Articles 2023

Before the ongoing round of collective bargaining between the Crown and bargaining agents for school boards and education workers, the Ontario government introduced legislation that would cap the compensation of public sector employees, including education workers.

In July 2019, a fine of $2.7M was levied against Kirby Offshore Marine Operating LLC for violations of the Fisheries Act. The news raises a broader question: are fines for environmental offenses rising faster than inflation? If so, to what end? Is there any indication that these larger fines are changing behaviour? This review looks at the legislative changes in the minimum and maximum environmental fines, and whether these changes are actually having any real effects on the quantum of fines.

This article explores the desirability of mediation in human rights cases, the appropriate process and the crucial role of the mediator (including non-HRTO complaints).

Welcome back! The Constitutional, Civil Liberties and Human Rights Section Executive has already been hard at work on a number of initiatives for this year. We welcome our new executive members and look forward to an engaging year of outreach and programming.

Recently, the Court of Appeal for Ontario was asked to determine the constitutionality of mid-election changes to the City of Toronto's municipal ward structure (City of Toronto v Ontario (AG), 2019 ONCA 732, rev'g 2018 ONSC 5151). While the election that sparked the litigation has long passed, the Court of Appeal's decision nonetheless offers insight on constitutional issues of fundamental and continuing importance.

Drawing on successful examples from other fields and jurisdictions, this article suggest several ways to encourage young lawyers to practice in rural areas. Among other things, this article suggests that law schools should persuade articling students to article in rural areas, governments should provide loan forgiveness programs to lawyers who practice in rural areas and townships or counties could offer incentives for lawyers to move there.

Rajen Akalu, the leader of the research team that drafted a privacy code of practice for connected vehicles for the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada, describes the project and its importance.

Significant changes to the Construction Act came into force in Ontario on October 1, 2019.  While prompt payment and adjudication have been receiving most of the attention, a significant change to how construction liens are preserved in respect of municipal premises should not be overlooked.

Following are this week’s summaries of the civil decisions of the Court of Appeal for Ontario.