I’d be very interested to hear from current or recent law students on whether they agree with this argument that fairness concerns justify switching to closed-book exams.

Orin Kerr@orinkerr.bsky.social · 2mo ago

Over at his personal blog, Emory Law Professor @matthewsag.bsky.social offers some very interesting thoughts on structuring law school exams in an era of AI and common extra-time accommodations. matthewsag.com/ai-accommoda...

Each of us, in discussing crime and punishment, should be forced to answer: What is the social utility of this punishment? (Also please note the salutary effects of bail in this story.)

Politicians talk a lot about mythically incorrigible offenders. What do we do with people who commit crimes and rehabilitate? www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/arti... by @coleenlisa.bsky.social

Opinion: What should Canada do with rehabilitated offenders?

The Supreme Court has ruled that if a person commits a serious crime but then turns their life around, that should matter at sentencing. That’s a good thing

theglobeandmail.com

Prisoners deserve more information about use-of-force incidents - read the opinion piece on the recent use of force JR filed with support from PLS here: tinyurl.com/udbwa9ee

Opinion: Prisoners deserve more information about use-of-force incidents

A new lawsuit seeks to change the way Correctional Service Canada discloses reviews of when force is used

tinyurl.com

My news feed: Trump EO Formalizes Deportation of Kids Bad at Sports White House to Extend ACA Subsidies, But Only for AI Girlfriends Hegseth Claims No Binging Promise a Joke, Tells Press to “Lighten up” Trump Admin Argues in Court that Constitution Actually Starts at 2nd Amendment

In my email just now. Evil.

When legislation aims to ensure that investments of multiple First Nations in litigation are wasted, aims to silence judges, and shows no regard for the integrity and limited resources of the justice system, I should hope judges in this country will not be mute.

Madeline Smith@meksmith.bsky.social · 9mo ago

Just received a gov statement: "Justice Feasby’s decision includes comments that are critical of a bill currently before the Legislative Assembly. ... Judicial statements about the merits of a proposed bill before the legislative branch interfere with well-established democratic processes."

Justice Feasby handed down a complex, comprehensive decision six weeks ahead of an already expedited schedule. An extraordinary feat, done in order to give the public what it paid for in terms of judicial resources.

Madeline Smith@meksmith.bsky.social · 9mo ago

After the province tabled Bill 14 yesterday, which would have stopped the court proceedings on whether a proposed Alberta separation question contravenes the Constitution, the judge came out at a previously scheduled appearance today and just... dropped his decision. www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...

R. v. McDonald, 2025 ONCA 807: Important case on Browne v Dunn in which the Associate Chief Justice overturns a murder conviction entered by a now-sitting member of the Court of Appeal coadecisions.ontariocourts.ca/coa/coa/en/i...

True words. Go get that liberty

Chris Sewrattan@sewrattanlaw.bsky.social · 10mo ago

It's a great time to hang a shingle and become a prison lawyer. Buy the good court robes because you'll be in the Superior Court a lot.

Office hours with Professor Weinrib. This young pupil tries to justify the idea that 6-7 really is funny and interesting.

R. v. Rioux, 2025 SCC 34 at para 98: To determine whether a complainant did not consent or lacked the capacity to consent at the time of a sexual act, a court must consider all the relevant evidence, including circumstantial evidence. decisions.scc-csc.ca/scc-csc/scc-...

R. v. Marshall, 2025 ONCA 638 at para. 148: "The trial Crown’s closing was graphic, inflammatory, and contained rhetoric that falls below the expected standard of Crown counsel." But the Court of Appeal is going to let this one pass. coadecisions.ontariocourts.ca/coa/coa/en/i...

R. v. Sheppard, 2025 SCC 29: Friesen applies to historical sexual abuse against children. Sentences for historical offences are properly determined in accordance with the sentencing regimes and societal perspectives that prevail at the time of sentencing decisions.scc-csc.ca/scc-csc/scc-...

R. v. Bowie, 2025 ONCA 661 at para 27: Justice Trotter dismisses a bail pending appeal application from a convicted criminal lawyer through the public safety arm of the Oland test. This is rare. coadecisions.ontariocourts.ca/coa/coa/en/i...

