Don’t turn back, but don’t stand still. Work with justice system partners to share best practices, figure out how to make the system work better for the people who need it to work for them, and how to mitigate the unintended side-effects of change.

That sums up – very briefly – the recommendations in the final report from the Canadian Bar Association’s Task Force on Justice Issues Arising from COVID-19, presented to the Association’s annual general meeting on Feb. 17

The task force, established in April 2020, drew together representatives from CBA Sections and committees, its partners in the justice . . . [more]

The Victoria Law Reform Commission is conducting a public consultation on more inclusive juries.

The state of Victoria is in south-eastern Australia and its capital is Melbourne.

The Commission wants to find out what reforms are needed to improve access for people who are deaf, hard of hearing, blind or have low vision who wish to serve as jurors in the state of Victoria.

It issued a consultation paper in December 2020 and will be gathering input until the end of February.

From the terms of reference:

“The Juries Act 2000 (Vic) provides a list of people who are

When discussing the modernization of the justice system the conversation can often be about how we adapt the technology to replicate the bricks-and-mortar experience.

But how might the institutions and decision-makers themselves adapt to work with the emerging technology?

Legal scholar Tania Sourdin talks about three primary kinds of technology in the context of the justice system:

• Supportive – things like online legal applications that support and advise people using the justice system
• Replacement – things that replace the role of people, such as e-filing technologies and online dispute resolution
• Disruptive – things that fundamentally alter the way legal professionals

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.

Researching Legislative Intent: A Practical Guide. By Susan Barker & Erica Anderson. Toronto: Irwin Law, 2019. xxi, 284p. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978-1-55221-513-5 (softcover) $60.00; ISBN 978-1-55221-514-2 (PDF) $60.00.

Reviewed by Ann Marie Melvie
Law Librarian
Court of Appeal for Saskatchewan
In CLLR 45:4

As a Canadian legal . . . [more]

Observers of the justice system and the legal profession, as well as writers of myriad reports by the Canadian Bar Association and others seeking to improve access to justice, all come to the same conclusion: to be successful, the system must be human-centred – arranged around and for the people it serves.

This should be a given – to be successful any enterprise has to think about what the people using its services need. Successful enterprises remove as many obstacles for users as possible, in order to provide a friction-free experience.

One of the frequent complaints from those who need . . . [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.

Intimate Lies and the Law. By Jill Elaine Hasday. New York, NY: Oxford University Press, 2019. 294 p. Includes endnotes and index. ISBN 978-0-19-090594-1 (hardcover) $34.95.

Reviewed by Lori O’Connor, LLB, MLIS
Public Prosecutions
Melfort, Saskatchewan
In CLLR 45:4

Intimate Lies and the Law is an in-depth review of deceptions . . . [more]

How does one describe the legal dimensions of what happened last week as a violent rightwing mob incited by the American President assaulted the US Capitol in Washington, D.C.?

What words or phrases can one even begin to apply to such a wide range of criminal acts committed that day? An acquaintance of mine quipped last week: “What can the rioters be charged with? Do you have a copy of the US Code?”

There are many resources from American scholars, legal analysts and independent sources such as the Congressional Research Service to help readers start to unpack the many concepts . . . [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.

Indigenous Water Rights in Law and Regulation: Lessons from Comparative Experience. By Elizabeth Jane Macpherson. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2019. xi, 291 p. Includes bibliographic references, index, and glossary. ISBN 978-1-108-47306-4 (hardcover) $126.95; ISBN 978-1-108-61109-1 (eBook via Cambridge Core) US$140.00.

Reviewed by Nadine Hoffman
Natural Resources, Energy & Environmental Librarian . . . [more]

Tom Standage, editor of “The World in 2021“, a feature of The Economist published on November 16, 2020 asked:

Do you feel lucky? The number 21 is connected with luck, risk, taking chances and rolling the dice. It’s the number of spots on a standard die, and the number of shillings in a guinea, the currency of wagers and horse-racing. It’s the minimum age at which you can enter a casino in America, and the name of a family of card games, including blackjack, that are popular with gamblers.

All of which seems strangely appropriate for a year

About a million years ago…wait, that was just 2020.

Back in 2011-2012 I was invited to collaborate with colleagues on Legal Information Specialists: A Guide to Launching and Building Your Career with colleagues from the Canadian Association of Law Libraries. At the time, Annette Demers asked contributors to gather some quotes from our colleagues about the value they considered in having a Legal Information Specialist team member. As uncomfortable as it was, I asked colleagues to write something. My colleague James T. Casey, QC who was then Managing Partner of Field Law wrote this which appears on page . . . [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.

Feminist Judgments in International Law. Edited by Loveday Hodson & Troy Lavers. Oxford, UK: Hart Publishing, 2019. xix, 511 p. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978-1-50991-445-6 (hardcover) £90.00; ISBN 978-1-50991-443-2 (eBook) £64.80.

Reviewed by Dominique Garingan
Library Manager, Calgary
Parlee McLaws LLP
In CLLR 45:4

In Feminist Judgments in . . . [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.

Bankruptcy Law Picture Book: A Brief Intro to the Law of Bankruptcy, in Pictures. By Wela Quan. Toronto: Irwin Law, 2019. 178 p. Includes illustrations. ISBN 978-1-55221-519-7 (softcover) $30.00; ISBN 978-1-55221-520-3 (eBook) $30.00.

Reviewed by Krisandra Ivings
Reference Librarian
Supreme Court of Canada
In CLLR 45:4

Wela Quan’s Bankruptcy Law Picture . . . [more]