Consider this from the just released R v White  2011 SCC 13 at para. 133 per Binnie J, dissenting (McLachlin CJ and Fish J concurring)

• [133] Yet experience has shown that prosecutors will occasionally put forward as evidence of guilt, post-offence conduct that is essentially equivocal — such as the accused’s strange behaviour when first spoken to by the police or the fact he failed to render assistance to the victim. Even where considered of some slight probative value in relation to an issue in the case, its persuasive value in the hands of a skilled prosecutor may create unfair

. . . [more]

Happy Seventy Fifth Birthday to Justice Antonin Scalia, whose recent peevish dissents are discussed in a recent blog post from the NYT.

Had he been north of the border, he would have been packing his bags, just after blowing out the candles.

(2) A Judge of a Superior Court, whether appointed before or after the coming into force of this section, shall cease to hold office upon attaining the age of seventy-five years, or upon the coming into force of this section if at that time he has already attained that age.

. . . [more]

The fiasco of everything Charlie Sheen could only properly culminate in a lawsuit.

A breach of contract claim was filed today in Los Angeles by entertainment law firm Lavely & Singer for $100 million against Warner Bros. (WB Studio Enterprises, Inc.) and Hollywood executive producer Chuck Lorre.

A summary of the claim is available at The Globe. . . . [more]

The AODA customer service standard outlines what businesses and other organizations in Ontario must do to make their goods and services more accessible to people with disabilities. Every person or organization that provides goods and services to members of the public or other third parties, and has at least one employee in Ontario, must comply; this includes law firms.

In a decision just now handed down, the Alberta Court of Appeal has ruled against the federal government in Reference re Securities Act (Canada), 2011 ABCA 77. The main question put to the court by the government of Alberta was as follows:

1. Does the Parliament of Canada have the legislative authority under the Constitution Act, 1867:
(a) to pass sections 295, 296 and 297 of the Budget Implementation Act, 2009 S.C. 2009, c.2,
(b) to pass legislation that is co-extensive in substance with the Alberta Securities Act and similar to the draft Securities Act appended to the

. . . [more]

The Paris Court of Appeal decided in late January that Google was not liable to the holders of copyright in images found through the search engine, for publishing their images or for contributing to infringing uses of the images. A summary of the decision (in French) is here.

The court held that both Google Inc and its French subsidiary were subject to the jurisdiction of the court, and that the searches had occurred in France. However, the images located by Google were those on the publicly accessible sites of the content owners. Google could not be held responsible for . . . [more]

Thanks to a tweet by Colin Lachance, I found out about the U.S. site Supreme Court Haiku, where judgments of that court are rendered in seventeen syllables. Colin challenged Slaw to come up with mini-poems for our own high court opinions, and I’m picking up the glove here, with the hope that our readers will add to my effort.

Supreme Court Haiku follows the typical move of this Japanese form into English, as described in Wikipedia:

Haiku (俳句 haikai verse?) plural haiku, is a form of Japanese poetry, consisting of 17 moras (or on), in three phrases

. . . [more]

Since I’m in rural Spain, I’ve no facilities for lengthy posts, so three pointers to interesting items from elsewhere in the world.

Let’s start with the best legal research sites you’ve never heard of. In an interview with LegallyIndia today, the ILS Pune Mooting Team – on their way to DC for the Jessup moot – were asked what research databases they used. Here is the answer:

MPL: How many online databases did you use for mooting research? Which, according to you, is the best online legal database?

Madhupreetha: Westlaw, Lexisnexis, Maxplanck, Oxford reports and Oxford Scholarship online were some

. . . [more]

Lyonette Louis-Jacques recently mentioned the criminal libel charges brought in France against an American publication for a review of her American book. The French court has now ruled that the case was not properly brought in French courts, that the charge in any event had no merit, and that as a French-trained lawyer, the plaintiff ought to have known that and was therefore liable for abuse of process and ordered to pay the defendant 8000 euros.

Nice to see justice done so forthrightly. . . . [more]

How can individuals be treated equally and yet have their characteristics merged for the purpose of spreading rights to payment over a large group? This question comes up in designing pension plans and insurance premiums. Two recent decisions seem to point in opposite directions.

The Supreme Court of Canada today released its decision in a case about pension benefits and survivor rights. Withler & Fitzsimonds and Attorney General of Canada. The Court upheld the lower courts in finding that reducing a supplementary death benefit to a surviving spouse according to the age of the pension plan member at death . . . [more]

The issues of prayers and religious symbols in provincial legislatures and municipal councils; religious-based schools and practices; and Canada as a multicultural country have caused widespread debate in Quebec and across Canada of late. You can hardly open a newspaper or listen to a news report and not catch at least one instance of it. Furthermore, with the recent increase in immigration, many Quebecers—and Canadians—are trying to define their identify: what does it mean to be a citizen of Quebec and a citizen of Canada? It has become a national issue!

The Beef Cattle Marketing Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. B.5, s. 3, provides:

3(1) Except under the authority of a licence, no person shall sell cattle.

(2) Every person who sells cattle shall be deemed to be the holder of a licence.

This technique certainly cuts down on unnecessary paper work!

I did not find this; a colleague directed me to it. He described it as “the best tautological statutory provision” that he had seen. . . . [more]