With Small Claims Court in Ontario now able to deal with claims of up to $25,000, the actions aren’t so “small” anymore. And the increase in the number of people affected by the generous cut-off has spawned a variety of self-help websites and businesses.

For an example of a pro bono self-help site, check out the series of seven videos on the Small Claims Court by lawyer James Morton, part of an initiative by the Advancement of Legal Education and Research Trust (ALERT), the charitable arm of the Ontario Bar Association (OBA).

My Legal Briefcase is a brand new . . . [more]

Ever feel like you were falling behind in all the important areas of your life? As the pace of work shifts into high gear in September it is all too easy to get trapped in survival mode – just working to make it through each day and pushing aside your own personal priorities and objectives. 

I have had many lawyers tell me they feel they are failing at both their jobs in life – as parents and as lawyers. These professionals are men and women from different firms and different parts of Canada. One thing I know for sure is . . . [more]

The Ontario Bar Association (OBA) is creating an online video library to help educate the public about the justice system in the province. The videos cover the basics of the civil litigation process.

The library is created by the charitable arm of the OBA, The Advancement of Legal Education and Research Trust (ALERT). The civil litigation videos feature James Morton, a Toronto lawyer with Steinberg Hope Morton & Israel LLP and adjunct faculty at Osgoode, who blogs at Mortons Musings.

The press release from the OBA can be seen here. The entire libary can be viewed on . . . [more]

Sujit Choudhry of the University of Toronto was recently awarded the Trudeau Foundation Fellowship. Fellows are selected based on their research achievements, creativity and social commitment.

Choudhry is a constitutional law professor who has had increased profile in Canada in recent years working as intervenor in a number of cases and commenting in the media on public affairs issues. In the UofT press release Choudhry indicates he will use the $225,000 provided by the award to develop post-conflict constitution-making.

An interview with The Globe can be seen here. . . . [more]

A legal advisor to the European Court of Justice has advised that it is illegal to charge different premiums to women and men for life insurance and car insurance, merely because women live longer and have fewer accidents.

The differences are not inherent in women and men, and therefore are discriminatory.

This advice is not binding on anyone, but the ECJ usually goes along with its advisors.

Does this make sense to you? or is it just too politically correct for words? . . . [more]

Further kudos to Melissa Kluger and her staff at Precedent: The New Rules of Law and Style. I remain impressed with the ongoing quality and content of her magazine (note of disclosure: I know Melissa from when she was a law-school student and I believe my firm also advertises in the magazine).

It seems they have also now launched The Precedent A-List, a site for lawyer announcements and career postings.

As stated in their news release:

The site will be devoted to career announcements — such as who has made a move, made partner or gone in-house —

. . . [more]

Esquimalt may join New Westminster in adopting a living wage policy for all employees. That would make it only the second municipality in the country to take the step.

The Tyee story linked above, outlines how it was not an easy sell in New West., but in the end has been a popular choice. Councellor Jaime McEvoy says municipalities pay their executives well, and always look carefully at the salaries for councilors and mayors, but

It’s only for the group of people at the bottom that we don’t worry about what they’re making or how they’re doing.

The living wage . . . [more]

The following is a guest post from Eva Warden, Citations Editor at the McGill Law Journal:

“Please note that adoption of the McGill Guide to Uniform Legal Citation by Saskatchewan’s Court of Appeal and Court of Queen’s Bench is not specific to the 7th edition. Only new additions to the list of institutions that have officially adopted the Guide were consulted prior to the publication of the 7th edition, and although the SKQB and SKCA have adopted previous editions, their adoption of the 7th edition is still pending until the courts review and approve all changes. Until they do so, . . . [more]

Should companies have to tell people what the companies can be sued for?

You’ve seen him: he’s the soft-voiced Englishman who pushes a vacuum cleaner around on TV. He’s also a very wealthy man, thanks to that vacuum cleaner and his other inventions (you may have used his Air Blade, a truly tornadic hand dryer). He’s James Dyson, of course. And his foundation offers an annual £10,000 prize to the student or group of students who invent the best “something that solves a problem.”

In four days time, the foundation will pick the 2010 winner from the 15 semi-finalists. Have a look and place your bets.

It’s hard to choose. There’s the . . . [more]

It is well known in this industry that clients want more out of the firms they work with than ever before. In years past you could take a client out to dinner a couple of times per year and that would be enough to hold onto that healthy retainer. Today, however, it is all about extras – the “value-adds”.

One of the most effective value-adds is a knowledge transfer event. This type of event provides an opportunity to meet face to face with several clients and prospects at the same time, while providing lawyers an opportunity to showcase their knowledge . . . [more]

The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) based in Strasbourg has published a series of Factsheets that deal with various themes such as the situation of the Roma, the rights of homosexuals, prison conditions and environmental rights. They include both decided cases and pending applications before the Court.

The full list of Factsheets:

• Case-law concerning the European Union
• Child protection
• Data protection (English version in progress)
• Detention and Mental Health
• Detention conditions and treatment of prisoners
• Dublin cases (which European state is responsible for asylum applications)
• The environment
• Expulsions and extraditions
• Forced labour and trafficking
• Homosexual rights
• Homosexuality: criminal aspects

. . . [more]