Access to Justice
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February 18, 2025
Duty to give AI reasons: Explainability at work
Procedural fairness is the cornerstone of any legitimate legal system. It ensures that legal proceedings are conducted with transparency, equity and respect for the rule of law. In an era where artificial intelligence (AI) is becoming increasingly integrated into judicial and administrative decision-making, two principles are emerging as non-negotiable requirements of procedural fairness: explainability, and the “human-in-the-loop” (HITL) principle.
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February 18, 2025
Never say you are suicidal | David Dorson
On admission to any provincial jail or federal prison one of the first questions you will be asked is whether you have any suicidal feelings. This makes sense; the experience of being arrested can be quite traumatic, and sitting in a jail cell thinking about the consequences can easily bring thoughts of despair. Your life looks ruined and the future can seem bleak indeed.
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February 14, 2025
Yukon releases feedback on potential changes to parentage, child-naming laws
Yukon’s government has released feedback received on potential changes to the territory’s laws on parentage and the naming of children.
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February 14, 2025
Unifor members win ‘historic’ $15 million arbitration award in severance pay dispute
Unifor has announced it has won what it calls a “historic arbitration award” of about $15 million for 200 of its union members who worked at Wingham, Ont.-based automotive exhaust manufacturer Wescast Industries. The union and the company were involved in a nearly two-year dispute regarding severance and termination pay.
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February 14, 2025
Jump principle properly considered in sentencing, Appeal court decides
Sentencing is often said to be the most challenging part of a trial judge’s duties. As pointed out in R. v. Hamilton (2004), 189 O.A.C. 90 (C.A.), sentencing is a human process that requires a look at the specific offence as well as the unique attributes of the offender.
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February 13, 2025
CBA urges new funding as Federal Court’s massive budget shortfall threatens drastic service cuts
The Liberal government’s underfunding of the Federal Court could “drastically” reduce service to litigants, its chief justice warns, spurring the Canadian Bar Association (CBA) to call for urgent “off-cycle” federal funding to address the national trial court’s chronic multi-million-dollar budgetary shortfalls.
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February 13, 2025
NWT looking for input on new Builders’ Lien Act
The Northwest Territories is looking for input on regulations needed to bring into force its Builders’ Lien Act — new legislation setting out the legal rights and remedies for those embroiled in construction disputes.
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February 12, 2025
Ontario joins settlement requiring GS Partners to provide refunds to digital asset investors
Ontario’s securities regulator has joined a multi-jurisdictional settlement requiring GS Partners and its affiliates to refund all money and cryptocurrency deposited by investors after allegedly offering illegal digital asset investments tied to blockchain technology, gold, and metaverse projects.
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February 12, 2025
Feds release report on stakeholder concerns regarding copyright and generative AI policies
A federal government report on how copyright should be protected from potential threats posed by generative AI (artificial intelligence) reveals sharply divided views among industry stakeholders.
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February 11, 2025
Claims process to begin for First Nations Child and Family Services, Jordan’s Principle Settlement
The Assembly of First Nations (AFN) has announced that the Federal Court has approved a launch date for the first claims period for those affected by the First Nations Child and Family Services Program and the narrow application of Jordan’s Principle class action settlement.