Articles

The following articles are published by OBA Sections, including the Student Section. Members are encouraged to submit articles.

Editor: Cláudio Antônio Klaus Júnior 

Today
Today

Case Note: R. v. Sulllivan

  • June 23, 2020
  • Teddy Weinstein

Section 33.1 of the Criminal Code states a person is guilty of a violent offence, even if they were so intoxicated that they did not know what they were doing, so long as that intoxication was self-induced. This month, the Ontario Court of Appeal declared the provision of no force or effect, declaring s. 33.1 unconstitutional for violating sections 7 and 11(d) of the Charter. This note summarizes this important decision.

Constitutional, Civil Liberties and Human Rights Law, Student Forum

Ontario Considers Eliminating Juries from Civil Trials

  • June 23, 2020
  • David Milosevic, Milosevic Fiske LLP

Ontario's Attorney General considers eliminating civil jury trials, as a response to the expected backlog created by the COVID-19 pandemic. David Fiske reviews the underlying reasoning.

Civil Litigation, Student Forum
Illustration of a woman standing and watching leaves float in the wind

Redefining Resilience

  • June 21, 2020
  • Rachel Migicovsky, Member-at-Large

What are lawyers worried about in the midst of a global pandemic? The issues are varied, from balancing childcare with work, to caring for vulnerable elderly family members, to financial concerns. Yet, there is a common thread: people are feeling the pressures of this moment in time and need a way to cope. In this article, Rachel Migicovsky discusses how building up resilience can help people acknowledge and accept the emotional distress they may be feeling.

Women Lawyers Forum, Student Forum
Rachel Sachs, Vice-Chair

This is What a Lawyer Looks Like: Meet Alexandria Winterburn

  • June 21, 2020
  • Rachel Sachs, Vice-Chair

The face of law is changing. In an effort to highlight the diverse range of individuals working across the legal landscape, we are pleased to present our new series, This is What a Lawyer Looks Like. The goal of this series is to put racialized and Indigenous women lawyers in the spotlight and amplify their voices in the conversation about gender equality. In this instalment: meet Alexandria Winterburn, a lawyer with a wealth of wisdom and experience in Indigenous rights and Aboriginal law.

Women Lawyers Forum, Student Forum

Opportunities for Law Students in the Age of COVID-19 and Beyond: a resource list for in-house counsel

  • June 21, 2020
  • Barbara De Dios, corporate counsel, Canadian Dental Services Corporation

The Canadian Corporate Counsel Association - Ontario Chapter has compiled a resource list of career development divisions and contacts at various law schools across the province of Ontario, in the event that its members may have opportunities available at their respective organizations (or know of opportunities within their networks), in support of students who may be experiencing difficulties with the job market as a result of COVID-19.

Canadian Corporate Counsel Association - Ontario Chapter, Student Forum

FCA Confirms CASL is Constitutional, but Limits Business Communications Exemption

  • June 21, 2020
  • Molly Reynolds, Ronak Shah, Andrew Bernstein and Saambavi Mano

The Federal Court of Appeal recently dismissed an appeal against two CRTC decisions regarding enforcement actions under CASL. In addition to upholding the Commercial Electronic Message provisions as constitutional, the Court provided clarity on the “business-to-business” and conspicuous publication exemptions, as well as the unsubscribe mechanism requirements.

Privacy Law, Student Forum

Court of Appeal Summaries (June 8 – 12, 2020)

  • June 19, 2020
  • John Polyzogopoulos

Following are our summaries of last week’s civil decisions released by the Court of Appeal for Ontario. There were four substantive decisions, but quite a few very short ones.

Civil Litigation, Student Forum