Articles 2024

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Today
Sentencing Youth “Whom Society Has Failed”

Sentencing Youth “Whom Society Has Failed”

  • January 30, 2015
  • Brock Jones

What principles should animate the sentencing of young persons found guilty of extremely violent offences who have themselves been the victims of a tragic upbringing characterized by neglect and isolation? A case comment on R v CTH 2015 MBCA 4.

Child and Youth Law

Implications of the Cyberbullying Case of AB v Bragg Communications Inc. and a Consideration of Some Remaining Questions

  • December 18, 2014
  • Marv Berstein

What are the implications of the Supreme Court of Canada’s decision in the cyberbullying case of AB v Bragg Communications 2012 SCC 46? UNICEF Canada had the unique opportunity of intervening in the case. This article by Marv Berstein, chief policy advisor for UNICEF Canada, touches briefly on the broader context of the digital environment and then focuses on the implications of the actual Judgment, and raises some remaining questions.

Child and Youth Law
<em>Res Gestae</em>, Hearsay, and Children's Evidence

Res Gestae, Hearsay, and Children's Evidence

  • November 14, 2014
  • Brock Jones

Can the prior utterances of excited and fearful children be admitted against their own father in a criminal trial when their mother prevents them from testifying?

Child and Youth Law

How and When to Sue Your Parents for Support

  • October 28, 2014
  • Ambreen Walji and Sheena Lessard

On October 3, 2014, the Ontario Bar Association hosted a successful professional development program titled “How to Effectively Represent Teens and Young Adults Seeking Child Support.” It was a smashing success! Our review captures the highlights.

Child and Youth Law

Small Step Toward Justice for Omar Khadr

  • October 09, 2014
  • Cheryl Milne

The Alberta Court of Appeal has taken a significant step toward acknowledging what the Canadian government has steadfastly refused to accept – that Omar Khadr was a young person who was entitled to special protections for his rights under Canadian and international law from the beginning.

Child and Youth Law
Continuing A Common Sense Approach To The Evidence Of Children In Criminal Proceedings

Continuing A Common Sense Approach To The Evidence Of Children In Criminal Proceedings

  • September 30, 2014
  • Brock Jones

A "common sense" approach to the evidence of children in criminal proceedings has long been applied in our criminal courts. But what does this mean in practice when a child's testimony seems to contain inconsistencies? Three recent decisions from the Ontario Court of Appeal – R v M.C. , R v M.O. and R v L.M. – address this complicated matter, with remarkably different results.

Child and Youth Law