On May 15, 2023, the Supreme Court of Canada [“SCC” or “the Court”] will hear the appeal of R. v. Zacharias, 2022 ABCA 112 [“Zacharias”]. The appeal is from the Alberta Court of Appeal [“ABCA”] and relates to alleged breaches of the accused’s rights under ss. 8 and 9 of the Canadian Charter of Rights […]
On February 15, 2023, the Supreme Court of Canada [“SCC” or “the Court”] heard the appeal in R. c. Marchand, 2021 QCCA 1285 [Marchand QCCA] concerning the constitutionality of the mandatory minimum sentence for the offence of child luring. The case is on appeal from the Québec Court of Appeal [“QCCA”], which upheld the trial judge’s conclusion that the mandatory minimum sentence violated s. 12 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms [“Charter”]. Section 12 guarantees the right not to be subjected to cruel and unusual punishment.
The Supreme Court of Canada [“SCC” or “The Court”] recently released its decision on three Alberta cases: R. v. Hills 2023 SCC 2 [“Hills”] and R. v. Hilbach 2023 SCC 3, the latter argued with the companion appeal, R. v. Zwozdesky. These cases challenge the constitutionality of mandatory minimum sentencing provisions, inviting the Court to […]
The Supreme Court of Canada [“SCC” or “The Court”] recently released its decision on three Alberta cases: R. v. Hills 2023 SCC 2 [“Hills”] and R. v. Hilbach 2023 SCC 3 [“Hilbach”], the latter argued with the companion appeal, R. v. Zwozdesky. These cases challenge the constitutionality of mandatory minimum sentencing provisions, inviting the Court […]
In R v Tim, 2022 SCC 12 [Tim], the Supreme Court of Canada (“SCC” or “the Court”) affirmed convictions for drug and firearm offences despite the initial arrest having been made by a police officer who mistakenly identified the prescription drug gabapentin as a controlled substance. The dissent would have acquitted the accused, finding that […]
In R v Sharma, 2022 SCC 29 [“Sharma”], the Supreme Court of Canada [“SCC”/”the Court"] upheld the constitutionality of provisions that restricted the availability of conditional sentences. This decision marks a break from the SCC’s recent trend of overturning amendments to the Criminal Code, RSC 1985, c C-46 [“Code”] made during the Harper era. Conditional […]
In its recent decision, R v Ndhlovu, 2022 SCC 38 [Ndhlovu], the Supreme Court of Canada [“SCC”] struck down two provisions of the Criminal Code, RSC 1985, c C-46 [“the Code”] relating to registration of offenders convicted of designated sexual offences in the national sex offender registry. In its 5-4 ruling, the majority held that […]
On May 27, 2022, the Supreme Court of Canada (“SCC”) decided R. v. Bissonnette, 2022 SCC 23 [Bissonnette], in which the Court considered the constitutional status of s. 745.51 of the Criminal Code, RSC 1985, c C-46 [“Code”]. In Canadian criminal law, an offender convicted of first-degree murder automatically receives a sentence of life imprisonment, […]
The Supreme Court of Canada ("SCC") decided R v Brown, 2022 SCC 18 [Brown] and R v Sullivan, 2022 SCC 19 [Sullivan] together on May 13, 2022. Much attention was on the Court's decision in Brown, which declared s. 33.1 of the Criminal Code, RSC 1985, c C-46 ["the Code"] unconstitutional under s. 52(1) of […]