Pro Bono

Henceforth legalese should not be used -- i.e., it should cease, desist and be at an end

rabble staff — Thu, 26 Jan 2017 14:59:36 +0000

Thursday, January 26, 2017

Law is a tool. It's a tool for everyone to use. And with increasing numbers of people representing themselves in court and using legal how-to books and online resources, everyone is using it. Lawyers and judges have a responsibility to talk and write clearly so that others can effectively use the tool.

Legalese is the term used for language used by lawyers and in legal documents that is difficult for ordinary people to understand. Here are four techniques that exclude others:

Law is a tool. Lawyers and judges have a responsibility to talk and write clearly so that others can effectively use the tool.

Public interest should be central to regulation of charities' political activities

rabble staff — Wed, 04 Jan 2017 21:17:37 +0000

Thursday, January 5, 2017

Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) has been notorious in recent years for its attacks on charities for their alleged political activities. Charities concerned about climate change and Aboriginal rights bore the brunt, with some still awaiting the attitude change promised by Justin Trudeau when he took power.

Taking Trudeau at his word, our law firm provided our thoughts to the Liberals' inquiry on the issue of how charities' political activities should be regulated.

Here's a précis. The full submission is here.

Charities, as advocates for the public interest, should be at least as unfettered as the voices of private interests when engaging in advocacy that advances their charitable purposes.

Taking racist sports logos to court: Sports, tropes and prospects for change

rabble staff — Thu, 24 Nov 2016 13:29:54 +0000

Thursday, November 24, 2016

On October 14, 2016, the Superior Court of Ontario heard an application for an injunction preventing the display, broadcast, and dissemination of the team name and logo of the "Cleveland Indians," a U.S. baseball team scheduled to play at the Rogers Centre later that day. The team, whose offensive logo has long been the subject of criticism amongst Indigenous Americans, was playing against the Toronto Blue Jays as part of the American League Championship Series.

An application for an injunction preventing the dissemination of the team name of the "Cleveland Indians" has drawn renewed attention to the issue of racial stereotyping in sports.

Landlords and tenants to fight out right to grow medical marijuana under new regulations

rabble staff — Thu, 27 Oct 2016 12:53:44 +0000

Thursday, October 27, 2016

The new Access to Cannabis for Medical Purposes Regulation (ACMPR), which came into force on August 24, 2016, has changed how patients with prescriptions for medical marijuana can get their medicine. The ACMPR came to be, in part, as a response to a Federal Court ruling that the former Marihuana for Medical Purposes Regulations (MMPR) violated the Charter because it prohibited personal production of medical cannabis. For many medicinal cannabis users, the cost of accessing through the channels allowed under the MMPR were simply unaffordable.

While new regulations governing the growth of medical marijuana provide a quick solution for the issue of reasonable access, they leave the tough questions for tenants and housing providers.

With judges like Robin Camp, how impartial is Canada's justice system?

rabble staff — Thu, 29 Sep 2016 13:51:31 +0000

Thursday, September 29, 2016

I was recently listening to a radio program featuring racialized lawyers in Ontario discussing the challenges they faced in the legal profession and was struck by my reaction. I thought: how unfortunate that this was all being shared publicly. Unfortunate, not because I did not believe the experiences of these individuals or sympathize with the challenges they were describing, but because I didn't want people to know about the challenges. Why would anyone hire a racialized lawyer if they knew that the lawyer felt that there was a higher standard placed on them in court, by judges, as compared with their non‑racialized colleagues?

An inquiry into the conduct of Federal Court Judge Robin Camp when he presided over a sexual assault trial raises some hard questions about the impartiality of the Canadian justice system.

From Rio to Tokyo, gender discrimination in sport continues

rabble staff — Thu, 25 Aug 2016 13:06:52 +0000

Thursday, August 25, 2016

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The treatment of athletes like Caster Semenya at the Rio Olympics shows that the rights of women who do not conform to binary understandings of sex are deemed less worthy of protection than others.

Privacy compromised: Legal rights and protections in Canada

rabble staff — Thu, 28 Jul 2016 14:29:04 +0000

Thursday, July 28, 2016

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What should the institutions that are privy to our private information do when they have to deal with competing privacy and secrecy concerns? Michael Hackl looks at Canada's privacy laws to find out.

Alberta parents 'morally blameworthy' in son's death: The moral dimension of alternative health care

rabble staff — Thu, 30 Jun 2016 13:04:14 +0000

Thursday, June 30, 2016

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In April, a jury found David and Collet Stephan guilty of "failing to provide the necessaries of life" when their son Ezekiel died of meningitis. Where does morality enter in, and should it?

Bill C-16 introduces transgender protections but keeps Harper's damaging human rights legacy

rabble staff — Wed, 25 May 2016 21:11:54 +0000

Thursday, May 26, 2016

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Protection of transgender rights is long overdue. But does Bill C-16 go far enough in undoing the Harper government's damage to equality rights in Canada?

Inquiry into missing and murdered Indigenous women brings hope and challenges

rabble staff — Wed, 27 Apr 2016 23:35:58 +0000

Thursday, April 28, 2016

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On December 8, 2015, the federal government announced that it was launching a national inquiry into missing and murdered Indigenous women. What can we expect from the process?

A taxing matter: Non-profits await change from Liberal government

rabble staff — Thu, 31 Mar 2016 12:18:34 +0000

Thursday, March 31, 2016

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In mandate letters to his newly appointed ministers, Justin Trudeau told Finance Minister Bill Morneau, and his minister responsible for Canada Revenue Agency (CRA), Diane Lebouthillier, to:

"modernize the rules governing the charitable and non-for-profit sectors. …. A new legislative framework to strengthen the sector will emerge from this process."

The Trudeau government has promised to modernize the rules governing the non-profit sector, which was left under a chill by the Conservatives. What needs to change?

read more

Outgrowing the government: Medical cannabis access in Canada in light of the Allard decision

rabble staff — Thu, 03 Mar 2016 13:24:55 +0000

Thursday, March 3, 2016

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Each week, new retail storefronts are opening in the city of Toronto. But these aren't your average retailers.

Medical cannabis dispensaries, storefronts which dispense cannabis on-site to those with medical conditions, have historically operated on the margins of the law, providing access to patients since a time in Canada when there was no legal means of doing so.

Cities like Vancouver, Victoria and Toronto are experiencing a medical cannabis dispensary boom -- neon lights and all. What is going on? Why now? And are they legal?

Service animals for mental health: An emerging issue in disability law

rabble staff — Wed, 27 Jan 2016 20:29:05 +0000

Thursday, January 28, 2016

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The various rules addressing accessibility create a patchy framework that is not adequate to protect the rights of people with mental disabilities to the much‑needed assistance of a support animal.

Because it's 2015: Calling for gender equality in the legal profession

rabble staff — Wed, 16 Dec 2015 22:20:04 +0000

Thursday, December 17, 2015

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"Because it's 2015"...

was the freshly minted PM's response to the question, "why gender parity in the cabinet?" And good on him. I think we can all agree that equality of numbers is a start and can set a tone for the rest of society.

I've been reminded a few times lately that Justin's tone of sunny ways regarding gender parity is sadly lacking in the legal profession.

Let those 30 women and men in Justin Trudeau's cabinet show us all that sex is irrelevant to merit. And please let that viewpoint trickle down into all parts of society, even law.

The state of assisted-dying legislation after Carter

rabble staff — Thu, 26 Nov 2015 01:22:55 +0000

Thursday, November 26, 2015

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It has been nine months since the Supreme Court released its ruling in Carter v. Canada, striking down the constitutionality of the Criminal Code sections which prohibit physician-assisted suicide.