The analogy holds for the courtroom as well. Sexual offence trials in Canada have become increasingly complex, partly due to confusion surrounding the rules governing evidence of a complainant’s sexual history. These rules, designed to prevent reliance on discriminatory myths and protect complainants’ rights, have resulted in uncertainty and disruption during trials. In the recent case of R. v. Kinamore, 2025 SCC 19, Canada’s highest court sought to level the playing field.
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June 13, 2025
Former Supreme Court Justice La Forest dies
Former Supreme Court Justice Gérard Vincent La Forest has died. Justice La Forest, whose long legal career also encompassed government work, private sector lawyering, teaching and sitting on an East Coast appeal court, died June 12, according to a news release. He was 99.
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June 13, 2025
Christopher Johnson receives CBABC award for contributions to legal aid
The Canadian Bar Association, B.C. Branch (CBABC) has recognized criminal justice lawyer Christopher Johnson with the Georges A. Goyer, QC Memorial Award for Distinguished Service.
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June 13, 2025
Kramer v. Kramer?
We are all familiar for example with the iconic 1932 House of Lords case of Donoghue v. Stevenson, where the court broke the ice on the law of negligence enabling the customer to successfully sue the manufacturer of a bottle of ginger beer that contained a non-invited snail. AI will generally give you a decent summary of the case. But what might happen if in our search we throw in some random word, like say “Seinfeld”?