R. v. Storey, 2025 ONCA 599 at para. 66: At sentencing, don't conflate NCR with moral blameworthiness. An offender's cognitive challenges can be mitigating even if the challenges don't rise to the NCR level. coadecisions.ontariocourts.ca/coa/coa/en/i...

R. v. Pierre, 2025 ONCA 589 at para 60: The Court overturns a murder conviction entered by their now-colleague. The jury instruction failed to fully explain what the after-the-fact conduct could not do: inform the mens rea generally. coadecisions.ontariocourts.ca/coa/coa/en/i...

R. v. Leclaire, 2025 ONSC 4203 (CanLII): Justice Kathy Jalali refused to impose a mandatory minimum prison sentence. The appeal court (SCJ) basically called this judicial misconduct. canlii.ca/t/kdntc

R. v. D.B., 2025 ONCA 577 at para 19: Failing to meaningfully engage with the collateral consequences of family separation is an error in principle. coadecisions.ontariocourts.ca/coa/coa/en/i...

a close up of a bald man 's face with his eyes closed and a serious look on his face .

ALT: a close up of a bald man 's face with his eyes closed and a serious look on his face .

media.tenor.com

Great piece. Stop subsidizing families who don’t need it through artificially constrained tuition. Take steps to support students in need. Tuition freeze should not be populist. It does not level the playing field, just destroys our universities. www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/arti...

Opinion: Ontario universities must be released from their financial chokehold

Declining funding, in concert with fewer international students, has placed the province’s post-secondary system in peril. It’s time for a change

theglobeandmail.com

Heather Mallick does a disservice to the women of the criminal defence bar by implying that their male clients hire them for the optics. I'm proud to have learned from many of the brilliant women who are leading our profession. Their clients hire them because they are excellent lawyers.

"No other court in the country has a rigid policy denying physical access to counsel." www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/arti...

Opinion: It’s time to let lawyers come back to the Supreme Court of Canada

Restrictions put in place during the COVID-19 pandemic have yet to be lifted, to the detriment of the court

theglobeandmail.com

R. v. Griffiths, 2025 ONCA 511, citing in R. v. Lu, 2022 ONSC 1918, at para. 58, per Di Luca J.: A person can be remorseful for having committed an offence while nonetheless exercising their constitutional right to a trial. The two are not incompatible. coadecisions.ontariocourts.ca/coa/coa/en/i...

R. v. Gilmore, 2025 ONCA 517 at para. 47, citing Easterbrook, 2022 ONCJ 647, at paras. 43-44, per @brockbjones.bsky.social: It is an aggravating sentencing factor that an assault was committed on public transit. In this case, it was the TTC subway. coadecisions.ontariocourts.ca/coa/coa/en/i...

R. v. Mariani, 2025 BCSC 1298: the retroactive elimination of "Faint Hope" is unconstitutional. Faint Hope applications are now permissible for anyone convicted of the applicable offences before or after December 2011. Another "Truth in Sentencing" provision is struck down.

R. v. Kinamore, 2025 SCC 19: The Supreme Court attempts to even the ledger on 276/Seaboyer/sexual history evidence. The Crown must bring an application that mirrors s. 276's procedural requirements to introduce this evidence. [1/5] decisions.scc-csc.ca/scc-csc/scc-...

I am pleased to announce that Peck and Company will be accepting articling applications for 2026/2027. Please submit your applications by July 15, 2025. If interested, please direct message me for further application details.

R. v. Attachie, 2025 BCCA 183: the mitigating effect of a guilty plea is enhanced if the Crown's case is weak. "A fragile Crown's case is a fundamentally important circumstance of the pleas, if not the most fundamentally important".

Hurry up and wait. That’s the unofficial motto of Ontario’s criminal courts — and it’s breaking the system. My latest for Canadian Lawyer on inefficiency, inconsistency, and how scheduling a trial can take longer than actually holding one. www.canadianlawyermag.com/news/opinion...

Hurry up and wait: The Ontario court's relentless commitment to inefficiency

Our criminal justice system has turned scheduling into a spectacle of wasted resources and hollow rituals

canadianlawyermag.com

R. v. Singh, 2025 ONCA 460 at para 11: A judge cannot reason that as a matter of logic and common sense, one would expect a sexual abuse victim to demonstrate behaviour consistent with that abuse or change behaviour such as avoiding the perpetrator. coadecisions.ontariocourts.ca/coa/coa/en/i...