Each Wednesday we tell you which three English-language cases and which French-language case have been the most viewed* on CanLII and we give you a small sense of what the cases are about.

For this last week:

1. Law Society of Ontario v. Diamond, 2022 ONLSTH 28

[37] From the consumer perspective, it is important that persons with legal issues be made aware of available legal services. Access to justice is advanced by allowing lawyers and paralegals to advertise their services. Advertising that conveys useful information can enhance consumer choice, awareness of legal entitlements and access to justice.

[38] . . . [more]

These days, I’m being asked to do a lot of presentations and training on law firm leadership. People with a marketing background tend to gravitate toward this area because so much of what we do focusses on helping to improve the leadership skills of the lawyers we work with – be if for practice groups, client teams, or simply to improve management of their own practice.

I’ve been focussed on this for years, but it’s taken a while for law firms to get here…to understand how critical strong leadership is. Back in my days in a national firm, I created . . . [more]

The recent findings of an international trial monitoring panel in the case of United States v. Donziger reveal the failure of a New York court to ensure a fair trial in accordance with international law and human rights standards. As the panel concluded in their extensive report, critical changes are needed in laws, rules, and courtroom procedures to ensure that the methods of US federal courts match their longstanding mission to uphold the rule of law.

* * *

In September 2020, an international group of legal academics and practitioners (which include the writers of this article) convened to examine . . . [more]

Here are excerpts from the most recent tips on SlawTips, the site that each week offers up useful advice, short and to the point, on practice, research, writing and technology.

Research & Writing

Read the Contract
Susannah Tredwell

As law librarians we should all know the value of reading a contract before we sign it. And yet… For librarians, some specific clauses in contracts to take note of are: Renewal of the contract – does the contract renew automatically? … . . . [more]

Due to social distancing measures during the pandemic, almost all documents during this time were signed digitally, as opposed to traditional (“wet signatures”) methods.

Well before the pandemic, electronic signatures have been considered legally valid. Ontario, Alberta and B.C. have had statutes in place for over two decades recognizing the validity of electronic signatures, based on the Uniform Electronic Commerce Act of Canada (“UECA”) model legislation.

However, there is still some variability between provincial legislation on how electronic signatures are used. Ontario‘s statute allows for these to satisfy any legal requirement, as long as it is reliable for . . . [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) : Le juge de première instance a commis une erreur en recevant en preuve la déclaration de l’appelant postérieure à l’infraction, laquelle possède les caractéristiques d’une preuve de propension généralement irrecevable; vu la mauvaise utilisation de cette preuve par le jury, la tenue d’un nouveau procès est ordonnée. . . . [more]

Each Friday, we share the latest job listings from Slaw Jobs, which features employment opportunities from across the country. Find out more about these positions by following the links below, or learn how you can use Slaw Jobs to gain valuable exposure for your job ads, while supporting the great Canadian legal commentary at Slaw.ca.

Current postings on Slaw Jobs:

• Lawyer (Full-time) | Etobicoke, ON
  (Kostyniuk & Greenside Lawyers)
• Tax Lawyer – Canadian Sales Tax (Full-time) | Vancouver, BC
  (Thorsteinssons LLP)
• Real Estate Legal Assistant (Full-time) | Abbotsford, BC
  (Waterstone Law Group LLP)
• Litigation Association (Full-time) | Vancouver, BC
  (Bernard

Written by Daniel Standing LL.B., Editor, published by First Reference

In 2019, the British Columbia Human Rights Tribunal found that Levan Francis was the victim of discrimination on the basis of his race and colour at the hands of his employer, the Ministry of Justice, North Fraser Pre-trial Centre. The damage was extensive: Francis suffered a serious mental illness that prevented him from working in any occupation. In a follow-up decision, the Tribunal determined what remedies were available to Francis. Since the governing principle on remedy is to put someone back in the original position, the fact that almost . . . [more]

Each Wednesday we tell you which three English-language cases and which French-language case have been the most viewed* on CanLII and we give you a small sense of what the cases are about.

For this last week:

1. Ahluwalia v. Ahluwalia, 2022 ONSC 1303

[52] To define the modes of liability underlying the new tort of family violence, the proper starting point is the definition of “family violence” found in s. 2 of the Divorce Act. Based on this statutory definition, to establish liability on a civil standard, the plaintiff must establish:

Conduct by a family member towards . . . [more]

In 2018, the Patent Act was amended to expand the scope of the “Prior Use” exception to patent infringement. This exception declares acts not to be an infringement of a patent if a person had done the same act prior to the claim date of a patent. Basically, if someone is doing something prior to the filing of a patent, they can continue to do what they were doing. In the recent Federal Court decision, Kobold Corporation v. NCS Multistage Inc., 2021 FC 1437, the Court had the first opportunity to consider the amended prior use exception.

Prior . . . [more]

On January 4, 2022, the Canada United States Mexico Agreement (CUSMA) Panel on Canada’s Dairy Tariff Rate Quotas (TRQs) released its ruling.[1]

The Panel Decides—Both Sides Claim Victory

The Panel ruled that Canada’s practice of reserving 85-100% of dairy TRQs for processors violated Article 3.A.2.11(b) of CUSMA. The United States claimed victory, correctly pointing out that the Panel had accepted the U.S. argument on the central issue. As per USTR Katherine Tai:

This historic win will help eliminate unjustified trade restrictions on American dairy products and will ensure that the U.S. dairy industry and its workers get the full . . . [more]