Several times each month, we are pleased to republish a recent book review from the Canadian Law Library Review (CLLR). CLLR is the official journal of the Canadian Association of Law Libraries (CALL/ACBD), and its reviews cover both practice-oriented and academic publications related to the law.

Wilson on Children and the Courtroom. By John P. Schuman, Farrah Hudani & Jeffery Wilson. Toronto: LexisNexis Canada, 2020. xxiii, 164 p. Includes table of contents, table of cases, and index. ISBN 9780433509905 (softcover) $140.00.

Reviewed by Lori O’Connor
Public Prosecutions
Melfort, SK
In CLLR 47:2

Wilson on Children and . . . [more]

In the genre of self-help books which I readily consume and then promptly fail to follow, sometimes one or two pearls of wisdom enter my consciousness and reemerge in this column. One of these is Gretchen Rubin’s suggestion in her book The Happiness Project that we ought to cultivate the activities which brought us joy when we were children. When I was younger I loved getting ready for the first day of school. I loved the freedom of the summer, but as the end of August approached I liked getting my pencils in order and my binders and notebooks packed . . . [more]

There are humans, I am told, whose lives don’t revolve around to do lists, completion of tasks, and productivity systems like Getting Things Done or Atomic Habits. Humans who don’t wake up clutching a bullet journal or begin tapping on Todoist before they leave bed. Humans who more or less go with the flow, who live in the moment, and who don’t spend their life energy building and tweaking a set of byzantine systems to make sure they’re doing the right things at the right time.

These humans are called normal people. It is not a category that includes . . . [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. Action4Canada v British Columbia (Attorney General), 2022 BCSC 1507 (CanLII)

[71] Put simply, individuals have standing to question whether state actions infringe their Charter protected rights. Hence, in this case, there is a prospect that the plaintiffs could put forward a valid claim that certain of the COVID-based health restrictions instituted by . . . [more]

The previously predicted and wholly predictable sale, by Informa PLC to Montagu, of 80% of the former’s Maritime Intelligence business unit will be one to watch for its affect on law publishing. The fact that Jane’s is part of the Montagu portfolio may be a relevant factor in the sale, and indeed over the years there has been shuffling of key personnel between Jane’s and Lloyd’s. Assuming that Informa’s i-Law, together with the range of books, law reports and journals under a handful of imprints, form part of the sale, and/or, if so, they are subsequently sold on, it . . . [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

Finding Standards
Susannah Tredwell

Standards, which “establish accepted practices, technical requirements, and terminologies”, are often referenced by acts and regulations; in order to be able to properly interpret a piece of legislation you may need to see the standard it is referring 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) : Le jugement de première instance est entaché d’erreurs de principe, notamment en ce qui concerne la participation de la victime âgée de 13 ans aux activités sexuelles ainsi que l’abus de confiance commis par l’accusé; par conséquent, une peine de 15 mois d’emprisonnement est substituée à la . . . [more]

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

Clarity of language is perhaps the most important part of writing a good contract. In the employment world, the slightest uncertainty in a termination provision can and often does lead to costly litigation to determine how much money should change hands. In 2022 ABCA 220 (CanLII), the Court of Appeal of Alberta helped the parties interpret a provision providing for “60 days or more” notice of termination, holding that the ambiguity inherent in it meant that it should be interpreted in the employee’s favour. . . . [more]

In the movie Marriage Story, Nicole (Scarlett Johansson) and Charlie (Adam Driver) are divorcing. They have a young child, and the main issue is the child’s parenting arrangements. In the movie, Charlie is the more reluctant spouse, and he has finally booked a consultation with a lawyer. When he arrives at the law firm, he is told by the receptionist that the lawyer he was there to meet cannot see him because Nicole already did. The lawyer has been conflicted out. It turns out that Nicole has met with several lawyers, at her sister’s insistence, before finally retaining the lawyer . . . [more]

In the article, “Trial by Internet: A Randomized Field Experiment on Wikipedia’s Influence on Judges’ Legal Reasoning”, the authors Neil Thompson et al conducted a study to see if Wikipedia plays a part in judgment writing. The authors found that “the information and legal analysis offered on Wikipedia led judges to cite the relevant legal cases more often and to talk about them in ways comparable to how the Wikipedia authors had framed them”.

The study was conducted by creating 154 Wikipedia articles on Irish Supreme Court cases. “The process of creation was done in three waves. After . . . [more]