July 06, 2026
Prime Minister Mark Carney has appointed new leaders to head two of Canada’s major trial courts. On July 6, Justice Alan Diner was appointed chief justice of the Federal Court, the national superior trial court that decides disputes in the federal domain. He succeeds Paul Crampton, who retired from the post Oct. 31, 2025.
July 06, 2026
Would you buy insurance that only helps you 10 per cent of the time? The Ontario Trial Lawyers Association says that is what accident victims face at the Licence Appeal Tribunal (LAT), where insurers win about 90 per cent of coverage disputes.
July 03, 2026
The chair of the advisory board that recommended ex-Manitoba Court of King’s Bench Chief Justice Glenn Joyal and one other unnamed jurist for appointment to the Supreme Court of Canada defended the board’s decision not to shortlist three to five names, which was contrary to the mandate from Prime Minister Mark Carney.
July 02, 2026
The Supreme Court of Canada’s newest judge says his key areas of legal expertise are constitutional and criminal law, including the rules of evidence and procedure, though he has also presided over many civil and administrative law cases in his generalist trial court. Glenn Joyal, a former federal and Manitoba prosecutor and the longtime chief justice of the Manitoba Court of King’s Bench, was elevated by the prime minister to the top court on June 30, succeeding Supreme Court Justice Sheilah Martin of Alberta, the highly respected constitutional and criminal law litigator, academic and judge who retired from the bench May 30.
June 30, 2026
Public schools in P.E.I. have adopted a new sexual misconduct policy in a bid to better protect students by focusing on prevention, early intervention and a uniform complaints process.
June 30, 2026
The B.C. Court of Appeal has upheld the certification of a class action against opioid manufacturers, distributors and wholesalers over health-care costs arising from the opioid crisis, rejecting arguments that the plaintiffs were required to produce more detailed evidence to support certification.
June 29, 2026
Ontario’s civil courts continue to struggle with post-pandemic delays. The problem is not just administrative. In personal injury litigation — and especially in motor vehicle collision cases — delay changes the financial value of a claim. For plaintiffs, longer times to get to trial do not simply postpone compensation. They can reduce it.
June 29, 2026
While the Ahluwalia decision solidified a groundbreaking civil framework for addressing coercive control, Parliament simultaneously built a parallel carceral one (Ahluwalia v. Ahluwalia, 2026 SCC 16). The federal intention behind Bill C-16 is well-intentioned — aiming to intervene early, recognize psychological containment as violence, and treat coercive control as a precursor to lethal escalation.
June 26, 2026
Underscoring the breadth of the constitutional obligation of first-party Crown disclosure to the defence, the Supreme Court of Canada has 7-0 clarified and elaborated on the scope of the duties of Crown and the police to disclose to the accused relevant police disciplinary records, as was previously established by R. v. McNeil, 2009 SCC 3.
June 26, 2026
The B.C. Court of Appeal has upheld the certification of a proposed class action against consulting giant McKinsey & Co. over allegations that it worked closely with opioid manufacturers and distributors to increase the sale and distribution of opioids in Canada for unsuitable uses.