sentencing principles

When Reconciliation Meets Denunciation: Gladue and the Supreme Court’s Challenge in R v Cope

In early 2025, the Supreme Court of Canada granted leave to appeal the decision in R v Cope, a split decision from the Nova Scotia Court of Appeal. The primary question of law on appeal concerns how sentencing judges should balance the reconciliatory imperatives of R v Gladue, and R v Ipeelee, with Parliament’s emphasis on denunciation and deterrence as primary considerations in cases involving violence against Indigenous women.

R v Hilbach: SCC Holds Mandatory Minimum Sentence for Firearm Offence is Constitutional

Last year, the Supreme Court of Canada (“SCC”) heard three cases in relation to the constitutionality  of certain firearm  offences with mandatory minimums in the Criminal Code, RSC 1985, c C-46 (the “CC”). This line of cases included: R v Hills, 2023 SCC 2 [Hills], R v Hilbach, 2023 SCC 3 [Hilbach], and R v […]

“Time Served” for Mandatory Minimum Sentences?: SCC Grants Leave to Appeal in Basque v The Queen

The Supreme Court of Canada (“SCC”) will revisit mandatory minimum sentences in Jennifer Basque v Her Majesty the Queen (SCC case no. 39997, leave to appeal granted March 10, 2022). This time, the SCC will consider whether pre-sentence prohibitions can, like “time served”, be credited to reduce a sentence below the mandatory minimum. Background Jennifer […]

Implementing ‘Impact of Race and Culture Assessments’ in the Sentencing of Black Nova Scotian Offenders: R v Anderson

How should criminal courts account for the existence of systemic and pervasive anti-Black racism when sentencing Black offenders? This is the question that the Nova Scotia Court of Appeal (“NSCA”) grappled with in R v Anderson, 2021 NSCA 62 [Anderson]. More specifically, the appellate court examined how evidence from ‘Impact of Race and Culture Assessments’ […]

Starting-Point Sentencing is Here to Stay, Supreme Court Rules in R v Parranto

In R v Parranto, 2021 SCC 46 [Parranto], the Supreme Court (“the Court”) weighed in on the criminal sentences of two drug traffickers in Alberta. In the process, they made powerful statements about individualized sentences, the power of provincial appeal courts and the future of criminal sentencing.

Appeal Watch: Consecutive Ineligible Parole Periods Deemed Unconstitutional in Attorney General of Quebec, et al. v. Alexandre Bissonnette

*TRIGGER WARNING: This post has descriptions of violence that may be triggering to some readers* Since the abolition of the death penalty, the highest sentence a judge can prescribe to a criminal offender is a life sentence with a 25-year parole ineligibility period. Where there are multiple murder victims, under s. 745.51 of the Criminal […]

Systemic Oppression in Sentencing: ONCA to Rule on Anti-Black Racism Reports in R v Morris

On February 11, 2021, the Ontario Court of Appeal (“ONCA”) will hear the Crown’s appeal to Justice Shaun Nakatsuru’s decision in R v Morris, 2018 ONSC 5186 [Morris]. In his decision, Justice Nakatsuru used pre-sentencing reports on anti-Black racism and the social history of the defendant to account for the factor of systemic racism in […]

SCC to Review Alberta’s 9-year "Starting Point" Sentence for Fentanyl Trafficking

Canada’s opioid crisis has been even deadlier than COVID-19. There were 16,364 apparent opioid-related deaths between January 2016 and March 2020, with the situation worsening during the current pandemic.

Sentencing Principles for Sexual Offences Against Children: SCC’s Stance in R v Friesen

Content warning: The following article contains content regarding sexual offences against a child that may be triggering for some readers.   What elements should be considered when determining sentencing principles for sexual offences against children? Are there special factors that need to be considered for these morally reprehensible offences, or do offenders deserve more certainty […]

A Sticky Situation: SCC Grants Leave to Appeal for Maple Syrup Heist Case in R v Vallières

In August 2012, the Federation of Quebec Maple Syrup Producers (“PPAQ”) filed a complaint with the Quebec police that 5.9 million pounds of maple syrup, valuing $17.8 million, had been stolen from a warehouse in St-Louis-de-Blanford. The sensational story garnered media coverage from all over the world, and a whole episode in Netflix’s Dirty Money […]