Intellectual Property
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August 15, 2025
Court upholds $45K damages award against spa owner using counterfeit equipment, products
The Federal Court of Appeal has upheld a $45,000 damages award against an Ontario spa and its owner for using counterfeit beauty equipment and products.
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August 14, 2025
DEI dilemma: U.S. state bars grapple with DEI programs, language amid legal threats
State bar leaders across the U.S. are wrestling with whether to stand firm on their diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs or quietly rework programs and language as they face rising political pressure and potential legal challenges.
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August 14, 2025
Bar ramps up campaign to end ‘Zoom-only’ policy & get intervener counsel back into SCC’s courtroom
Prominent intervener groups are telling the Supreme Court of Canada that its 2022 practice direction confining their counsel to Zoom and barring intervener lawyers from making submissions in person before the judges is hurting their advocacy and restricting access to justice for public interest groups. However, the top court says it’s sticking with its current policy since “virtual appearances have proven to be an effective means of supporting equal access.”
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August 11, 2025
‘The fight of our lifetime’: ABA president receives award for defending rule of law
“This is the fight of our lifetime,” said American Bar Association (ABA) president William Bay while receiving the Ontario Bar Association’s (OBA) President’s Award on behalf of American lawyers on Aug. 7. The award comes as the ABA has launched a lawsuit against the United States federal government for allegedly using its powers to coerce lawyers and law firms to abandon clients, causes and policy positions President Donald Trump opposes.
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August 11, 2025
Court dismisses Bayer’s appeal on timing of patent and retroactive eligibility
The Federal Court of Appeal has dismissed an appeal by pharmaceutical manufacturer Bayer regarding a subsequent entry version of the drug aflibercept by a competitor that did not cite the appellant’s patent despite being filed first.
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August 08, 2025
Federal judges seek $60K pay hike but Ottawa says no raise needed to attract senior bar to bench
Chief justices are pointing to newly disclosed data about private bar lawyers’ rising incomes and declining appointments to the bench to bolster the judiciary’s contention that inadequate judicial compensation and onerous job demands are deterring “outstanding” lawyers from seeking federal judicial appointments.
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August 08, 2025
New N.S. AI guidebook warns of over-reliance in legal practices
Nova Scotia’s law society is using a new guidebook to warn members against becoming over-reliant on artificial intelligence in their practices — and urging them to heed instances where lawyers ended up in hot water over its misuse.
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August 08, 2025
CJC issues expression of concern over Federal Court judge’s failure to disclose workplace probe
The Canadian Judicial Council (CJC) has issued a public expression of concern regarding Federal Court Justice Negar Azmudeh for failing to disclose an ongoing workplace harassment investigation during her judicial application process.
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August 08, 2025
Thinking out loud: Mulling changes to Canada’s Online News Act
In response to the seismic shift in how news is consumed and distributed in Canada and elsewhere in the world, Canadian policymakers embarked on a journey to try to rebalance the power dynamics between tech giants and domestic news outlets. With ubiquitous use of smartphones, audiences began accessing news online rather than through traditional print and broadcast channels.
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August 05, 2025
Ontario Superior Court judge receives reprimand for 14-month delay in correcting sentencing error
A review panel of the Canadian Judicial Council (CJC) has issued a public reprimand to Justice Andrew J. Goodman of the Ontario Superior Court of Justice for his failure to promptly correct a significant sentencing error, concluding that his 14-month delay in addressing the mistake constituted “injudicious conduct” that undermined public confidence in the administration of justice.