As one of the most affluent countries in the world – a country that has weathered the financial crisis better than most – Canada's children should be thriving. Instead, they are more likely than children in most other affluent countries to be poor. We talk about the strength of our economy, but our … [Read more...]
Overhead Overdone?
During my youth collecting hockey cards was a rite of passage – and a few of my contemporaries continued to amass collections into adulthood. I am not a hobbyist by nature, but I do collect junk mail from cable companies. That’s because I so frequently hear complaints about the number of direct mail … [Read more...]
Co-Tenants and Co-Responsibilities
Kim and Tim are in love. They decide to move in to a new place together, and they both sign the lease. Kim and Tim fall out of love, and Kim moves out. Tim stays living in the apartment for three years, and then he falls behind on his rent payments. Three years after Kim moved out, she gets sued by … [Read more...]
Equality Case Seems to Have Fractured the Supreme Court of Canada
A recent decision of the Supreme Court of Canada (SCC) Quebec (Attorney General) v A, 2013 SCC 5, seems to have divided the Court on the issue of discrimination and equality in a manner somewhat reminiscent of the fractured Court of the mid 1990s (see the “equality trilogy”: Miron v Trudel, [1995] 2 … [Read more...]
Whatever Happened to … Moore and Bertuzzi?
Introduction Steve Moore grew up in Thornhill, Ontario. After graduating high school in 2001, he played hockey with Harvard University for a few years. In the 2003-04 season, he broke through to sign with the Colorado Avalanche of the National Hockey League (NHL), playing defense on the third and … [Read more...]
Post-Employment Legal Obligations
Introduction As with most relationships, employment relationships end. This may be by mutual parting, the employee quitting, or the employee being dismissed. The end of a relationship can mean that a few legal obligations continue. In this article, we briefly discuss the three principal … [Read more...]
The Yukon’s Open Entry Mining System Declared a Breach of the Duty to Consult with First Nations
Ross River Dena Council v Government of the Yukon 2012 YKCA 14 As Canada’s MPs returned to the House of Commons this January they were greeted by jingle dancers on Parliament Hill. The gathering was one of more than 30 to be held across Canada as part of a national day of action in … [Read more...]
Juvenile Justice in Namibia: A country and system in transition
Namibia is located on the west side and in sub-Saharan Africa. It is the fourth largest country in Africa but, as of 2011, had a scant population of around 2.3 million inhabitants. It is a country of stark contrasts, perhaps largely due to the fact that Namibia is arid and has limited capacity to … [Read more...]
What’s in a Name? Legal Issues in Changing a Child’s Name
What’s in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet. – Romeo and Juliet Juliet might have made a convincing argument to dismiss the importance of the label of the name, yet most people see their names as being directly connected with the people that they are. It … [Read more...]
The Tax Implications of Marital Breakdown
Breaking Up is Hard to Do The breakdown of a relationship creates sufficient personal upheaval that it is unreasonable to throw in the myriad legal implications that also result. Unfortunately, the law is not always reasonable. And, the tax provisions applicable to matrimonial breakup add further … [Read more...]