Sites Unseen: Robichaud’s Criminal Law Precedents

Precedents are easily the most common type of research material we are asked for here at the CCLA library. Earlier this year, we were very excited to hear that Sean Robichaud, Criminal lawyer in Toronto, was starting an ambitious project to upload and allow access to his firm’s Criminal Law Precedents Database (you can read more about their reasoning behind their decision here). As librarians, we love everything about this; from access to justice, to the power of open information, to the simple recognition of where a lawyer’s real value lies (also, extra points for the excellent use of the word ‘bastioned’).

As of writing there are currently 329 precedents available, representing only 3% of their internal database, with more gradually being added. You can browse the precedents by folder, or search by filename by clicking the magnifying glass in the upper right corner.

They also have a Twitter account that you can follow, which updates when new precedents are added to the database.

This is really a great initiative, and here’s hoping that it’s just the start of more of these types of projects cropping up!

 

vLex Canada Tip: Irwin Law Essentials

As you may have heard or seen in-library, we now have access to the vLex Canada database! We’ll be showcasing some tips over the next couple of weeks to help you get some idea as to the uses and functionality of this new database.

First up: the Irwin Law Essentials Collection!

You might be familiar with these books in print; they are extremely popular in our library and can usually be distinguished at a glance by their characteristic maroon colour. Some of the most well-known titles include: The Law of Evidence by Paciocco and Stuesser, The Charter of Rights and Freedoms by Sharpe and Roach, and Child Support Guidelines in Canada by Payne and Payne. Fortunately, they are now also available in electronic format on vLex Canada!

To access them, simply log in to vLex and click on “Browse” in the sidebar. Under “Books and Journals”, you will then find a link to Irwin Law: The Essentials of Canadian Law. From there, you can see all of the titles currently available on the platform, as can be seen in the screenshot below:

Once you click on a title, it will bring you through to a table of contents where you can browse to find what you need. You can then click through to individual sections and chapters to view the text.

At any time, you can click into the search bar at the top of the screen. If you only want to search the subsection of the content you are viewing, click on the option for “Advanced Search”, as it appears, and that will only search the particular section. You can see an example of this below.

Stay tuned for more vLex tips, and in the meantime, come to the library and play around with it yourself! With an account you will then have 24 hour access from anywhere!

 

Recently Published Ottawa Decisions

Find below recently published Ottawa decisions, available for free through CanLII.org.

Family Matters

Dieng c Seck (2017 ONCS 5276)
aliments — partagé — représentait lui-même réclame des dépens — séparation — protonotaires
Juge P. Roger

Gauthier v. Mallon (2017 ONSC 5231)
costs — offers — spousal support — all-inclusive amount — successful
Justice P. Roger

Bowerman v. Bowerman (2017 ONSC 5192)
without prejudice basis — purposes of this motion — income — registered in post-secondary education — event of any nondisclosure
Justice P. Roger

Civil Matters

Huang v. Fraser Hillary’s Limited (2017 ONSC 5313)
partial indemnity fees — costs — divided success — disbursements — amount
Justice P. Roger

Bazinet v. CompuCom Canada Co., et al. (2017 ONSC 5194)
designated beneficiary of the policy — motion for summary — punitive damages — proceeds of the policy — affiants
Justice S. Corthorn

Merovitz Potechin LLP v. Bahimanga (2017 ONSC 4993)
firm — client — assessment officer — retainer — lawyer
Justice H. Williams

Sarazen v. McTaggart et al. (2017 ONSC 5281)
brothers — genuine issue requiring — bilingual — sign — settlement
Justice M. O’Bonsawin

4381840 Canada Inc. v. Charron, Langlois LLP et al. (2017 ONSC 5189)
alias — actions — seeks partial indemnity costs — successful — number
Justice P. Roger

Continue reading

#ThrowbackThursday: Daly and Nicholas, Past & Present

I found today’s entry on the Facebook page for Lost Ottawa. The SAW Video Media Arts Centre is located the building now known as the Arts Court. Of course, that building wasn’t always used for that purpose – many still remember it as the old courthouse. For a new video from SAW, historical and modern photos of the site are merged together to compare the  building as it once was and as it is today.  Click here to watch the full video (it’s only 2:48 long, and totally worth it!).

From the creator:

My video for Issue 9 uses historical photographs of the Arts Courts site and video of the present day site. Using the same vantage point in both the video and the photographs, the images are morphed together, allowing a comparison of the past and the present day view of the site. They reveal architectural changes and the passage of time flowing over these buildings as the surrounding city rises up around them.

