Later this year, the Supreme Court will hear arguments in the companion cases Kerr v. Baranow, 2009 BCCA 111 and Vanasse v. Seguin, 2009 ONCA 595. Both concern the rules for allocating spousal support between separated common law partners. While I do not expect the cases to add much beyond a gloss on an already robust line [...]

Yesterday, the Supreme Court of Canada heard two appeals testing the constitutionality of s. 517 – the publication ban provision – of the Criminal Code. In both cases, the Court found that s. 517 infringed the guarantee of freedom of expression under the s. 2(b) of the Charter. Opinions differed, however, as to whether this infringement was [...]

“Privacy is dead – get over it!” First uttered by former Sun Microsystems CEO Scott McNealy, these words may have been a revelation ten years ago, but are now standard in the current mainstream world. These sentiments are not uncommon to the regular Internet user, especially when transmitting sensitive information through the wireless world of [...]

Facebook – the quintessential communication portal. Many people spend numerous hours messaging, writing on walls, and taking quizzes on Facebook. But what is the impact of Facebook on our judicial system? Ideas of privacy, admissibility of evidence, and other issues rise up with the advent of a new era of utilizing Facebook as evidence, as [...]

More than twenty years ago, the late Justice William J. Brennan of the U.S. Supreme Court penned an impassioned dissent in California v. Greenwood, 486 U.S. 35 (1988) to a majority opinion that denied the existence of a reasonable expectation of privacy in garbage.  “A single bag of trash” Justice Brennan wrote, “testifies eloquently to the eating, reading and recreational habits [...]

Imagine this scenario: It’s 3:00 am. Unable to sleep, you sit at the desktop computer in your living room and begin surfing the internet. Out of a mixture of personal interest and plain curiosity, you explore a number of publicly accessible webpages, including that of a controversial religious leader, a sexual fetish discussion board and [...]

On May 22, 2009, the SCC is scheduled to hear National Post, et al. v. Her Majesty the Queen 32601, a case which should answer a question of grave concern to investigative journalists across Canada. At issue in National Post is whether the police can obtain a warrant for the production a document which may [...]

A Supreme Court ruling issued on Friday now requires the police to hand over records of the discipline and misconduct of its officers as part of its disclosure obligation to the defence in criminal proceedings. The ruling in R. v. McNeil 2009 SCC 3 advances the transparency and accountability of police officers by routinely opening [...]

On December 11, 2008, the Supreme Court of Canada heard Ministry of Public Safety and Security (Formerly Solicitor General), et al. v. Criminal Lawyers’ Association, a case from the Ontario Court of Appeal. In 1996, the judge in a criminal proceeding involving the murder of mob member Domenic Racco granted a stay of the proceedings [...]

Leave to appeal has been granted by the Supreme Court of Canada in R. v. Bobby Singh Virk et al. This appeal will answer the question of whether counsel for the accused may be present at an in camera hearing to determine the application of informer privilege. More specifically, the SCC will consider whether a [...]