On April 4, 2014, Can LII launched a new project called Can LII Connects. This site will provide summaries of and commentary on Canadian cases reported on Can LII. Case comments will be accessible via Can LII Connects and via the Can LII website, and Can LII Connects also has a blog. ABlawg was very pleased to be asked to participate in this project as one of a few law blogs to post historical content in time for the launch. To access ABlawg’s content on Can LII Connects, readers can use the Search function or choose to filter by Publisher. Readers can concur with comments on Can LII Connects, or add their own commentary. All new case comments on ABlawg will be cross-posted to Can LII Connects from here on in. We encourage our readers to check out this excellent new resource.
Author: Admin Page 13 of 19
By: Admin
PDF Version: What does Fearn v Canada Customs add to OPCA jurisprudence?
Case commented on: Fearn v Canada Customs, 2014 ABQB 114 (CanLII)
The leading case on Organized Pseudolegal Commercial Argument (OPCA) litigation is the Alberta Court of Queen’s Bench decision of Justice John Rooke in Meads v Meads, 2013 ABQB 571 (CanLII) (summarized here). In Fearn v Canada Customs, Justice W A Tilleman very deliberately builds on Meads and develops the court’s responses to OPCA litigants in two ways. First, Fearn sets out guidelines for awarding costs against OPCA defendants in criminal proceedings, a context in which costs are very rarely awarded (at paras 113-139). Second, Fearn adds to what Meads had to say about when OPCA concepts and litigation strategies might amount to contempt of court, whether civil or criminal contempt (at paras 140-256). In this regard, Justice Tilleman identifies some OPCA strategies which, in and of themselves, are prima facie civil contempt. He also urges the use of criminal contempt prosecutions against some of the activities of OPCA “gurus”, i.e., those who sell instructional material and training in OPCA schemes.
By: Admin
PDF Version: Supreme Court Denies Leave to Appeal in Alberta Cases
Cases commented on: R v Alcantara, 2013 ABCA 163; R v Hanna, 2013 ABCA 134; Young v National Money Mart Company, 2013 ABCA 264
On January 30, 2014 the Supreme Court denied leave to appeal in three Alberta cases that gave rise to four separate leave applications. The Court’s summaries of the cases, and their dispositions, are below. Jonnette Watson Hamilton posted a comment on the Money Mart decision here.
ABlawg is thrilled and honoured to have won the Canadian Law Blogs Award (Clawbie) for Best Law School/Law Professor Blog for the second year in a row. Here is what the Clawbie judges had to say:
13) Best Law School/Law Professor Blog
ABlawg, the University of Calgary Faculty of Law Blog. No other Canadian law blog received as many nominations as this one, many of them from practicing lawyers who find ABlawg’s updates and insights highly valuable. This is not just the best academic law blog in Canada, a category that is very difficult to win; it’s one of the best law blogs around, period.
ABlawg is very much a collective effort, and so we collectively express our thanks to the Clawbie judges, all of those who nominated us, and most importantly, our dedicated readers.
Happy New Year to all.
ABlawg will be taking a break from Christmas Day to New Year’s. We’d like to take this opportunity to thank all of our followers for your readership and support this year. We are honoured to have received so many Clawbie nominations from so many diverse sources. When we return in the new year, you can look forward to a series of posts on the NEB’s Northern Gateway Pipeline decision, amongst other commentary. We wish all of our readers a wonderful holiday season.