The Complete Brief

  • December 02, 2024

    Manitoba expands electronic monitoring program to smaller communities

    Manitoba is expanding its electronic monitoring program to rural areas — along with technology able to alert victims as to the “close proximity” of their alleged assailant.

  • December 02, 2024

    Procedural issues central to successful sex trafficking appeal

    Ontario Court Justice Christine Malott described Zuhair Gorges as “a violent man with a criminal record full of violent offences,” according to a report in the Windsor Star. Gorges was convicted of kidnapping, assault, assault with a weapon, uttering death threats and exercising control to facilitate exploitation — a human trafficking offence.

  • December 02, 2024

    Hot wheels, cold facts: BC Court rules against insured for misrepresenting material facts

    Media West Zny Inc. v. Insurance Corporation of British Columbia, 2024 BCSC 625, provides clarity on the law regarding material misrepresentations in insurance contracts. The decision emphasizes that while a plaintiff’s lack of credibility or reliability alone may not warrant dismissing their claim for coverage, the inability to provide evidence supporting the alleged misrepresentation as factually accurate can prove decisive against their case.

  • December 02, 2024

    2 judicial appointments announced in Newfoundland and Labrador

    Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada Arif Virani announced the appointment of Glen L.C. Noel as a judge of the Court of Appeal of Newfoundland and Labrador and of Dean A. Porter as a judge of the Supreme Court of Newfoundland and Labrador, a Nov. 29 news release announced.

  • December 02, 2024

    Judicial appointment announced in B.C.

    Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada Arif Virani announced the appointment of Lindsay R. LeBlanc as a judge of the Supreme Court of British Columbia in Victoria, a Nov. 29 news release announced.

  • December 02, 2024

    EVIDENCE - Witnesses - Credibility - Prior inconsistent statements - Examination

    Appeal by appellant against his conviction for sexual interference and sexual assault. The complainant testified that the appellant touched her and penetrated her vaginally without her consent. The appellant admitted to attempting to have intercourse with the complainant but claimed that he failed due to his inability to achieve an erection. He denied having any sexual contact with the complainant.

  • December 02, 2024

    Debating privileged wills: Should we still have them?

    Most courts in Canada now have the power to validate wills that do not comply with the requisite formalities of execution and submit them to probate, with the exception of Newfoundland and Labrador and the Northwest Territories. Ontario is the most recent province to introduce the will-validating power, having enacted s. 21.1 of the Succession Law Reform Act (the SLRA) on Jan. 1, 2022.

  • November 29, 2024

    SCC rules B.C. law allowing multi-Crown class action to recover opioid-related costs is valid

    In a groundbreaking judgment that confirms that multi-governmental class actions that reach across provincial and territorial boundaries are possible under Canada’s constitutional structure, the Supreme Court of Canada has ruled provinces have the constitutional competence to enact multi-Crown class action legislation.

  • November 29, 2024

    Canadian news publishers sue OpenAI over alleged copyright infringement

    A group of Canadian news publishers that includes Torstar, Postmedia, the Globe and Mail, The Canadian Press and CBC/Radio-Canada has filed a lawsuit against tech firm OpenAI, alleging that the company illegally used their news content to train its AI-based generative model, ChatGPT.

  • November 29, 2024

    The Friday Brief: Managing Editor’s must-read items from this week

    Here are my picks for the top stories we published this week.

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