This is a special guest contributor article. On June 17, 1999, the Supreme Court of Canada handed down two decisions dealing with the same topic. One of them, Bazley v. Curry, has become the leading Canadian case on vicarious liability; the other one, Jacobi v. Griffiths is less well-known. A quantitative indication of their different […]
Driving, as a licensed activity, carries certain limitations. Perhaps most important among them is the prohibition against driving while impaired. But the law cannot reach every corner of a person’s life. At a certain point, privacy interests come into play. To be a driver in Ontario is to drive a vehicle on a “highway”—that is, […]
The Supreme Court of Canada (“SCC”) will soon comment on the compelling question of how far Crown immunity stretches. Having granted leave to appeal in Attorney General of Canada v Power, 2022 NBCA 14, the SCC will soon provide clarity as to whether or not the Crown can be held liable for damages for passing […]
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 […]
In R v Metzger, 2023 SCC 5 [Metzger], the Supreme Court of Canada (“SCC”) upheld the acquittal of Shawn Metzger, who had been convicted of a number of offences arising from a home invasion robbery, on the grounds that the evidence in the case was circumstantial (Metzger, para 1). In the process, the SCC overruled […]
On February 2, 2023, the Supreme Court of Canada (“SCC”) granted leave to appeal from the Court Martial Appeal Court of Canada (“CMAC”) in the case of R v Christmas, 2020 CM 3009 [Christmas]. In this case, the CMAC considers whether a military officer’s s. 11(d) Charter right “to be presumed innocent until proven guilty […]
Introduction On September 1st 2022, after nearly eleven years of service, the Honourable Michael Moldaver retired from his post as Justice on the Supreme Court of Canada (“SCC”). This article will take a look at the illustrious career of Justice Moldaver, including his most noteworthy contributions to the SCC’s jurisprudence, while also applying a critical […]
Introduction The Supreme Court of Canada (“SCC”) bifurcated 8-1 in Canada (Attorney General) v Collins Family Trust, 2022 SCC 26 (“Collins”) with Brown J writing for the majority and Côté J dissenting. The SCC majority allowed the Crown’s appeal from the British Columbia Court of Appeal (“BCCA”) concerning the tax planning and the Income Tax […]
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.
In Elementary Teachers Federation of Ontario v York Region District School Board, 2022 ONCA 476 [Elementary Teachers], the Ontario Court of Appeal (“ONCA”) explored whether employees had a right to be protected against unreasonable search and seizure in the workplace under section 8 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms [Charter]. Determining that employees have section 8 Charter rights, the ONCA also ruled on the scope of employees’ reasonable expectation of privacy, setting out important developments on this issue in the process. On March 16, 2023, the Supreme Court of Canada (“SCC”) granted the application for leave to appeal in this case.