This video uses historical photographs of the Arts Courts site and video of the present day site. The images are morphed together, allowing a comparison of the past and the present day view of the site.

New Filter Option in WestlawNext Canada

This is a great new tip we learned about in WestlawNext Canada, from our amazing local trainer Josée Provost.

If you’re anything like us, you love the Canadian Abridgment for quickly and easily finding cases on a specific topic. To make your case law research even easier, you can now filter search results from a note-up in Westlaw by Adbridgment topic. Here’s an example below.

Through noting-up section 13 of the Employment Standards Act, 2000, I’m told there are 190 cases that cite this section. On the left hand side of the screen are your filtering options. Tucked in second from the bottom is “Abridgment Topics.”

If you click on “Select” a box will open up showing you a list of topics from within the Abridgment that have this cases included. You can also search for a topic (if there is nothing, you’ll be told there are no hits).

You can select as many topics as you would like. For this example, I’ll select “Contracts”…

And I have limited the 190 citing cases down to just 3 that have to do with contracts.

This feature is really neat, and I know will come in handy to many people during their case law research. If you’d like to learn more about WestlawNext Canada, we do have a free lunch time training session at the library scheduled for November 22. You can RSVP for this session here.

Ottawa Blog Roll: August 2017

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

Civil Litigation

Insurers can still face liability after conviction for driving without insurance
– Mitch Kitagawa and Sarah Reich, Kelly Santini LLP

Discoverability and Due Diligence Require more than an Expert Report to Extend the Limitation Period
– Mitch Kitagawa and Chantel Helwer, Kelly Santini LLP

Accident Benefits Disputes Require Notification to the Other Insurer and the Claimant Within 90 days
– Mitch Kitagawa, Kelly Santini LLP

Damages Can Vary Widely for Mild Traumatic Brain Injury
– Frank Van Dyke, Van Dyke Injury Law Blog

Court Splits Trial of $20 Million Boating Accident Claim in the “Interests of Justice”
– Frank Van Dyke, Van Dyke Injury Law Blog

Condominium Law

Condo Authority of Ontario – Services, Fees and Implementation
– Kelli-Anne Day, Merovitz Potechin LLP

Carleton Condominium Corporation No. 396 v Burdet, 2016 ONCA 394
– Merovitz Potechin LLP

Condominium Authority of Ontario: Monthly Fees and Dispute Resolution Fees Confirmed
– Kristen Bailey, Davidson Houle Allen LLP

SURVEY: Should Marijuana be Allowed in Condos?
– Rod Escayola, Condo Adviser

Strict Deadlines to Register Condo Liens when Collecting on Judgments
– Rod Escayola, Condo Adviser

Electric Cars and Charging Stations in Condominiums
– Cheryll Wood, Davidson Houle Allen LLP

Criminal Law

Justice By Popular Opinion
– Michael Spratt, Abergel Goldstein & Partners LLP

Defining Hate Crimes In Canada
– Anne Marie McElroy, McElroy Law

July & August 2017 Criminal Law Round-Up
– Anne Marie McElroy, McElroy Law

No Discretion To Circumvent
– Louise Tansey, Mack’s Criminal Law

Employment & Labour Law

Supreme Court Upholds Termination for Violation of Anti-Drug Policy
– Sean Bawden, Labour Pains

Vey Willetts Launches Ottawa Severance Pay Calculator
– Paul Willetts, Vey Willetts LLP

Everyone Deserves a Second Chance, But How Much Tolerance is Too Much? Part II – Employees
– Rick Norian, Maclaren Corlett

Protecting Employees from Third-Party Harassment
– Andrew Vey, Vey Willetts LLP

Ontario’s Top Court Confirms that Employees May Sometimes be Required to Attend Medical Examination by Doctor of Employer’s Choosing
– Sean Bawden, Labour Pains

Entitlement to Bereavement Leave in Ontario
– Sean Bawden, Labour Pains

Ottawa Judge Rules that Severance Offers Should Not be Pleaded
– Sean Bawden, Labour Pains

You Can’t Take It With You: Good Faith and Fiduciary Duties of Departing Employees
– James Cameron, Raven Law

Notice Periods for Short-term Employees Who Are Terminated
– Jean-Francois Lalonde, Vice & Hunter LLP

Family Law

Caught in the Middle – Children’s Voices in Disputes About Parenting
– Kathleen Wright, Mann Lawyers

Continue reading

#ThrowbackThursday: Library Renovations, 1895

I can’t help it – I’m officially obsessed with the goodies I’ve found looking through old scans of The Ottawa Journal. Our last TBT was about the 1940 golf tournament; today’s is even older.

