It is with deep sorrow that we mark the unexpected passing of our friend and colleague at the Canadian Forum on Civil Justice (CFCJ), Lisa Moore, who passed away in December. Lisa was a generous colleague, an incisive researcher, and a quiet but formidable force in the access to justice community. Lisa devoted her professional and academic life to understanding how people actually experience legal problems, and to insisting that access to justice research remain accountable to those lived realities. Her passing leaves a profound absence in a field she helped shape with care, rigour, and compassion.

What distinguished Lisa’s . . . [more]

At the beginning of January, the Globe and Mail ran an article about the Chief Justice of Ontario’s visits to communities across Ontario, part of an outreach undertaking. From Chief Justice Tulloch’s perspective, this type of initiative provides the members of the bench with an opportunity to gain a, “better understanding of the people we are serving.”

While this is a crucial consideration for adjudicators, such outreach serves to benefit communities as well. Not only does it humanize the law by putting an actual face on justice, but it serves to humanize the individuals who are engaged in interpreting and . . . [more]

For most of my career, I have worked on the inside of law firms — advising partners, managing change, fixing things that quietly but persistently get in the way of good work. Strategy. Marketing. Associate retention. Recruitment. Training. Culture. All the unglamorous but consequential pieces that impacts whether a firm thrives or stalls.

Along the way, I noticed something that never really changed.

Every year, bright, capable law students arrive at firms deeply motivated to do well — and surprisingly underprepared for what the job actually requires. Not because they lack intelligence or work ethic, but because no one ever . . . [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) : Selon l’approche souple et modulée appliquée par le juge, celui-ci avait raison de conclure que le délai postérieur à la déclaration de culpabilité de l’accusé n’était pas déraisonnable; quant à son appréciation du niveau de culpabilité morale de l’accusé, qui n’était pas réduite de façon importante par . . . [more]

As a supplement to our Sunday Summary each month, Supreme Advocacy LLP in Ottawa presents Supreme One-Liners, a super-short descriptive guide to the most recent decisions at the Supreme Court of Canada. Supreme Advocacy LLP offers its more comprehensive weekly electronic newsletter, Supreme Advocacy Letter, summarizing all Appeals, Oral Judgments and Leaves to Appeal granted.

Appeals

Charter: Mobility Rights
Taylor v. Newfoundland and Labrador, 2026 SCC 5 (40952)

Clarification of mobility rights during pandemic.

Leaves to Appeal Granted

Criminal Law: Sexual Assault
B. v. R., 2025 ABCA 270 (42030)

Issues re alleged non-condom sexual assault. 

Civil Litigation; Charter: . . . [more]

Imagine having a civil trial, just two years after pleadings. To Ontario litigators this may seem an absurd fantasy, like a Stanley Cup for the Leafs or pulling matching socks straight out of the dryer. Four or five years, at least, is the status quo today.

And yet Ontario’s Civil Rules Review suggests that this fantasy can become standard practice. “Trial in Two,” for most two-party actions, is the aspiration animating its 281-page Final Policy Report, released in mid-December.

The Report sets out default timetables that would squeeze documentary disclosure, judicial conferences, and even pared-down examinations for discovery into . . . [more]

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.

Decoding Canadian Legal Research, Writing, and Conventions: A Guide for Internationally Trained Lawyers. By Kellinde Wrightson. Toronto, ON: Emond Montgomery, 2024. xviii, 259 p. Includes bibliographic references and index. ISBN 9781774624296 (softcover) $56.00; ISBN 9781774624319 (ePub) $50.00.

Reviewed by Dominique Garingan
Manager, Legal Learning & Development
Gowling WLG (Canada) LLP . . . [more]

“[Productivity] gains only come when companies use AI to redesign processes and ultimately rethink whole business domains. That’s where the step-change in efficiency and growth will come from. To get there, the foundations must be right — clean, well-governed data; secure and interoperable systems; and people who understand how to work alongside AI.”

This observation from Jonathan Keane, Strategy and Consulting Lead at Accenture for UK, Ireland and Africa, was a highlight of the recent Financial Times Special Report on AI. It was meant to apply to a range of businesses, but I think it lands most . . . [more]

The Federal Court of Appeal had the occasion to review the so-called non-use cancellation action under section 45 of the Trademark Act in the context of the acquisition of the trademarks by a new owner in the case Comité interprofessionnel du vin de champagne v. Coors Brewing Company^[1].

Section 45, and more specifically subsection 45(3), authorizes the Registrar of Trademarks, at the request of any person or on the Registrar’s own initiative, and following a proceeding initiated by a notice to the registered owner under subsection 45(1), to expunge from the Register of Trademarks the registration of . . . [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 tribunal inflige une peine de 12 mois d’emprisonnement à une proxénète; bien que la culpabilité morale de celle-ci soit importante, elle est atténuée notamment par sa reconnaissance des torts, ses remords, l’absence de casier judiciaire et la dynamique relationnelle avec le coaccusé (son proxénète) au moment des . . . [more]