Ottawa Blog Roll: December 2017

If you were paying attention on twitter and/or were very on the ball a couple weeks ago, you may have noticed that the Department of Justice launched a new online service called the Charterpedia, and it is really great! This new resource provides summaries and note ups on every Charter section, and it is now available free of charge to everyone!

As per its own description:

This Charterpedia provides legal information about the Charter and contains information about the purpose of each section of the Charter, the analysis or test developed through case law in respect of the section, and any particular considerations related to it. Each Charterpedia entry cites relevant case law, and citations to Supreme Court of Canada decisions are hyperlinked whenever possible.

Check it out!

The 2017 Clawbie Awards: Our Nominations!

Posted on December 13, 2017 by Brenda Lauritzen

We’re so excited that it’s Clawbie time again! Since there are so, so many superb choices to pick from and we are limited to three nominees, we decided again to stick with what we did last year: highlighting some of our favourite bloggers local to the Ottawa region. So here we go!

Ottawa Employment and Labour Law Blog
Andrew Vey & Paul Willetts (Vey Willetts LLP) / @VW_Lawyers

Andrew and Paul’s blog is so accessible, which is something we really appreciate as members of a law-adjacent profession! We love their writing style and their posts are always interesting, relevant and timely.

Some of our favourite blog posts this year:

Law21 Blog
Jordan Furlong / @jordan_law21

Anyone who’s read a post on Law21 can appreciate how thoughtful, insightful, and forward-thinking they are, and we are no exception.

Some of our favourite blog posts this year:

Diversonomics Podcast (or on iTunes)
Roberto Aburto & Sarah Willis (Gowling WLG) / @robaburto

A timely and welcome addition to the ever-growing Canadian legal podcast scene, we were delighted to discover the Diversonomics series by local Gowling WLG lawyers. Roberto and Sarah launched season two this year, which continues to take on the difficult topics of diversity and inclusion in the legal profession.

Some of their notable episodes this year:

Ottawa Blog Roll: November 2017

Posted on December 6, 2017 by Brenda Lauritzen

Please find below links to blog posts or articles authored by the Ottawa legal community in November.

Civil Litigation

Court Of Appeal Clarifies Pre-Judgment Interest Rate
– Edward Masters, Mann Lawyers

Court Of Appeal Clarifies Collateral Benefits Issues
– Edward Masters, Mann Lawyers

License suspensions mulled for distracted driving in Ontario
– Quinn Thiele Mineault Grodzki LLP

How Much “Good Faith” Must the Insurer Show its Insured?
– Frank Van Dyke, Van Dyke Injury Law Blog

Could Judge Decide MVA Case on “Geometry Alone”?
– Frank Van Dyke, Van Dyke Injury Law Blog

Condominium Law

Disclosure Obligations of Condo Directors at AGMs
– Rod Escayola, Condo Adviser

Electric Vehicle Charging Stations in Condos?
– Rod Escayola, Condo Adviser

The New Periodic Information Certificate
– Rod Escayola, Condo Adviser

New Airbnb partnership may impact condominium law
– Merovitz Potechin LLP

Helpful Recent Decision About Condominium “Changes”
– James Davidson, Davidson Houle Allen LLP

The New Condominium Authority Tribunal Rules Are Out!
– James Davidson, Nancy Houle and Christy Allen, Davidson Houle Allen LLP

Corporate Commercial Law

Federal Government Responds to Feedback on Proposed Changes
– Alanna T. Mar, Perley-Robertson, Hill & McDougall LLP/s.r.l

Criminal Law

Bail Reform: Naqvi Tells Crown Attorneys to Follow the Law
– Michael Spratt

Bill C-51: On Sexual Assault, Records And The Right To A Fair Trial
– Anne Marie McElroy, McElroy Law

November 2017 Criminal Law Round-Up
– Anne Marie McElroy, McElroy Law

Employment & Labour Law

Brave New World: ONCA Says that in Asset Transaction, an Offer of Employment is Sufficient Consideration for Material Changes
– Sean Bawden, Kelly Santini LLP

Amberber v. IBM Canada Limited: Termination clause fails to rebut employee’s entitlement to reasonable notice
– Paul Willetts, Vey Willetts LLP

Same Game, New Rules: Changes to Ontario’s Workplace Laws
– Paul Willetts, Vey Willetts LLP

Working Notice Inappropriate for Employees on Disability Leave
– Sean Bawden, Labour Pains

Undertaking to Comply with the ESA does Not Displace Common Law Presumption of Reasonable Notice
– Sean Bawden, Labour Pains

