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. Jackson v Mayerle, 2016 ONSC 1556

8. These are nice, average people. Of modest means (now considerably more modest). They drive old cars and probably pinch pennies shopping at Costco.

9. And yet somehow, between them, they spent more than half a million dollars on lawyers “to have a judge tell us something we could arrange ourselves.”

(Check for commentary . . . [more]

It is timely that Vanderbilt Law School is hosting what is billed as the first legal conference on the topic: “Watson, Esq.: Will Your Next Lawyer Be a Machine.” The legal system, and the legal profession will need to dramatically lift it’s game if it is to keep up with client expectations as mankind prepares to take another big step. It led me back to an abstract of a Rees Morrison article I did almost 30 years ago:

Artificial intelligence and law: A conference report

The First International Conference on Artificial Intelligence and Law was held in Boston . . . [more]

The Ontario Court of Appeal has reaffirmed that in cases where there is a continuing breach of contract the limitation period for bringing the lawsuit resets each day as the continuing breach continues to occur.

The ruling occurred in the context of a commercial leasing dispute. One of the clauses of the lease required the tenant to carry on its business on a continuous basis from the leased premises. Although the tenant continued to pay rent, it failed to operate from the leased premises as required by the lease. The landlord sued the tenant after the end of the . . . [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 research and writing, practice, and technology.

Practice

Welcome the New Tipsters…
David Bilinsky

Changes are coming to SlawTips! I would like to introduce our new enhanced team of practice tipsters. Our team will now include: Michael McCubbin, Vancouver; Andrea Cannavina, New York City; Stacey Gerrard, Halifax; Sandra Bekhor, Toronto; Mark Morris, Toronto; Elizabeth Mah, Vancouver; Bjorn (Barney) Christianson, Portage la Prairie; Ian Hu, Toronto. …

Research & Writing

Use LexBox for Case Law Monitoring . . . [more]

This article is by Ian Hu, claims prevention and practicePRO Counsel at LAWPRO.

New lawyers, welcome to the practice of law. You now have an office of your own. You’ll be spending many of your waking hours plying your trade in this new little corner of the world. Make it a comfortable and professional place to work. Be prepared for unexpected events. What should you keep in your office? How should you decorate it? Here are five items to help make your new office a home away from home:

Emergency set of work clothes. Presenting yourself professionally at all times, . . . [more]

Earth Jurisprudence: Private Property and the Environment. By Peter D. Burdon. Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge, 2015. xv, 171 pages. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN: 978-0-415-63317-8 (Hardback) $131.00.*

Almost every day we hear reports describing another environmental disaster or extreme weather event reminding us that the climate change alarm bells are ringing loud and clear. However, despite this awareness, we remain daunted by the seemingly impossible challenge of changing the course of a future fuelled by economic growth and our misguided view that the Earth, and everything on it, is here for human beings to develop and exploit.

This is . . . [more]

Each Monday we present brief excerpts of recent posts from five of Canada’s award­-winning legal blogs chosen at random* from seventy recent Clawbie winners. In this way we hope to promote their work, with their permission, to as wide an audience as possible.

This week the randomly selected blogs are 1. Meurrens on Immigration  2. Rule of Law 3. Blogue du CRL  4. Family Health Law Blog  5. Entertainment & Media Law Signal

Meurrens on Immigration
The 2016 Liberal Immigration Numbers

On March 8, 2016, John McCallum, the Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (“IRCC”) tabled the 2015 Annual . . . [more]

A recent article on Above the Law came into inbox titled, “Law Schools Are Not Exposing Students To Real World Business.” Hooray, I thought, recognition, even if from an imperfect source with more than one axe to grind, that the law is both a profession and a business.

I was only slightly disappointed to discover that the last word had been cut off. Business Development. Rainmaking, in other words. (Click here for the actual article.)

Biz Dev is important – pay the bills and all that – though I’m not convinced it needs to be taught in law school. . . . [more]

Diversity of faith in Canada did not start with the Charter.

The various First Nations who inhabited what is now Canada had a myriad of different spiritual traditions prior to European settlement. The Europeans who arrived were themselves of diverse backgrounds, including various denominations of Christianity.

Jewish immigration to Canada dates back to the 1700s, and Sikhs, Muslims, Buddhists and Hindus were present in Canada even in the 1800s. In the 21st century, our understanding of spiritual traditions and their role in a pluralistic democracy has expanded even further.

When Ontario’s Human Rights Code was introduced in 1961, it included . . . [more]

On one Sunday each month we bring you a summary from Supreme Advocacy LLP of recent decisions at the Supreme Court of Canada. Supreme Advocacy LLP offers a weekly electronic newsletter, Supreme Advocacy Letter, to which you may subscribe. It’s a summary of all appeals and leaves to appeal granted, so you know what the S.C.C. will soon be dealing with (February 17 – March 11, 2016 inclusive).

Oral Judgments

Criminal Law: Arbitrary Detention; Exclusion of Evidence

R. v. Gagnon, 2016 SCC 6 (36581) Judgment rendered Feb. 24, 2016

Justice Cromwell: “This is an appeal as . . . [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) :L’ancienne lieutenante-gouverneure du Québec Lise Thibault devra purger la peine de 18 mois de détention qui lui a été imposée en première instance après qu’elle eut plaidé coupable sous des accusations de fraude et d’abus de confiance.

Intitulé : Thibault c. R., 2016 QCCA 335
Juridiction : Cour . . . [more]

Complacency is a dangerous force. It blinds us to possible threats and keeps us from pursuing opportunities. It lulls us to sleep…and by the time we wake up, it may be too late.

And let’s face it; it can be easy to become complacent. If your practice is running smoothly, if you’re making enough to pay the bills, and if you know there are clients with cases in your pipeline…it’s easy to let your guard down.

But when that happens, you’re in danger. And let me tell you something…there’s NEVER any good reason to become complacent. There are always opportunities . . . [more]