Several Canadian governments have been using politicized rhetoric against “self-interested” lawyers and biased courts to garner popular support for increased control of the legal system. This column examines threats to the independence of the legal profession in Canada and explores how the Council of Europe Convention on the Protection of the Profession of Lawyer (Luxembourg Convention) could fortify the rule of law.

The Luxembourg Convention: “Survival mechanism for the Rule of Law”

Threats to lawyers and judges in the United States (US) have triggered worldwide alarm. In 2025, research by Canadian law societies . . . [more]

Several times each month, we are pleased to republish a recent book review from the Canadian Law Library Review (CLLR). CLLR is the official journal of the Canadian Association of Law Libraries (CALL/ACBD), and its reviews cover both practice-oriented and academic publications related to the law.

Unravelling MAiD in Canada: Euthanasia and Assisted Suicide as Medical Care. Edited by Ramona Coelho, K. Sonu Gaind & Trudo Lemmens. Montreal: McGill-Queen’s University Press, 2025. 552 p. Includes bibliographic references and index. ISBN 9780228023692 (softcover) $39.95; ISBN 9780228024538 (ePUB); ISBN 9780228024521 (PDF).

Reviewed by Sasha Dhesi
Library Technician
Cassels . . . [more]

In previous articles, I introduced the RECLAIM model as a cultural operating system for law firms and explored the first three elements: Respect, Equity, and Clarity. This month, I turn to L: Learning.

In February 2014, Satya Nadella stepped into the role of CEO at Microsoft. The company he inherited was dominant but adrift, slowed by internal competition and a sense that it had been left behind by the cloud and mobile shifts. Nadella opened with a bold move.

Microsoft, he said, would go from being a know‑it‑all culture to a learn‑it‑all culture.

That single reframe became the . . . [more]

In recent years we have made significant strides in recognizing the prevalence of mental health issues amongst lawyers and attempting to defeat the stigma that discourages lawyers from disclosing their challenges and seeking support.

It is now well-known and accepted that “legal professionals are almost twice as likely to experience mental health issues like anxiety, stress, depression and addiction as the general population”.[1]

Leaders in our profession are speaking up. In 2022, former Chief Justice of Ontario George R. Strathy published a thoughtful paper acknowledging this reality and calling for top-down change in our approach to mental health as . . . [more]

I find it at the same time strange and reassuring that, looking primarily at law publishing within the jurisdictions which make up the British Isles, I seem to note the extent to which law book and periodical publishing, linked to electronic delivery and integration with electronic tools, appears to be still thriving, or certainly surviving. It is understandable that the smaller law and related professional and academic publishers are primarily engaged in producing traditional publications, but the surprise is at the top end, notably from Thomson Reuters and Lexis Nexis, which are the main objects of . . . [more]

Each Monday we present brief excerpts of recent posts from five of Canada’s award­-winning legal blogs chosen at random* from more than 80 recent Clawbie winners. In this way we hope to promote their work, with their permission, to as wide an audience as possible.

This week the randomly selected blogs are 1. Canadian Appeals Monitor 2. Michael Geist 3. Labour Pains 4. Canadian Combat Sports Law Blog 5. Doorey’s Workplace Law Blog

Canadian Appeals Monitor
McCarthy Tétrault names Awanish Sinha as Regional Managing Partner, Ontario

We are pleased to announce the appointment of Awanish Sinha as Regional Managing Partner, . . . [more]

Every week we present the summary of a decision handed down by a Québec court provided to us by SOQUIJ and considered to be of interest to our readers throughout Canada. SOQUIJ is attached to the Québec Department of Justice and collects, analyzes, enriches, and disseminates legal information in Québec.

PÉNAL (DROIT) : Dans le contexte d’un procès devant une juge de la Cour du Québec exerçant la compétence prévue à l’article 552 C.Cr., sans enquête préliminaire, le plafond présumé applicable selon l’arrêt R. c. Jordan (C.S. Can., 2016-07-08), 2016 CSC 27, SOQUIJ AZ-51302609, 2016EXP-2173, J.E. 2016-1212, [2016] 1 R.C.S. . . . [more]

As a supplement to our Sunday Summary each month, Supreme Advocacy LLP in Ottawa presents Supreme One-Liners, a super-short descriptive guide to the most recent decisions at the Supreme Court of Canada. Supreme Advocacy LLP offers its more comprehensive weekly electronic newsletter, Supreme Advocacy Letter, summarizing all Appeals, Oral Judgments and Leaves to Appeal granted.

Appeal

Criminal Law: Hearsay
R. v. Saddleback, 2026 SCC 18(41567)

Impermissible hearsay; new trial.

Leaves to Appeal Granted

Criminal Law: State Agents
R. v. Pham, 2025 BCCA 324 (42101)

Courier depot employees as state agents.

Mining/Aboriginal Law: Duty to Consult
British Columbia (Chief Gold . . . [more]

Much of the work of the BC Family Justice Innovation Lab (FJIL) has focused on our Youth Voices initiative. Coming out of an intensive design process centering the lived experience of young people, the Youth Voices Initiative aims to improve the well-being of children and youth experiencing parental separation. An important lesson learned was that while the family justice system formally acknowledged the importance of the “best interests of the child”, and there were some programs that sought the view of kids about decisions which affected their lives, the kids’ experience was often that it was “too little, too late”. . . . [more]

I learned what a “third place” was long before I knew the term. At the time, it didn’t feel like a lesson. It felt like a demotion.

When I was practising law at the City of Toronto, space was at a premium. New hires were placed wherever a desk could be found

As a junior lawyer, it was only a matter of time until a more senior hire bumped me out of my office.

But I wasn’t expecting to be reassigned to a desk in the law department library.

To add literal injury to insult, this happened just after I’d . . . [more]

Each Monday we present brief excerpts of recent posts from five of Canada’s award­-winning legal blogs chosen at random* from more than 80 recent Clawbie winners. In this way we hope to promote their work, with their permission, to as wide an audience as possible.

This week the randomly selected blogs are 1. IFLS at Osgoode 2. Family LLB 3. Canadian Appeals Monitor 4. Double Aspect 5. Legal Feeds 

IFLS at Osgoode
Osgoode honours alumni making an impact across law and society

The 2026 Alumni Awards recognized graduates whose careers reflect leadership, service and a commitment to justice. Across . . . [more]

Every week we present the summary of a decision handed down by a Québec court provided to us by SOQUIJ and considered to be of interest to our readers throughout Canada. SOQUIJ is attached to the Québec Department of Justice and collects, analyzes, enriches, and disseminates legal information in Québec.

PÉNAL (DROIT) : Les peines minimales obligatoires de 1 an d’emprisonnement pour les infractions de production et de distribution de matériel de pornographie juvénile sont incompatibles avec l’article 12 de la Charte canadienne des droits et libertés et sont déclarées invalides en vertu de l’article 52 de la Loi constitutionnelle . . . [more]