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.
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.
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...
Two Queen’s Law gold medalists, it must always be noted
True words. Go get that liberty
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-...
The four alleged errors are a perfect match to what I’ve done from my Evidence syllabus at this point in the term! Should I send it out or make it an exam fact pattern ….
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
I hear you. Some people might need to send their kid somewhere other than Conestoga tho
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...
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...
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...
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...
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...
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