Supreme Court upholds 6-month mandatory minimum for soliciting or obtaining sex with children
Supreme Court of Canada Justices Suzanne Côté (left) and Michelle O’Bonsawin described the ‘sexual commodification of children’ as ‘a veritable scourge in Canada, one that the state has every interest in suppressing and severely punishing.’
Friday, July 10, 2026 @ 5:19 PM
The Supreme Court of Canada has affirmed 7-2 the constitutional validity of the mandatory minimum penalty (MMP) of six months’ incarceration for those who pay to obtain — or communicate to buy — sex with persons under age 18. On July 10, Justices Suzanne Côté and Michelle O’Bonsawin, in joint reasons for the majority, allowed the appeal of the Attorney General of Quebec and set aside the Quebec Court of Appeal’s 2024 decision that struck down s. 286.1(2)(a) of the Criminal Code as a violation of the Charter’s s. 12 prohibition against cruel and unusual punishment: Quebec (Attorney General) v. Denis, 2026 SCC 25. ... [read more]
Quebec, Innu council sign agreement to replace Youth Protection Act
Monday, July 13, 2026 @ 5:26 PM
Canada, Quebec and the Innu Takuaikan Uashat mak Mani-utenam (ITUM) council have signed the Tshisheuatishitau Child and Family Services Coordination Agreement, the first of its kind in the province to recognize the First Nation’s jurisdiction over these services. ... [read more]
Federal Court awards $1.3M in costs against CN, citing complexity, rejected settlement offers
Monday, July 13, 2026 @ 4:21 PM
The Federal Court has ordered the Canadian National Railway Company to pay more than $1.3 million in legal fees and disbursements after it lost a damages action arising from its breach of statutory rail-service obligations, finding that the complexity of the litigation and two rejected pretrial settlement offers justified a lump-sum costs award. ... [read more]
Somalian refugee with mental illness eyeing Supreme Court in fight against deportation
Monday, July 13, 2026 @ 2:39 PM
Lawyers for a Somalian refugee with schizophrenia may turn to Canada’s highest court in a bid to keep their client from being deported due to a sex assault conviction — citing potential dangers awaiting him in his native land because of his mental illness. ... [read more]
Ontario court says insurability rule has no time limit
Friday, July 10, 2026 @ 4:15 PM
Ontario’s top court has ruled that a section of the provincial Insurance Act that allows insurers to deny coverage due to changes in a person’s circumstances is not time-limited. ... [read more]