Criminal
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March 26, 2025
B.C. Court of Appeal rules forum selection clause doesn't apply in defamation case against X
A forum selection clause in the social media platform X’s terms of service does not apply to a defamation lawsuit brought against it over content posted on X, the B.C. Court of Appeal has ruled.
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March 26, 2025
New FINTRAC anti-money laundering regulations allow some businesses to share information
The federal government has published new regulations regarding new obligations under the Proceeds of Crime (Money Laundering) and Terrorist Financing Act and associated regulations for factors, cheque cashers and financing or leasing entities.
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March 26, 2025
Lawyer organizations must meet this moment | Anita Szigeti
Ontario’s Law Society is engulfed in the biggest scandal it has ever encountered in its existence at the moment. The biggest lawyer organizations in Ontario must now seriously consider issuing strongly worded statements calling for the release of the O'Connor report, and minimally to release the benchers in convocation from their gag orders.
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March 26, 2025
Ontario Law Commission seeking public input on improving protection orders
The Law Commission of Ontario (LCO) has launched two surveys aimed at gauging opinions about how to improve protection orders in the province to ensure people are kept safe from intimate partner and family violence.
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March 26, 2025
Failure to reconcile inconsistencies necessitates new trial
Most adults find it implausible that a child would make up a false allegation of sexual abuse against a family member or family friend. Yet those involved in the justice system can make the mistake of taking a child’s word at face value without carefully determining its truthfulness.
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March 25, 2025
Time to rethink the appointment of judges | Michael Lesage
As Canada grapples with rising crime rates and declining public confidence in the administration of justice, the time has come to examine whether our traditional approach to judicial selection remains optimal. The evidence suggests that while appointments offer important protections, they must be balanced against democratic accountability and effective justice delivery. The future of Canadian justice may lie not in choosing between election and appointment, but in finding a middle path that preserves judicial excellence while ensuring courts remain responsive to society's evolving needs.
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March 24, 2025
Appeal decision illustrates need to dissociate justice system from police misconduct.
There is always a delicate balance between law enforcement’s duties and the protection of individual rights. When an arrest is made, leading to a conviction for possession of fentanyl and crack cocaine, an appeal often rests on weighing the need for denunciation and deterrence with respect for an individual’s liberties. Such was the case in the recent Ontario Court of Appeal decision in R. v. James, 2025 ONCA 213.
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March 21, 2025
Canada sanctions 8 Venezuelan officials, 3 Haitians individuals with dealings and immigration bans
The Government of Canada has imposed sanctions against three individuals it says have exacerbated the political, security and humanitarian crisis in Haiti and against eight current senior officials of the Venezuelan government it says have engaged in activities that directly or indirectly supported human rights violations or anti-democracy violations in Venezuela.
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March 21, 2025
SCC upholds 9-0 conviction for indecent assault committed against a young child
Underscoring that adults’ intentional sexual contact with children is a crime, regardless of who physically initiates the contact, the Supreme Court of Canada has unanimously affirmed the indecent assault conviction of a babysitter who induced a five-year-old’s oral contact with what he falsely told her was his “ice-cream” maker.
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March 21, 2025
Attention Walmart shoplifters | Marcel Strigberger
“My object all sublime I shall achieve in time — To let the punishment fit the crime” — The Mikado