Access to Justice
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August 23, 2024
Pre-release: Where’s the fair? | John Chaif
For incarcerated people, particularly long-term, the transition from life behind prison walls to life in communities across the country can be very challenging. Organizations do exist to help. They exist because successful prison-to-community transitions reduce crime rates in the community.
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August 22, 2024
Recorded messages focus of unsuccessful Ontario Court of Appeal bid
There is no doubt that Marc Pierre Gauthier killed Tammy Avery in their Sturgeon Falls apartment on Nov. 14, 2017. That was admitted by defence counsel Dan Baker when he addressed a seven-woman, five-man jury in Superior Court in North Bay.
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August 22, 2024
Strangulation by regulation | Tega Adjara
Canada’s economic prominence in the early 21st century marked a significant turning point, as the country’s prosperity garnered global recognition, leading to a surge in migration to North America. Although Canada had been economically stable prior to the 2000s, it was during this period that the nation’s economic success became widely acknowledged. The strength of the Canadian dollar, which even surpassed that of its southern neighbour, symbolized this era of prosperity.
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August 21, 2024
15 years on, court restores Indian status of mother and daughter who died waiting for recognition
The Indian status of a mother and daughter, both of whom passed away before a court could decide their appeal, has been affirmed 15 years after they were removed from the Indian Register without notice.
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August 21, 2024
B.C. class action launched for alleged negligent misrepresentation of ‘safe’ opioid program
The families of two teen girls, one deceased, who became addicted to opioids have brought a class action against the B.C. government and Health Canada. The class action claims that they became addicted due to the province’s Safe/Safer Supply Program, a publicly funded prescription medication program. Health Canada shared responsibility for its implementation through its Substance Use and Addictions Program.
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August 21, 2024
Dashcam footage focus of Ontario Court of Appeal decision to order new trial
A serious motor vehicle collision occurred on an afternoon in March 2018 when Wendel Attard was driving his Lexus on Highway 50 in Brampton, Ont., and collided with a Toyota Corolla. Both the Lexus and the Toyota were damaged beyond repair. The Lexus ended up on its roof in the ditch. The drivers of the vehicles were transported by ambulance to a hospital.
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August 20, 2024
Coercive control bill should tackle familial elder abuse | Heather Campbell Pope
Bill C-332 is a noble attempt to protect domestic abuse victims from escalating violence. However, the proposed law does not help seniors who are harmed by adult children and other relatives like grandchildren, once again banishing elder abuse to the hinterlands of the criminal justice system.
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August 19, 2024
Ontario Court of Appeal orders new trial based on defence counsel performance
Seldom does the Ontario Court of Appeal, the province’s highest court, allow an appeal of conviction based on defence counsel’s performance that undermined the fairness of a trial. Yet in R. v. Nnane, 2024 ONCA 609, the court ordered a new trial for George Nnane because of the “ineffective” performance of his defence counsel at trial and concluded that the lawyer’s defence “fell below the standard of reasonable professional judgment.”
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August 15, 2024
Ontario appeal board dissects border guard access to devices in child porn decision
Technology has created a significant problem. According to an Aug. 2, 2024 CBC report, cybercrimes have increased six per cent in Greater Sudbury since 2023.
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August 14, 2024
Ontario Court of Appeal overturns fraud convictions, citing ineffective defense counsel
The Ontario Court of Appeal has set aside two fraud convictions, finding that the legal representation the defendant received at trial fell below the standards of reasonable professional judgment and undermined the fairness of his trial.