The Complete Brief
-
April 09, 2025
LSO’s appeal allowed, Divisional Court order quashed in November 2021 licensing exams breach
The Ontario Court of Appeal has allowed an appeal by the Law Society of Ontario (LSO) and quashed orders of the Divisional Court in connection with an information breach that compromised the integrity of the November 2021 online barrister and solicitor licensing exams.
-
April 09, 2025
New $1 coin marks the creation of the Supreme Court of Canada 150 years ago
The Supreme Court of Canada marked a milestone birthday on April 8, 2025, 150 years after it came into existence on April 8, 1875, when the Supreme and Exchequer Courts Act received royal assent. The composition, powers and importance of the world’s only bilingual and bijural apex court have evolved considerably since the court first sat in 1876, after the original six-judge bench was appointed.
-
April 09, 2025
Suspicious circumstances need not be proven on balance of probabilities: Manitoba Appeal Court
The doctrine of suspicious circumstances is not a new concept. Dating back to the English ecclesiastical courts before English law was adopted in Canada, typically suspicious circumstances were used to challenge the validity of wills. In recent years, however, a growing body of case law in Canada explores how suspicious circumstances can be applied in other contexts, resulting in a series of new decisions from the Manitoba Court of Appeal addressing the doctrine’s application to capacity to appoint an attorney for property (see Drewniak v. Smith, 2024 MBCA 86 and Henderson Estate (Re), 2024 MBCA 95) and capacity to enter a contract (see McLeod Estate v. Cole, 2022 MBCA 73).
-
April 09, 2025
Alberta introduces bill to tweak municipal governance, elections legislation
Alberta has introduced a number of amendments to its municipal governance and elections legislation, saying they will help ensure local governments are “strong and collaborative.”
-
April 09, 2025
CIVIL PROCEDURE – Right of action - Extinction - Appeals - Quashing or dismissal of
Appeal by Saloojee from trial judge’s dismissal of his claim against Town of Gibsons (Gibsons). Saloojee was seriously injured by a falling tree in Gibsons' park while he and friends were engaging in prohibited activities off the maintained trails.
-
April 09, 2025
Indigenous rights in Canada: So, so many questions
Canada stands at a pivotal moment in its relationship with Indigenous Peoples. Landmark court rulings and policy shifts have signalled a move toward stronger legal recognition of Indigenous land claims and self-governance. Yet, many argue that progress remains slow, uneven and often hindered by government inertia and corporate interests. The stark reality leaves the lingering question: is Canada truly committed to reconciliation, or are these developments in Indigenous jurisprudence merely incremental steps in a system that continues to resist meaningful change?
-
April 09, 2025
Appeal dismissed: Lack of timely objections by defence counsel sways court
Judges can sometimes make mistakes. Challenging a judicial decision can result in a judge wrongly deciding legal issues, making factual errors or using improper procedures. However, the chances of success in overturning a conviction are remote when the errors result from the defence counsel’s action.
-
April 09, 2025
Pro Bonzo
A brave articling student once quipped about me that “if you say ‘pro bono’ near Murray, you’d better be talking about Sonny & Cher.” Now that was a tad unfair. It was not that I was against our firm doing pro bono work, but I did want us to be doing it for people who could not afford a lawyer, as opposed to people who were just cheap and did not value what we did.
-
April 09, 2025
Viability of private prosecutions in hate-motivated crimes
Section 504 of the Criminal Code permits anyone to initiate a criminal proceeding by laying an information in writing, under oath before a justice. In R. v. Mivasair, 2025 ONCA 179, the Ontario Court of Appeal reviews the law respecting private prosecutions including the role and duty of the Crown and the remedies available to an informant where the Crown has intervened and terminated a private prosecution.
-
April 08, 2025
Joint Forum of Financial Market Regulators discuss responsible use of AI
Canadian financial market regulators from across multiple sectors wrapped up their annual meeting April 8 in Calgary after examining the growing use of artificial intelligence (AI) systems by market participants, among other issues.