Family
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May 16, 2025
Federal Court extends deadlines for immigration JRs due to surging cases, inadequate gov’t funding
Contending with far too many immigration cases for its tight budget, the Federal Court this week extended by 45 days its regulation 30-day deadlines for litigants to perfect their applications for leave and judicial review of immigration decisions (ALJRs). Why? Because the registry’s beleaguered staff simply can’t keep up, and now often needs weeks rather than days to intake and process the ALJRs — which have more than quadrupled the average volume the court experienced over the five years immediately preceding the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic.
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May 16, 2025
Ontario case highlights human oversight function in generative AI which cannot be ignored: law prof
An Ontario judge has criticized a lawyer for the apparent use of generative artificial intelligence (AI) in a factum which provided several incorrect case citations, and legal experts are saying the judge's admonishments highlight the need for human oversight of AI and increased attention to the guidance provided by law societies and courts on the use of the technology by legal professionals.
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May 15, 2025
Ottawa welcomes ‘historic’ international ruling that Russia shot down Malaysian civilian airliner
As Canada pursues a separate case against Iran at the UN’s International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) — for the illegal downing of a Ukrainian civilian airliner in 2020 — Ottawa said it “welcomes” the ICAO’s recent determination that the Russian Federation shot down Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17 in 2014, in breach of Russia’s obligations under international law.
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May 15, 2025
Women in the practice of law
We as a profession are quite rightly proud of the influx of women to the practice of law. The small minority of women in my graduating class in the 1970s has given way to equality of numbers or better in today’s graduating classes. But, as my daughter points out, that is not the test. The test is retention: how women in the profession are treated and how their different needs are addressed.
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May 14, 2025
New federal Cabinet ministers talk tax cuts, lowering trade barriers, work-life balance and Gaza
Newly minted federal Cabinet ministers spoke for the first time about their portfolios with Hill media on May 14, as Prime Minister Mark Carney vowed that the Liberals’ promised “middle-class” tax cut will be in place by July 1, 2025, and Finance and National Revenue Minister François-Philippe Champagne disclosed that the minority Liberal government has no plans for a federal budget this year — but intends to deliver an economic statement on an unspecified date in fall 2025.
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May 14, 2025
Alberta releases strategy to end gender-based violence, prioritizes financial empowerment
In an effort to address gender-based violence and “create a safer home for every Albertan,” the Government of Alberta has issued a 10-year strategy to “engage men and boys as partners, enhance women’s economic empowerment and ensure targeted programs are Indigenous-led.”
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May 14, 2025
Quebec Superior Court orders amendments to Civil Code to recognize multi-parent families
In a landmark decision that redefines the legal framework for parenthood in Quebec, Superior Court has given the provincial government 12 months to amend the Civil Code to introduce a new system of filiation that would make it possible to legally recognize more than two parents for the same child.
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May 13, 2025
New Carney Liberal Cabinet puts many lawyers on front benches in critical federal leadership roles
Lawyers who were key Cabinet members in Justin Trudeau's erstwhile minority Liberal government have assumed dominant roles in Prime Minister Mark Carney's new 29-member Liberal Cabinet.
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May 13, 2025
Limitation period for appeal of arbitration award upheld despite later interpretation award
In Nordine v. Nordine, 2025 BCSC 829, the British Columbia Supreme Court recently considered an appeal to strike a Notice of Appeal from a family arbitration award.
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May 13, 2025
Addressing controversies over shared parenting orders
There is significant controversy about shared parenting, in particular whether there should be a presumption that courts impose shared or equal parenting time, but there is very little empirical research that directly addresses whether this is desirable. With the support of Ontario family lawyers, we plan to address this important gap in knowledge.