Articles 2020

John Dick discusses the implications of the Supreme Court of Canada's recent decision in R. v. Brassington and the complicated law surrounding the intersection of informer privilege and the right to make full answer and defence.

Eric Neubauer notes that R. v. McCaw, 2018 ONSC 3464 has important implications for constitutional litigation that extend far beyond its holding that s. 33.1 of the Criminal Code is unconstitutional: the case confirms that constitutional declarations of invalidity render a law null and void for all future courts, unless and until the declaration is successfully appealed to a higher court.

The #MeToo movement has condemned the criminal justice system’s handling of sexual assault allegations. How can we address these concerns without sacrificing the rights of the accused? A diversion program for less serious sex assault cases may be part of the answer.

Is fentanyl skewing the sentencing process? Alan Gold and his associates reflect on the punitive implications of the fentanyl scourge.

I would like to congratulate our very own Roger Horst and Rafal Szymanski on successfully representing the respondent in Correct Building Corporation v. Lehman. The Court dismissed the appeal against our client and granted our client’s cross-appeal, resulting in a dismissal of all claims against our client by way of summary judgment.

Following are summaries of this week’s civil decisions of the Court of Appeal for Ontario, including Ontario Inc. v. Maple Leafs Foods Inc., in which the Court decided Maple Leafs Foods did not have a duty not to harm the reputation or profits of Mr. Sub franchisees who sold Maple Leaf meats; and, on the Criminal Law front, the Court's decision in R. v. Forcillo, in which the appeal from the conviction of the constable for attempted murder was dismissed.

If you don’t know Footnote 4, you don’t know Antic: How a Supreme Court footnote changes the way we think about bail.