The Criminal Justice Section of the Canadian Bar Association expresses its general support for Bill S-212, An Act to amend the Criminal Records Act, to make consequential amendments to other Acts and to repeal a regulation. It suggests recommendations to extend its reach and prohibit the dissemination of non-conviction information.

The Pensions and Benefits Law Section of the Canadian Bar Association commends the Canadian Association of Pension Supervisory Authorities, or CAPSA, for engaging stakeholders as it finalizes its 2023-2026 Strategic Plan.

In a letter (available only in French; all quotations taken from the letter are translations) to the Centre de traduction et de terminologie juridiques at the Université de Moncton, the Canadian Bar Association’s French-Speaking Common Law Members Section seeks to increase the number of important court decisions that are available in both official languages in each province and territory of Canada.

The Family Law Section of the Canadian Bar Association, in a letter to the Department of Justice’s Family Law and Youth Justice Policy Section, recommends amendments to the proposed Release of Information for Family Orders and Agreements Enforcement Assistance Regulations (proposed Regulations).

All people appearing before the courts should be confident that their names will be pronounced correctly. In a letter to the Chief Justices of the Federal Court and Federal Court of Appeal, the Equality Subcommittee, the Federal Court Bench and Bar Liaison Committee, and the Immigration Law Section (Anti-Racism Committee) of the Canadian Bar Association raise awareness about the impacts of name mispronunciation. They suggest protocols and best practices for courts and beyond.

The Judicial Issues Subcommittee of the Canadian Bar Association, in a letter to Justice Minister David Lametti and in a similar letter to the Standing Senate Committee on Legal and Constitutional Affairs about Bill C-9, reaffirms the importance of preserving judicial independence and public confidence in the judiciary.

Strengthening the Canadian sanctions regime to make sure foreign nationals who have been sanctioned can’t enter or remain in Canada is worth supporting, writes the Immigration Law Section of the Canadian Bar Association in a letter to the House of Commons Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Development. But the amendments in Bill S-8, to the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act and other Acts and Regulations, need a few improvements.

The Immigration Law Section of the Canadian Bar Association supports retroactively restoring citizenship to individuals who lost theirs under s. 8 of the Citizenship Act. In a letter to the House of Commons Standing Committee on Citizenship and Immigration, the Section makes two recommendations to improve Bill S-245, An Act to amend the Citizenship Act (granting citizenship to certain Canadians). The CBA Section appeared in front of the Committee to present its recommendations on March 27.

The Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Community Section of the Canadian Bar Association, in a letter responding to Department of Justice Canada consultation, adds it voice to the calls for reforming the criminalization of HIV non-disclosure.

The Charities and Not-for-Profit Law Section of the Canadian Bar Association appreciates that the Charities Directorate of the Canada Revenue Agency is offering guidance to the charitable sector on the amendments to the Income Tax Act in Budget Implementation Act, 2022, No. 1 related to grants to non-qualified donees.