Mooch Ado About Nothing: Being Fired Before You Begin
– Sean Bawden, Labour Pains

Failure to Comply With Employment Standards Act Minimum Requirements Is Fatal to Employers
– Jean-Francois Lalonde, Vice & Hunter LLP

Postmedia-Torstar Deal Means Wrongful Dismissal Suits Likely to Follow
– Jean-Francois Lalonde, Vice & Hunter LLP

Continue reading →

Compendium of Damages Awarded in Personal Injury Actions Across Ontario, January 1999 – October 2017 Update

Posted on December 4, 2017February 17, 2023 by Brenda Lauritzen

The CCLA Compendium of Damages Awarded in Personal Injury Actions Across Ontario has been updated to October 2017! This invaluable guide is a favourite with local litigators, and has been produced for the CCLA for several years under the leadership of The Honourable James Chadwick and with the assistance of students from the University of Ottawa law school.

To check it out, please click here. For your future reference, you can find this publication on the CCLA website under our “Civil Litigation” practice portal.

Also, if you’re looking for the CCLA’s Compendium of Costs, our most recent update is from 2015 – you can find that here.

Ontario Courthouse Local Counsel Insight Project

Posted on November 29, 2017 by Brenda Lauritzen

A couple months ago we highlighted Sean Robichaud’s online and freely available Criminal Law Precedent Collection; well, they’re at it again! The firm has taken it upon themselves to compile courthouse information for all the courthouses in Ontario, including information on local (criminal) practice, resources, and contact information for key personnel in each area. This is an out-of-town counsel’s dream!

You can find the Local Counsel Insight Project here.

This is all made possible from submissions from local counsel in each area. If you have information about an Ontario courthouse and would like to contribute to their project, please fill out this form to help them out!

CCLA Renovations: Upcoming Service Changes

Posted on November 22, 2017November 21, 2017 by Brenda Lauritzen

We are (finally) renovating our library and lounge space at the courthouse! It has been quite the long road to get to this point, so we are excited it is actually happening.

During the renovations we will be undergoing some service changes at the library. The following services will be affected:

December 1, 2017 – January 1, 2018

The CCLA library will be fully closed for the month of December as we prepare the library for renovations. This means:

No library staff, reference, or research services will be available on-site, by email, or by phone.
No access to print or electronic resources.
No computer access, printing, photocopying, scanning, or faxing available on-site.
Courthouse wifi and access to the lounge and robing rooms will be unaffected.

During this time, if you need assistance with legal research we recommend contacting our friends at the Middlesex Law Association (519-679-7046) or the Toronto Lawyers’ Association (416-327-5700), who are both extremely helpful!

If you prefer to use a local law library, you can use the University of Ottawa or the Supreme Court.

Computer access and scanning are also available at the main branch of the Ottawa Public Library.

January 2, 2018 – December 2018

The CCLA library will re-open with limited services in January while the renovations are taking place. We anticipate the renovations will take between 10 – 12 months. During this time there will be the following changes:

During the first stage of renovations, the library front desk will be moved adjacent to the lawyers’ lounge. The main portion of the library will be closed and access will only be possible through the lounge. Halfway through renovations the library front desk will be moved back into the library and the lounge will be closed.
Photocopying, faxing, printing, scanning, and time-limited computer access will be available with a smaller number of machines. There will be no access to these services by members of the public or court runners.
Limited reference and research services available. Much of our collection will be packed away, but we will do our best to assist with reference requests during this time.

We are certainly looking forward to having brand new facilities that work better for our users and our space, but in the meantime we thank you for your patience while we renovate!

New Login Process for HeinOnline

Posted on November 14, 2017November 15, 2017 by Brenda Lauritzen

Heads up for lawyers in Ontario: the Law Society has changed the way you remotely access HeinOnline. Previously, lawyers could ask their local library for the password for logging in to the program, but because it was a single common login the password would change every six months. Starting last week, however, the Law Society has issued a new remote access procedure through EZproxy software. This will allow a static and persistent login and password for each individual lawyer, and it also means the previous username and passwords will not work!

HeinOnline is a fantastic resource for journal articles and historical Canadian legislation; we highly recommend it, and it’s free for Ontario lawyers! To get set up for your new access, contact the Law Society by email with your name, affiliation and law society number.

You can find out more by visiting the Great Library’s blog post here.

Upcoming WestlawNext Training

Posted on November 8, 2017November 8, 2017 by Brenda Lauritzen

We’d be lying if we said WestlawNext wasn’t one of our favourite things. We’d also be lying if we said that our WestlawNext trainer wasn’t one of our favourite people! So we love to hold training sessions in the library for a multitude of reasons.

