R v Sharma: SCC to Determine whether Restrictions on Conditional Sentences Violate the Equality Rights of Indigenous Offenders
“The figures are stark and reflect what may fairly be termed a crisis.”
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Haritha Popuri
United Nurses of Alberta v Alberta Health Services: Test for discrimination in family status cases remains unsettled
Does the test for prima facie discrimination need to be altered in family status cases to avoid disruptions in the workplace? The Supreme Court of Canada (“SCC”) has declined to answer this question for now, dismissing the application for leave to appeal United Nurses of Alberta v Alberta Health Services, 2021 ABCA 194 [UNA 2021]. […]
Treaty-shopping is not Inherently Abusive Tax Avoidance in Canada v Alta Energy Luxembourg S.A.R.L.
In Canada v Alta Energy Luxembourg S.A.R.L., 2021 SCC 49 [Alta Energy], the Supreme Court of Canada (“SCC”) unanimously held that taxpayers are entitled to arrange their affairs under international tax treaties to minimize their liability. These arrangements – also referred to as ‘treaty-shopping’ – will not necessarily be considered abusive unless the absence of […]
Incapacity Precludes - not Vitiates - Consent in R. v. G.F.
Content Warning: Sexual assault and intoxication The Supreme Court of Canada (“SCC”) has clarified that capacity is a precondition for consent in sexual assault offences in R v G.F., 2021 SCC 20 [G.F.]. As the two are “inextricably joined,” the majority ruled that trial judges are not required to consider the two issues in any […]
Appeal Watch: Crown must increase annual payments to its Anishinaabe treaty partners in Restoule v Canada
In 1850, the Anishinaabe of the upper Great Lakes agreed to share their vast territory in exchange for hunting and fishing rights, as well as an annual payment (“annuity”) from the Crown. The Crown promised that the annuities could increase over time so long as resource development in the area proved profitable. Mining and forestry […]
SCC Narrowly Rules Mid-Election Changes to Toronto City Council were Charter-Compliant
Three months into the 2018 Toronto City Council election, a newly elected provincial government passed the Better Local Government Act, 2018, SO 2018, c 11 [Act], slashing the number of municipal wards from 47 to 25. “For the remaining campaign period,” writes Justice Abella, dissenting in Toronto (City) v Ontario (Attorney General), 2021 SCC 34 […]
Appeal Watch: Executive Authority Trenches on Legislative Protections for Post-Secondary Student Associations in Canadian Federation of Students v Ontario
In Canadian Federation of Students v Ontario, 2021 ONCA 553 [CFS 2021], the Court of Appeal for Ontario (“the Court”) unanimously ruled that the Minister of Colleges and Universities cannot condition funding to post-secondary institutions on a student opt-out mechanism for “non-essential” ancillary fees. The Court found that this exercise of the government’s spending power […]
R v Desautel: Aboriginal peoples outside of Canada may hold rights under s 35(1)
On April 23, 2021, a majority of the Supreme Court of Canada held in R v Desautel, 2021 SCC 17 [Desautel] that “the aboriginal peoples of Canada,” who hold rights under s 35(1) of the Constitution Act, 1982 [Constitution], are the modern successors of those Aboriginal societies that occupied lands now referred to as Canada […]