Women Ski Jumpers Grounded…
The BC Court of Appeal has dismissed an appeal filed on behalf of a number of a group of women ski jumpers attempting to get inclusion into next years olympics being held in Vancouver. Â Written…
Constitutional Law
Getting justice is no popularity contest
Available online here By Kashif Ahmed, Special to The StarPhoenix November 13, 2009 Friday the 13th often is disparaged as an unlucky day, or conversely, lauded as one that brings good fortune. Canadian citizen Omar…
EPA lawyers who criticize cap-and-trade cautioned by EPA over professional ethics
As the controversy over impeding U.S. climate legislation continues to simmer, one interesting recent development is the spotlight on two California EPA attorneys: Laurie Williams and Allan Zabel. The N.Y. Times reported that the U.S….
Federal Securities Regulation
On Oct 22 an anonymous Law is Cool contributor posted a comment about the Federal Government’s intention to submit a reference to the SCC about whether a federal securities regulator is intra vires the Constitution.  …
Journalistic privilege
Paper fights to shield its source Tonda MacCharles writes for the Toronto Star: The constitutional guarantee of a free press is “meaningless” if it does not protect journalists from being forced to reveal the identity…
Canada’s own version of SEC to be vetted by Supreme Court
Ottawa to seek top court ruling on single securities regulator Unlike the US, Canada doesn’t have a national securities regulator. Canadian constitution is somewhat equivocal in its division of powers between provinces and Ottawa. It…
Attn CSIS: American Airlines Flight 93 Doesn’t Exist
Justice Tremblay-Lamer of the Federal Court has quashed the controversial case against Adil Charkaoui, the alleged terrorist detained on a security certificate. In his 2004 case before the Federal Court, the government made submissions that…
Withler We Go From Here: The Future of Pension Reform
Western Law hosted a forum on pension reform this past Thursday, featuring community leaders, legal academics, and practitioners. Pension Plan Basics Prof. Robert Brown of the University of Waterloo explained some of the basics behind…
Anti-Anti-Olympic Bylaw in BC Unconstitutional?
The CBC reports: Anti-Olympic signs could mean jail: rights group (Oct 9): A proposed B.C. law would allow municipal officials to enter homes to seize unauthorized and possibly anti-Olympic signs on short notice, civil libertarians…
Should the Governor General be Our Head of State?
Prime Minister Stephen Harper rebuked Governor General Michaëlle today after the Governor General referred to herself as Canada’s head of state at an executive meeting of UNESCO in France. He is correct: Canada’s head of…
Proposed Drunk Driving Law Would Face Constitutional Challenge
Reported by Canwest News Service, the Canadian Department of Justice is proposing a new law that would allow police officers to randomly demand breath samples in an effort to curtail drunk driving, without respect to…
Lawyers be warned: Dress well for court
Lawyers be warned: Dress well for court A federal judge in Brooklyn, New York, has thrown out a complaint by a lawyer alleging a constitutional right to wear jeans and a baseball hat in a…