Monday’s Mix

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. Provincial Court of BC 2. Employment & Human Rights Law in Canada 3. Welcome to the Food Court 4. The Authentic Lawyer 5. Appointed podcast

Provincial Court of BC
Working together with Indigenous communities

September 30, 2024 is the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, a day when we honour survivors of residential schools, the children who never returned home, and their families and communities. But reconciliation with Indigenous peoples is a year-round commitment for the Provincial Court. Working with First Nations to increase their access to justice is an important part of our reconciliation efforts. This year, the Court accepted the invitation of the Ahousaht and Tla-o-qui-aht First Nations to sit in their communities. …

Employment & Human Rights Law in Canada
Out of Office… Forever? How to Handle Job Abandonment

Job abandonment typically occurs when an employee is absent without communicating with their employer for an extended period, leading the employer to conclude that the employee has voluntarily resigned. However, circumstances like medical emergencies or family crises may justify the absence, so employers should avoid jumping to conclusions. Declaring an employee’s absence as job abandonment prematurely may expose the employer to legal risks, including claims of wrongful dismissal. Employers should consider all possible reasons for the absence before taking any action. …

Welcome to the Food Court
Food Recall: how missteps in the implementation of a recall procedure can lead to judicial action

Mistakes happen. With food manufacturing, mistakes can take the form of malfunctioning equipment or cross-contamination of ingredients. Sometimes a key, trusted player in the supply chain sources an ingredient from a new supplier to meet demand, and that new ingredient contains an undeclared allergen. Sometimes, despite rigorous testing and sampling procedures, salmonella finds its way onto the production line and contaminates a LOT. …

The Authentic Lawyer
What Law School was Missing: Practical Education

On my first day of law school, the Dean made it clear to us that they were not going to be teaching us how to be lawyers. Everyone had already been told that law school was indeed not very useful in practice, but we all assumed it was just a running joke. We were wrong. I got one of the highest averages in 1L, and I now see how true my Dean’s statement was. I had the highest grade in Criminal Law, but I couldn’t tell you the difference between a preliminary trial and a real trial. …

Appointed podcast
A conversation with the Honourable Harry Laforme about Bill C-40 and the need for an effective Miscarriage of Justice Commission

On this episode of Appointed, Kim speaks with the Honourable Harry Laforme about the importance of ensuring independence, authority and resources in order to ensure the new commission can effectively consider wrongful convictions. Informed by the report he and the Honourable Juanita Westmoreland-Traoré authored, as well as the one they inspired about 12 Indigenous women, they discuss the findings and significance of the government’s decision to exclude key recommendations in Bill C-40, the Miscarriage of Justice Review Commission Act (David and Joyce Milgaard’s Law). …

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*Randomness here is created by Random.org and its list randomizing function.