We’ve been deep in the weeds here at the CCLA with renovation planning over the last few months. Finding this news clipping from the December 14, 1895 Ottawa Journal on what was surely the first CCLA “renovation” has totally made my day:

Pictures of this “model law library” are at the very, very top of my wish list (sadly, none exist that we know of). I’m also amused that there was concern even then about room for lawyers to meet with their clients – this has to be one of the most frequently requested things at our current day courthouse!

In happy news, the move out from judges’ chambers was in fact approved by the gaol and building committee:

Black’s Law Dictionary: Now on WestlawNext Canada!

Here’s a cool new feature we just learned about in our library’s WestlawNext Canada subscription.

Black’s Law Dictionary, the most well-known legal dictionary on the market, is now tucked away (but free to use in our library) under the “International” tab.

From the home screen, you will want to select the “International” tab:

 

From there, you can find a link out to the Black’s Law Dictionary underneath the Westlaw US document titles:

This will open a new screen and log you into the American version of Westlaw’s interface for the Black’s dictionary. There is a dedicated search screen for this title, so you will only be searching within the dictionary itself – not the other American content on Westlaw.

Et voilà, your results list!

 

If you have WestlawNext at your office, see if this is included in your LawSource package (but of course, be mindful of what charges might be incurred for this search first). As always, any Westlaw work you do at the library is free of charge.

Recently Published Ottawa Decisions

Find below recently published Ottawa decisions, available for free through CanLII.org.

Family Matters

Curry v. Curry (2017 ONSC 4778)
income — spousal support — tax — capital gains — trust
Justice A. Doyle

Freiman v. Freiman (2017 ONSC 4981)
matrimonial home — spousal support — income — marriage — formerly enjoyed intra-spousal entitlement
Justice T. Engelking

Rubalcava v. Tracey (2017 ONSC 4978)
child — spousal support — access schedule — parent — custody
Justice M. Labrosse

Burgess v. Karam (2017 ONSC 4977)
expenses — paid by monthly payments — share — child support — overpayment
Justice S. Kershman

Guertin v. Dumas (2017 ONSC 4979)
father — change the child s school — catchment area — boundary — kilometers
Justice M. Shelston

Clark v. Moxley (2017 ONSC 4971)
school — afterschool — mid-week overnight — parenting schedule — best interests
Justice L. Sheard

Civil Matters

4381840 Canada Inc. v. Charron, Langlois LLP et al. (2017 ONSC 5043)
actions — consolidated — alias — waiver of solicitor-client privilege — lawyers
Justice P. Roger

Asselin v. Fournier (2017 ONSC 5035)
plastic surgeon — settlement funds — disfiguration — psychological — evidence
Justice S. Corthorn

Carleton Condominium Corporation No. 166 v. Sennek (2017 ONSC 5016)
vexatious litigant — fresh evidence — returnable — endorsement — motion
Justice L. Sheard

Continue reading

New Titles – August 2017

The following is a list of new books we’ve acquired in the library. New editions of Martin’s Annual Criminal Code, Annual Review of Family Law, and Ontario Small Claims Court Practice can now be found in Reserve behind the Reference Desk. See the rest below!

Annual Review of Criminal Law 2016 (Carswell)

Annual Review of Family Law 2016-2017 (Carswell)

2012 Ontario Building Code Compendium (Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing)

Code Criminel Annoté 2018 (Éditions Yvon Blais)

Disability Insurance Law in Canada, Second Edition (Carswell)

Federal Access to Information and Privacy Legislation Annotated 2018 (Carswell)

Honsberger’s Bankruptcy in Canada, Fifth Edition (Carswell)

Martin’s Annual Criminal Code, 2018 Edition (Carswell)

Martin’s Ontario Criminal Practice, 2018 Edition (Carswell)

Ontario Assessment Legislation, 2017-2018 Edition (Carswell)

Ontario Provincial Offences 2018 Pocket Edition (Carswell)

Ontario Small Claims Court Practice 2018 (Carswell)

Prosecutorial Misconduct, Second Edition (Carswell)

Stikeman Income Tax Act Annotated 2017, 62nd Edition (Carswell)

Title Searching & Conveyancing in Ontario, 7th Edition (LexisNexis)

The 2017 Annotated Ontario Highway Traffic Act (Carswell)

The 2017 Annotated Ontario Provincial Offences Act (Carswell)

The 2017-2018 Annotated Ontario Personal Property Security Act (Carswell)

The Law of Judicial Notice (Carswell)