Here’s our next one! As always these are free and all are welcome, and can count towards 1 hour of professionalism content if you still need those CPD hours.

When: Wednesday, November 22, 2017, 12:00 – 1:00 PM

Where: CCLA Library, 161 Elgin St. Suite 2004

This program contains 1.0 Professionalism Hour which can be used as credit towards your annual requirements.

The Thomson Reuters Customer Learning Team has been approved as an Accredited Provider of Professionalism Content by The Law Society of Upper Canada.

Please RSVP at the ‘register’ link here!

Ottawa Blog Roll: October 2017

Posted on November 3, 2017 by Brenda Lauritzen

Please find below links to blog posts or articles authored by the Ottawa legal community in October.

Civil Litigation

Court of Appeal Gives Thumbs Down to Dog Bite Plaintiff
– Mitch Kitagawa and Joshua Vickery, Kelly Santini LLP

License suspensions mulled for distracted driving in Ontario
– Quinn Thiele Mineault Grodzki LLP

Insurers Not Obliged to Advise Insured of Appeal Deadlines
– Frank Van Dyke, Van Dyke Injury Law Blog

Condominium Law

The Forms Under the New Condo Act Are Out!
– Jocelyn Duquette, Condo Adviser

Condo Managers will be Required to Provide Police Record Checks
– Rod Escayola, Condo Adviser

Condo Learning this Month – Learning and Networking Opportunities
– Rod Escayola, Condo Adviser

Important Court Decision About Recovering Costs From Owners
– James Davidson, Davidson Houle Allen LLP

Changes Are Almost Here…Important Dates To Keep In Mind
– Cheryll Wood, Davidson Houle Allen LLP

Appeal Court Confirms Owner’s Obligation to Prove Case When Challenging Lien
– Victoria Craine, Davidson Houle Allen LLP

Examination of Records – Do Condominium Owners Need a Proper Reason?
– James Davidson, Davidson Houle Allen LLP

Corporate Commercial Law

Amendments to the Ontario Corporations Act
– Paul Franco, Mann Lawyers LLP

Support for Small Cideries in Ontario – An Overview of the 2017-2018 Small Cidery Program Guidelines
– Paul A. Lalonde, Perley-Robertson, Hill & McDougall LLP/s.r.l

Criminal Law

Limited Use Doctrine Defined…Again
– Dallas Mack, Mack’s Criminal Law

Effective Assistance – Tactical Dispute
– Dallas Mack, Mack’s Criminal Law

October 2017 Criminal Law Round-Up
– Anne Marie McElroy, McElroy Law

Liberals Break Two and a Half Promises with New Pot Laws
– Michael Spratt, Abergel Goldstein & Partners LLP

Employment & Labour Law

Scissors Beat Paper; Statutes Beat Scissors: Severability Clauses Can’t Fix Illegal Termination Provisions
– Sean Bawden, Labour Pains

Bad faith dismissal: is medical evidence required to prove damages?
– Andrew Vey, Vey Willetts LLP

North v. Metaswitch Networks: Ontario’s Top Court Confirms the Correct Approach to Employee Severance
– Paul Willetts, Vey Willetts LLP

#MeToo: Workplace Harassment
– Megan Cornell, Momentum Law

Indigenous Law

Federal vs Provincial – Whose Legislative Authority Is It Anyway?
– Michel Nolet, Nelligan O’Brien Payne

IP & Copyright Law

Toronto Neighbourhood Heats Up Over Copyright Battle
– Adam M. Tracey, Nelligan O’Brien Payne

Submissions Posted on Canada’s Copyright Board – the Consultation Process
– Howard Knopf, Excess Copyright

Proposed Amendments to the Canadian Patent Rules
– Solomon Gold, Perley-Robertson, Hill & McDougall LLP/s.r.l

Practice Management

Changing the lawyer assessment system
– Jordan Furlong, Law21

Diversonomics | Season 2 Episode 4 – Re-training the brain (Pt 1): The road to work after concussion
– Roberto Aburto & Sarah Willis, Gowling WLG

Diversonomics | Season 2 Episode 5 – Re-training the brain (Pt 2): Employee-employer dynamics when dealing with concussion
– Roberto Aburto & Sarah Willis, Gowling WLG

Real Estate Law

Decreased rental real estate following new rent controls
– Merovitz Potechin LLP

We include recent posts and articles that are of substantive value to the legal community. Did we miss one? Let us know!