Do we have a silly season here at Slaw? Earlier this week, when I saw that our intricate system of laws, rules and regulations had entered into hallowed territory, I knew I could finally, legitimately make a post about the Halifax Donair on a legal blog!

It seems that we in Canada have something entitled the: Federal/Provincial/Territorial Donair Working Group. Which came together to effect “A Consultation with Stakeholders on the Recommended Guidelines for Management of the Risks Related to the Consumption of Donairs and Similar Products.” You laugh, but Donairs are no small matter in Halifax. The Halifax . . . [more]

An article in yesterday’s The Globe and Mail “Ontario Schools Compete for Law Faculties” outlines the efforts of three Ontario universities in trying to set up the first Canadian law school in almost thirty years. New law faculties are being planned by Lakehead University in Thunder Bay, Wilfred Laurier University in Waterloo, and Laurentian University in Sudbury. The article goes on to discuss the debate surrounding whether Ontario or Canada actually needs more law schools. . . . [more]

From today’s Globe and Mail:

…for $75 a month, Rogers provides 300 weekday voice minutes, 750 megabytes of data and 100 text messages. In the United States, a customer gets 450 weekday voice minutes, unlimited data and 200 text messages for the same price.

Yes, that’s “unlimited data.” No, that’s not in Canada.

See, the further north you go, the colder it gets; and colder air is heavier air; so it costs more to push signals through such weighty atmosphere. Which explains why Rogers… . . . [more]

We’ve written a few times about powerset, the natural language search engine. When it brought its service public in May, there were rumours about it being purchased by one of the search giants.

Those rumours have now been proven true, with reports that Microsoft has purchased the company. We can all hope that this move will help bring more intelligent search to the broader public. . . . [more]

From an American Association of Law Libraries Private Law Librarians listserv posting: The Criminal Justice Degrees Guide has a list of The Top 100 Law and Lawyers Blogs which provides a useful summary of the usual candidates with a few new ones I did not recognize (and they are not all focused on criminal justice).

No, SLAW did not make their list but I will attribute that to the American focus of that site. However, included in the list is Coleslaw. Hhmm. A competitor? Likely not, Coleslaw is clearly named after the diced cabbage side dish with entries (entrees?) . . . [more]

Adobe is talking to Google and Yahoo. The plan is to make sites that use Adobe Flash searchable, because now search engines slip off the face of Flash sites as if they were glass. The Adobe press announcement doesn’t add much of substance to this declaration (but does use the wretched phrase “going forward.”) Google, on the other hand, announces that it has already launched its Flash indexing algorithm and that web designers should expect better results with respect to their Flash sites.

I don’t have a Flash-based site in mind that I can use to check the situation — . . . [more]

To our Canadian readers, colleagues, friends, and fellow Slaw-yers, have a terrific Canada Day!

This beautiful photo of the Canadian flag is by Ian Muttoo and made available under Creative Commons. . . . [more]

Lots of chirping about social networking tool Twitter today from various quarters. A few stories I am following:

• In What’s Twitter doing right now? Investors would like to know, Globe and Mail (July 1, 2008), tech reporter Matt Hartley explores the value of Twitter and whether we can expect an IPO soon;
• The Digital Home: How Twitter could be worth nothing in a year, CNet News (July 1, 2008), by Don Reisinger discusses valuation of Twitter (could it really be worth 1 billion dollars?);
• in her article All a Twitter: Want to Try Microblogging?, School Library Journal

Lots of people turn to classified ad websites such as Craigslist and Kijiji to find movers to help them with small moves. But, from the lists and lists of movers, how can you tell who are honest? And if you do get ripped off, where can you turn? Here is a checklist of sorts. . . . [more]

I’ve been getting a daily blast of legal-tech news from Lexology, having ticked the IP, IT etc. boxes and those for Canada, the U.S. and U.K. Today, there was a single item under the “Canada” banner: “Employers need to be careful to avoid waiving the protections of written computer and email policies” from the firm of Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton LLP, a name I’m not familiar with — but then I’m not exactly up on them all. The telltale was the mention of the 9th Circuit Court and then “the Ontario Police Department.” Ah. No . . . [more]

[Editor’s note: What follows is the convocation address delivered by Professor Willinsky on the occasion of his receiving an Honorary Doctor of Laws degree from the Faculty of Education at York University, June 19, 2008.]

It is truly an honor, if a slightly odd one as I shall explain, to be asked to join in this celebration of so many graduates’ proud accomplishment as well as an honor to receive an Honorary Doctor of Laws from York University. I say odd because the degree I am receiving could be cast not just as an unearned degree, but a belated degree, . . . [more]

Earlier this week George Carlin (1937-2008), a noted counter-culture comedian passed away. For fans of stand up comedy Carlin’s career needs no introduction but Carlin is, perhaps, best known for his Seven Words you will never hear on television.

For law types George Carlin’s career wound it’s way through the U.S. Supreme Court and he became known as free speech icon. In October of 1973 a New York City radio station played the entire length of Carlin’s standup routine “Filthy Words” which was heard by a father driving in his car with his son. The father in question . . . [more]