The Immigration Law Section of the Canadian Bar Association strongly expresses its commitment to access to justice and a robust refugee determination system. But it has concerns with Immigration, Refugee and Citizenship Canada’s new Refugee Protection Portal, introduced on October 6, 2021 as the primary means for submitting a refugee protection claim.

Negotiation, not litigation, is the way towards reconciliation. This is the central message sent by the Aboriginal Law, Child and Youth Law and Constitutional and Human Rights Sections of the Canadian Bar Association in a letter to the Minister of Indigenous Services and the Minister of Justice, urging the government to cease further litigation in the matter of Canada (Attorney General) v. First Nations Child and Family Caring Society of Canada.

The proposed Canada-wide early learning and child-care program was likely the most-discussed line item in the budget presented by Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland on April 19, and was certainly welcomed by members of the Canadian workforce most affected by the pandemic-related she-cession.

The coming into force of changes to Canada’s medical assistance in dying law, on March 17, is not the end of the story, says David E. Roberge

Milestones are good opportunities to pause, reflect and take stock. One hundred years ago the Canadian Bar Association became incorporated through a private act of Parliament, as was the custom in those days.

The CBA has long been an advocate for the modernization of the justice system, and change has been slow and incremental. Despite the system bursting at the seams, there was little appetite and even less money to make it happen.

If you went to a flea market in the days before the internet and were offered a pair of Vuarnet sunglasses for $10, you knew they were fake. Today’s counterfeiters are incredibly more sophisticated and difficult to catch than their 20th-century predecessors working in unregulated cash-only markets.

The issue of political interference in judicial appointments got an airing this fall after several news outlets in Quebec reported on private departmental emails purporting to show undue politicking in federal appointments.

Amendments to the Supreme Court of Canada Rules came into effect on January 27, 2021, aimed at simplifying the process to apply for leave to appeal and facilitating electronic filing.

Months-long delays in the processing of immigration claims, and the IRCC Case Processing Centres’ habit of returning those claims unprocessed for petty or erroneous reasons, is more than a source of frustration of applicants and their lawyers, it can also have detrimental effects on an individual’s eligibility for a program, or ability to work in Canada.