Sayed Kashua wrote his novel, Second Person Singular, as an Arab-Israeli. He has since sadly reflected on his need to leave Israel for the US, after years of trying to find a place for himself in a society that treated him and other Palestinians as second-class participants in a country dominated … [Read more...]
Criminal Court Haters, Take Note: What the #believethevictims Movement Fails to Recognize
No one condones sexual violence, harassment, assault or anything of that nature against women, or anyone else. Not the Judges, Courts, or Defence Lawyers. However, the sharp and profound movement that villanizes any participant of the criminal justice system that is involved in the acquittal of an … [Read more...]
Orwell on Law, Order and Corruption in Burma
George Orwell was an outstanding man of letters who is also quite likely the most influential political novelist of the 20th century. Best known for his satiric animal fable Animal Farm, and the dystopian novel 1984, he began his career as an unlikely candidate for literary stardom. His first … [Read more...]
To Charge or not to Charge? That is no longer the Question
The Ontario Court of Appeal finds no harm or foul in blanket mandatory fines.Pursuant to Section 737 of the Criminal Code of Canada, The Victim Fine Surcharge is a mandatory fine imposed on each and every individual that is found guilty of a criminal offence in Canada. On each summary … [Read more...]
Harassment as a New Workplace Safety Issue
Introduction Since harassment is the biggest trending topic related to the workplace, it seems opportune to highlight the harassment provisions in the new Alberta occupational health and safety ("OHS") legislation, which is known as Bill 30: An Act To Protect The Health And Well-Being Of Working … [Read more...]
Age Discrimination in Alberta Human Rights Legislation: New Developments
Alberta will be amending its Alberta Human Rights Act RSA 2000, c A-25.5 (“Act”), to expand protections for age discrimination and include improved program protections. Bill 23, which introduced amendments to the Act, was passed on November 14, 2017. These amendments were scheduled to come into … [Read more...]
Registered charity rights and privileges
Canadians recently marked the 35th anniversary of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Since it was enacted that document has profoundly altered the legal discourse – and the public’s perceptions – on many issues in Canadian law. Given this change, coupled with the centrality of free speech to the … [Read more...]
Conflict Between Parents, Part 3: More Strategies to Reduce Conflict, Active Listening and Looping
In Part 1 of this article, I wrote about the effects conflict between parents can have on their children. In Part 2, I talked about a number of techniques to defuse or diminish conflict, including a few basic communication strategies. In this, the final part of the series, I’m going to talk about … [Read more...]
Charity Federal Regulatory Round-Up
As the charitable sector awaits an announcement from the federal government on when and how it will be responding to the Report to the Minister of National Revenue of the Consultation Panel on the Political Activities of Charities (the "Panel"), a couple of lower profile regulatory developments have … [Read more...]
First Comes Trump Hat, Then Comes Racism
Yet Another Incident from the Ontario Court of Justice Raises Concerns About Those Presiding.A Justice of the Peace, presiding in Kenora, Ontario, decided that it was appropriate to make a racist remark, on the record, to an Aboriginal duty counsel in bail court this past August.Yes, you … [Read more...]
