We are not good at asking people for testimonial. Many of us feel awkward asking someone else for their opinion and yet what is the first thing we do when checking out a restaurant or an Airbnb or a new vacuum cleaner? We look to see what others have said about it.

In the past I have written about Super Fans. These are clients that will promote you at any opportunity, that help drive referrals, and are not just satisfied with your work but are truly loyal to you. We love Super Fans! As great as these clients are . . . [more]

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

For this last week:

1. R. v. Le, 2019 SCC 34

[160] In view of our application of the three Grant lines of inquiry to the facts of this appeal, and with great respect to the courts below, we do not find this to be a close call. The police crossed a bright line when, without permission or reasonable grounds, they entered into a private backyard . . . [more]

Generally speaking, those of us above “a certain age” grew up suffering from dangerous childhood diseases, such as chicken pox, measles and mumps, among others. Most of us survived, but not every child did and even among the survivors, children lost their hearing or there were other negative consequences (increased risk of miscarriage for women contracting measles during pregnancy, for example). Measles can result in swelling of the brain, ear infections, pneumonia, among other serious conditions.

What a blessing the vaccines to end these diseases were. The measles vaccine was introduced in 1963, the mumps vaccine was approved . . . [more]

Our daily interactions with self-represented litigants (SRLs) from across Canada, along with our continuous tracking of the developing jurisprudence around SRLs, disclose the emergence of a judicial strategy that amounts to a war on self-represented parties in some courts and jurisdictions. The resulting mistrust and anger among many reasonable members of the public should be a cause for alarm among members of the profession.

Not only does this strategy undermine our commitment to a right of access to the courts, and ignore the Supreme Court of Canada’s clear statement in Pintea v John that SRLs cannot and should not be . . . [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.

Technology

My Favourite Apps – Part II
Lesha Van Der Bij

This is my second post in a series on my favourite smart phone apps. Here’s one for folks who are seriously pressed for time (aren’t we all?) but who are still trying to keep up with non-fiction reading. Blinkist provides access to 15-minute summaries of books on a range of topics, including leadership, politics, marketing, parenting, nutrition, technology, . . . [more]

Toronto has the most diverse population in Canada, and possibly the world. The myriad of different cultures and ethnicities not only co-exist, but largely mingle and interact on a deep level that is likely not seen anywhere else.

At the same time, the diverse populations of Toronto have a complicated relationship with police services, who they often perceive as treating inappropriately, based on stereotypes, prejudices, or even racial profiling. There are many reasons for this, but they include the challenge of many officers living or growing up outside these diverse communities, police divisions under financial and resource strains, and occasionally, . . . [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.

TRAVAIL : Le directeur général de la Ville de Chambly a collaboré à une enquête portant sur un acte répréhensible au sens de la Loi concernant la lutte contre la corruption et bénéficie de la présomption selon laquelle il a été congédié en raison de ce geste; un tel congédiement . . . [more]

Each Friday, we share the latest job listings from Slaw Jobs, which features employment opportunities from across the country. Find out more about these positions by following the links below, or learn how you can use Slaw Jobs to gain valuable exposure for your job ads, while supporting the great Canadian legal commentary at Slaw.ca.

Current postings on Slaw Jobs (newest first):

• • Deputy Director, National Committee on Accreditation (NCA) (Full-time) | Ottawa, ON
    (Federation of Law Societies of Canada)
  • Content Editor–Western Employment & Labour Law Subject Matter Expert (Contract Role) | Concord, ON
    (First Reference Inc.)
  • Chief of Legal Operations

Thomson v. Afterlife Network Inc., 2019 FC 545, is a Federal Court decision in which the Court considers the existence of copyright in obituaries used in an e-commerce context.

DT was the representative plaintiff in a class action lawsuit claiming that posted obituaries and photographs, that were authored and taken by the plaintiff and other class members without their permission and thereby Afterlife infringed the copyright and the moral rights of the class members.

Afterlife operated a website that contained over a million obituaries in Canada and on which Afterlife reproduced obituaries and photos from the websites of Canadian . . . [more]

On May 27, 2019, the Alberta government tabled Bill 2, An Act to Make Alberta Open for Business to make amendments to the Employment Standards Code and the Labour Relations Code. This involves rolling back certain measures that were implemented by the previous government and adding in new rules. According to the government, the proposed Open for Business Act would reduce unfair burdens on businesses and give workers more rights in unionized workplaces.

Employment Standards Code changes

1. Introducing a $13 per hour minimum wage rate for students under 18:

This change is not part of Bill 2, but . . . [more]

“We don’t believe in digital marketing. We believe in marketing in a digital world.” – Clive Sirkin, CMO of Kimberly Clark

And a digital world it is. We live in a world where three year olds have their own tablets (and operate them quite expertly, thank you very much) and people can work on a project across the globe from their kitchen table in their pajamas. While it is an exciting time, it is also a very challenging time to reach people and to stand out effectively in the crowd. Understanding Mr. Sirkin’s quote is a great first step. The . . . [more]