“Only by understanding the biases of the media through which we engage with the world can we differentiate between what we intend, and what the machines we’re using intend for us–whether they or their programmers even know it.”[1]

Slaw previously published an excellent post written by Amelia Landenberger, Legal Information Librarian at the Boston University Fineman and Pappas Law Libraries. It outlines a research activity where students are asked to find a pair of black dress shoes online. The exercise reveals the complexity behind a simple research question. Students learn about personal bias, what questions to ask prior to . . . [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 juge de première instance était fondée à rejeter la défense de croyance sincère, mais erronée, au consentement invoquée par l’appelant, après avoir conclu qu’il n’avait pris aucune mesure raisonnable pour s’assurer du consentement de la plaignante aux relations sexuelles.

Intitulé : Mentor c. R., 2022 QCCA . . . [more]

Rules that cry out for amendment. The need for simplicity and clarity. The desire to develop “innovative measures to ensure that the procedure in civil litigation is understandable by members of the public, the steps necessary to finalize a dispute are minimal and the cost of such procedure is reasonable.”

Those who watched the opening of the courts earlier this week would be forgiven for thinking that these are the words of Chief Justice Geoffrey Morawetz. In fact, they are taken from a report of the Civil Procedure Revision Committee authored almost half a century ago. In the last . . . [more]

Written by Daniel Standing LL.B., Editor, First Reference Inc.

This is a complex Alberta case: 2022 ABQB 58 (CanLII)-both for its facts, and the law the court applies. At its heart, it’s an employment case because it deals squarely with an employer’s access to certain revenue, without which it can’t operate. Essentially, it’s about whether an interim injunction cutting a Calgary pharmacy off from a major segment of its client base should be allowed to stand. These clients, formerly the applicants, started buying their drugs across the street at a pharmacy run by some of its former employees. One . . . [more]

A personal injury lawyer knows, perhaps better than most, of life’s fragility. I represented a woman who lost her baby boy in a car accident. When I met her at the hospital she was beyond distraught – not in the sense of becoming more and more frantic, but of a person who had entered another phase of life, a life lived in silent tragedy. She held a worn look, her wrinkled clothes betraying days of use, the smell of dried sweat and tears emanating so much sadness. As I held her hand, she recounted what had happened, second by second, . . . [more]

“Let’s Return Good Governance to the LSO” – Slogan of the Good Governance Coalition.

Sparked by the outrage over the Statement of Principles, lawyers formed the STOPSop group (STOP the compelled Statement of Principles) during the last Bencher election. In response, to the success in getting benchers elected, another group has formed this year. This has led to the creation of a two party system: the StopSOP and the Good Governance parties.

The StopSop party and the Good Governance party could loosely be compared to the Republicans versus the Democrats. This two party system, positions Benchers against each other.

The . . . [more]

Not since the pandemic began have we seen a live legal tech conference with more than 3000 people onsite, the third largest ILTACON ever. There was no virtual option. So back they came in droves, clearly pumped up at the thought of seeing one another in person. There were also over 160 exhibitors, a good number of them first time exhibitors.

How Was This ILTACON Different?

Overwhelmingly, attendees were talking about the pandemic and how it forced law firm IT departments to support working from home and major changes to workflows. According to ILTA’s 2022 Technology Survey, cloud adoption was . . . [more]

Each Wednesday we tell you which three English-language cases and French-language cases have been the most viewed* on CanLII and we give you a small sense of what the cases are about. La version française suit.

For this last week, the three most-consulted English-language decisions were:

1. R. v. Hardy, 2022 BCPC 189 (CanLII)

[5] Interestingly, a review of the Meads decision shows that over 50 percent of the cases referred to are in fact detaxer cases. Only about six or seven percent actually dealt with freemen of the land or similar type arguments. But the net result is . . . [more]

Here are excerpts from the most recent tips on SlawTips, the site that each week offers up useful advice, short and to the point, on practice, research, writing and technology.

Research & Writing

Use Twitter to Track the Passage of a Bill Through the House of Commons
Susannah Tredwell

While LEGISinfo is an excellent tool for tracking federal legislation, it does not get updated the moment that there is a change to a bill. But sometimes you need to have the information on the status of a bill as fast as is humanly possible. … . . . [more]

Justice is fair when it is available to everyone. While everyone agrees that access to justice is important, our system struggles to meet this expectation. However, there are innovative projects underway that are having some success in meeting this daunting task. The Rural Mobile Law Van is one such innovative project that is successfully tackling the problem of identifying undiscovered legal need and bringing assistance to people who would otherwise not receive help with their legal problems. This goes beyond what the formal justice system can do. This project is contributing to a broader concept of what justice and access . . . [more]