It is occasionally difficult to convince students of the wonder of research: you never know what you might find! At the same time, students who believe in that wonder sometimes believe that there can be no method at all, as magical research results must only lie at the end of long and tortuous journeys which can never be repeated or described. I believe that there are methods and patterns to research, but I also know that even while following simple principles the path of research often feels twisty. The One Good Case method is one of the simple principles that . . . [more]

At the beginning of 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. La version française suit.

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

1. Rahmal-Shah v. Jones et al., 2023 ONSC 820 (CanLII)

The Supreme Court of Canada has heard several family law cases involving intimate partner violence (“IPV”) in which they erased the abuse. Pettkus v Becker, [1980] 2 SCR 834 is perhaps the most well-known family law example of the tragic consequences of ignoring a survivor’s experience.[1] Less well-known, are the cases developing the law governing domestic contracts. Beyond the obvious trauma inflicted on survivors whose cases are heard but whose experiences are ignored, is the question of what the implications are for the soundness of the law generated by ignoring IPV. One of the issues discussed in these domestic . . . [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) : La culpabilité d’un ancien haut dirigeant au sein du groupe SNC-Lavalin inc., déclaré coupable de fraude d’une valeur de plus de 5 000 $, de corruption d’un agent public étranger, de recyclage des produits de la criminalité et de recel d’argent et de biens, est confirmée; la . . . [more]

Many of us work in support of Access to Justice. A2J is an important response to injustice. But why do we do it? What compels us to strive to work in this field? What sustains us in this work?

For most of us it is certainly not financial reward (although there is undoubtedly money to be made by inventing and selling new tools and processes). It may be a need to “give back” out of gratitude for our experience as professionals in the justice system. It may feel like a moral or ethical calling. Perhaps it is all of the . . . [more]

Written by Lewis Waring, Paralegal, Editor, First Reference Inc.

In a recent judicial review of the Social Security Tribunal’s decision to deny an employee Employment Insurance following dismissal for cause, it was found that the employee’s knowing violation of the employer’s COVID-19 policy resulted in a finding of misconduct that disqualified him from collecting Employment Insurance benefits. . . . [more]

As someone intent on reforming copyright law, so that it can begin to serve open access to research as well as it currently serves exclusive subscription access to research, one obvious challenge is research’s international basis at every level. How can one expect copyright changes, which necessarily take place at a national level, to facilitate research’s global circulation?

Before responding to this vital question, allow me to briefly address why change is needed and that change I am recommending. The value of open access to humankind has been forcefully stated by Alondra Nelson, head of the White House Office of . . . [more]

While British legislation is now cited in the format Northern Ireland Act 1998 (UK), s 5, pre-1963 legislation (which is more likely to be referred to in Canadian courts than the newer legislation) is slightly more complicated. ¹

Older British legislation is cited using a regnal year, e.g. Statute of Frauds, 1677, 29 Car II, c 3. The regnal year consists of the shortened version of the monarch’s name (in this case Car II for Charles II where “Car” is the shortened version of Carolus, the Latin for Charles) preceded by a number or numbers indicating the . . . [more]

You can’t swing a dead cat around practice management and legal tech circles without hitting somebody talking about ChatGPT. And I know a lot of lawyers have developed a bone-deep fatigue of hearing about all things AI over the past few weeks.

I’ll admit, I am really interested in (and a bit worried about) what feels like the beginning of a sharp upward trajectory of AI’s presence in the professional lives of lawyers. Growing up watching sci fi movies in the 80s left me with a healthy concern of what will happen eventually with AI, but I also don’t think . . . [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.

FAILLITE ET INSOLVABILITÉ : Le retour aux études d’un débiteur libéré d’une faillite dans le cadre de laquelle une dette étudiante constituait une réclamation prouvable ne fait pas renaître cette dette.

Intitulé : Bataille c. Procureur général du Québec, 2023 QCCA 169
Juridiction : Cour d’appel (C.A.), Montréal
Décision de . . . [more]