There is endless discussion on how we go about preparing the lawyers of tomorrow to be well armed for the expectations their clients will have of them. Many law schools in all countries are trying varied approaches to achieve the best for their students, as well as for the working world with which they will have to engage. The downturn in the legal market, the decline in enrolments in the law schools, and the questioning of the value and relevance of an expensive law degree are issues faced by law firms, educators and regulators.

Now and then there is 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 technology, research and practice.

Technology

How to Recognize Your Computer Is Infected With Malware
Dan Pinnington

Ideally you have one or more types of properly updated anti-malware software running on your computers and networks. And hopefully that software detects and prevents any malware infections from occurring. However, because anti-malware software may not detect an infection, watch for the symptoms that can indicate a computer is infected with malware. These include: . . .

Research . . . [more]

I recently attended two jointly run conferences, KM World 2013 and Taxonomy Boot Camp 2013. Enterprise Search Summit and SharePoint Symposium also run concurrently with the other two although I did not attend those.

The folks in the Knowledge Workers Toronto meetup group (which I co-organize) invited me to share some of my take-aways from the conferences. Below are my slides that put that summary together.

It was my first time at Taxonomy Boot Camp. I was impressed with the range of content (from introductory to advanced technical)–highly recommended if you are working in the area of taxonomy or . . . [more]

After the 2012 discovery of the remains of King Richard III under a city parking lot in Leicester, the 17th great nephew of the king managed to persuade a UK judge that he has “sufficient interest” in the question of where the remains should be re-interred, to seek judicial review of the discretionary decision of the Justice Secretary granting a license of exhumation under the Burial Act 1857.

The historical figure was killed at the battle of Bosworth Hill on 22 August 1485.

When the decision was made pursuant to the license to move the remains to Leicester Cathedral, the . . . [more]

On November 18, 2013, the Toronto Motions Scheduling Unit circulated an email with details of a new scheduling policy. The contents of that message are as follows:

Please make note of the following important new information for the Motions & Scheduling Unit:

• As of November 18, 2013, any date requisitioned for a motion will be vacated if the notice of motion is not filed with payment for the motion within 10 days after the motion has been scheduled.
• As of November 18, 2013, the motions scheduling office will only permit one consent adjournment and any further adjournment requests must be

. . . [more]

The foundational tenets of our legal system include justice and fairness. It is assumed is that we can access and assert our rights in law. Increasingly what we see in the courts is a rising number of people who represent themselves with measurably worse outcomes than if they had retained a lawyer, and many more who are just not seeking justice at all because of legal costs. For many years, the focus was improving access through legal aid and pro bono legal services. However, today that is only one small part of the answer to a very big problem. What . . . [more]

This week the randomly selected blogs are 1. All About Information   2. The Court   3. Employment & Human Rights Law in Canada   4. First Reference    5. Official Clio Blog

Two years ago, almost to the day, Simon Fodden contacted us to write a bimonthly column on online dispute resolution (ODR). A dozen columns later, and after going through the most important current developments on the topic, we realized that we might have skimmed over the core question that should have preceded all of our previous entries: what is ODR?

Obviously, definitions of ODR are plentiful. However, as is often the case when everyone has his or her own idea of a word’s meaning, definitions are sometimes incompatible. That being said, as explained in a recent paper published by Julio . . . [more]

Paralegals serve an important function in our judicial system, providing cost-effective and professional services for simple and routine matters in litigation. Yet even these matters require a significant amount of advocacy, as paralegals in Ontario conduct complete trials and hearings in small claims court or administrative tribunals.

Paralegal students get some training in advocacy in their educational, and this education is now a mandatory prerequisite to licensing in Ontario. What they don’t usually get is the opportunity to hone and test their advocacy skills in a competition between schools.

Today we completed what was likely the first appellate moot competition  . . . [more]

The release of five class action decisions penned by Ontario Superior Court Justice Belobaba earlier this month has garnered significant attention in the press and in the profession, and has reignited a debate about cost shifting in class actions. In virtually identical language in Brown v. Canada (Attorney General), Sankar v. Bell Mobility, Crisante v. DePuy Orthopaedics, Dugal v. Manulife and Rosen v. BMO Nesbitt Burns, Justice Belobaba excoriated class action lawyers for over-lawyering certification motions, unnecessarily lengthening the proceedings and generating hundreds of thousands of dollars in fees and disbursements. The result, he bemoans, . . . [more]

B.C. Supreme Court not entitled to declare provisions of Criminal Code unconstitutional and contrary to Charter in light of 1993 decision of Supreme Court of Canada holding impugned provisions to be constitutionally valid

This week's summaries concern: Standing in class actions / Release or detention pending criminal trial / Accused's right to speedy trial / Assault and HIV positive accused: