Canada has an enviable public health care system, providing health care coverage to all Canadian citizens regardless of personal income. What this public system invariably leads to, though, is delays in getting medical treatment. And while those who want or even need to get treatment faster can seek private health care, they may find their […]
Due to a dearth of commercial appellate decisions around the holiday season, a tort decision from the Ontario Divisional Court has caught my attention. Swern v Amazon Hardwood Centre Inc, 2015 ONSC 7590 [Swern] is a Small Claims Court decision appealed by the Defendants to the Divisional Court on a number of well-reasoned points of […]
Mapleview-Veterans Drive Investments Inc. v Papa Kerollus VI Inc. (Mr. Sub), 2016 ONCA 93 [Mapleview], a case released yesterday by the Ontario Court of Appeal (“ONCA”), is the latest pronouncement on interpreting commercial lease provisions. While the outcome of the appeal is understandable given the facts relied upon by the parties, it causes concerns not […]
The Executives of Livent were masters of live performance. Known for producing popular shows such as The Phantom of the Opera and Show Boat, they never thought their own escapades would play out in the media as a protracted drama with a final act orchestrated by the highest court in Ontario.
The Court of Appeal’s decision last year in Ferri v Ontario (Attorney General), 2015 ONCA 683 [Ferri] shocked many in the municipal law community. Mario Ferri, a well-known Regional and City Councillor for Vaughan, brought an application on his own volition under the Municipal Conflict of Interest Act, R.S.O. 1990, c M.50 (“MCIA”) in the […]
In R v Elliott, 2016 ONCJ 35 [Elliott], Gregory Elliott was found not guilty of criminally harassing two women by repeatedly communicating with them via Twitter through various hashtags they had created. In my view, Mr. Elliott fulfills the definition of a “Twitter troll” and I find his opinions personally offensive. But is the fact […]
The Supreme Court’s judgment in R v Meer [2016 SCC 5] was very brief. In essence: appeal dismissed; majority below—right, dissent—wrong. The case itself, however, as described in the reasons of the Alberta Court of Appeal (“ABCA”) [2015 ABCA 141] from which the appeal was made, has all the qualities of a soap opera. It […]
Some time ago, I wrote a piece on the one line Supreme Court of Canada (“SCC”) holding that the appeal in R v Riesberry [Riesberry] is to be dismissed. In that article, I purported to prognosticate on the ratio to be derived from what, on the facts, appears to be a straightforward case. Briefly: a […]
The internet has made our life efficient and easier but it has also enabled bullies and predators to find new and persistent ways to reach their victims. A step in the right direction was taken by the Ontario Superior Court, in Doe 464533 v ND, 2016 ONSC 541 [Doe], by establishing the new tort of […]
In R v Rogers Communications, 2016 ONSC 70 [Rogers], Justice John Sproat of the Ontario Superior Court of Justice provided some much needed guidance to police and issuing justices when handling production orders for “tower dumps.” Sought by investigators through a court order, tower dumps occur when a telecom company is compelled to provide the […]