In a seminal article from 1994, Fitting the Forum to the Fuss: A user-Friendly Guide to Selecting an ADR Procedure, the authors, Frank Sandler and Stephen Goldberg, both leaders in the ADR movement in the U.S. used ‘Fit the Forum to the fuss” as a principle in dispute resolution design meaning you should choose the right process (the “forum”) for the specific conflict (the “fuss”), tailoring it to the parties (people), the problem’s nature, and the process goals.

For more than four years, lawyers and mediators have lived with a quiet but persistent question, or minor irritant left by . . . [more]

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

For this past month, the three most-consulted English-language decisions were:

1. Sullivan v. Culic et al, 2026 ONSC 23

AI came up with this blog title – pretty great, right? It’s descriptive with just a hint of my cheeky writing-style. I tweaked it so it sounded more like my ‘voice’, but I like the blog title. I used a SMART prompt to come up with it – while it is highly probable that my AI prompt took longer to draft than simply coming up with my own title, we’ll just ignore that possibility for now. I use AI in my practice, and it is likely that most of you do as well.

I use AI to assist with social . . . [more]

Imagine that you are a provincial Attorney General. The Cabinet, for whatever reason, has lost confidence in the provincial law society. The Premier asks you for options to decrease its effective authority in the self-regulation of the legal profession. She dares you to think big but also challenges you find a subtle way to achieve this goal.

Your first – and admittedly unimaginative – instinct is to change the composition of the governing board of the law society. You consider abolishing the law society entirely and replacing it with a new body in which elected lawyers will not form the . . . [more]

Given the high value placed on research excellence by legal professionals and consultants, I am surprised that stories continue to be reported about the lack of rigour exercised in the creation of work product by these professional groups. In addition to the ongoing stories of professional sanctions placed on lawyers for including incorrect citations and other issues associated with the use of generative AI, there have been regular stories about the high values for government report contracts and the use of AI to create them. Here are some articles on a report prepared by Deloitte for the Province of Newfoundland . . . [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 une affaire de traite de personnes, l’accusé, qui a exercé des pressions sur sa partenaire afin de l’inciter à se prostituer et qui a ainsi pu bénéficier d’importants bénéfices, est condamné à 5 ans de détention; une ordonnance de dédommagement est rendue et une amende compensatoire . . . [more]

Firms that have multiple lawyers in the same practice who can land marquee clients are in an enviable position. However, if not managed correctly this advantage can quickly turn into a nightmare for the firm.

The McLaren Formula 1 team has this problem. They have two incredible drivers who could each be world champion but only one can stand on the top step. To maximize the team’s success without hindering either of their drivers, they have developed the “Papaya Rules.” The rules are basically race hard but clean, with a team‑first mentality and no contact between teammates.

With a few . . . [more]

On January 23, 2026, a disturbing incident unfolded in the Oshawa courthouse that forced the Canadian legal profession to confront a truth many Black lawyers have long known but too often endured in silence. Sudine Riley, a Black woman and criminal defence lawyer, had just completed a trial and was working in a private interview room when uniformed Durham Regional Police officers challenged her presence in the courthouse. What followed, according to her lawyer, was a violent assault: her head was slammed onto a desk, knees pressed into her back and neck, her headscarf ripped off, and she was handcuffed, . . . [more]

In Ontario, under section 3(1) of the Arthur Wishart Act, every franchise agreement imposes on each party a duty of fair dealing in the performance and enforcement of the agreement. The duty of fair dealing includes a duty to act in good faith and in accordance with reasonable commercial standards. Under section 3(2) of the Arthur Wishart Act, a party to a franchise agreement has a right of action for damages against another party if they breach the duty of fair dealing.

In First of Five Inc. v. Recipe Unlimited Corp et al, 2025 ONSC 93, at . . . [more]

When the distinguished Canadian jurist, Kimberly Prost, began her term as a judge of the International Criminal Court (ICC) in 2017, she could not have imagined what happened on 20 August 2025. That day, the United States imposed sanctions on her, putting her on a list alongside those implicated in terrorism and organized crime.

Judge Prost is one of eight ICC judges sanctioned by the US during 2025, along with the ICC prosecutor and two deputy prosecutors. They are all being penalised – without any due process – for performing their professional duties as mandated by the Rome . . . [more]

A new year brings fresh perspective, and Canada’s legal marketing network is full of brilliant professionals who see past current obstacles and consistently move their firms forward. What we’ve always known is that the potential is enormous – law firms could accelerate their strategic evolution by embracing the perspective their marketing and business development teams have already developed.

What follows are insights from six of Canada’s sharpest legal marketing minds, covering strategic evolution, smart budget allocation, digital relationship building, IP-specific challenges, client intelligence, and the trust imperative in an AI-driven world.

I’m in my 20th year in this business, building . . . [more]