Patrizia’s Case: Appeals, Civil Litigation, Negligence and Minimum Maintenance Standards

Background: Patrizia was driving to work early on a snowy morning in April. The roads in Milton were snow covered and slippery. Weather forecasts from the day before predicted an 80% chance of snow, yet the Town of Milton had not scheduled an evening patrol to monitor the roads and clear the snow. Tragically, as

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F.A.’s Case: Criminal Law, Appeals, Sexual Assault and Ineffective Assistance of Counsel

Allan Rouben

Background: F.A. worked in a medical facility with a much younger female co-worker. There was flirting between them. They went out together one evening, meeting up in a park and later driving around in F.A.’s car. He said he had a surprise for her at the office so they parked close by. Instead of going

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Heather’s Case: Appeals, Civil Litigation, Personal Injury and Rules of Civil Procedure

Allan Rouben

Background: Heather suffered serious medical problems from mould and other toxins present in Government owned housing in which she resided in the 1980’s. She hired a law firm to represent her in the proceeding. Unfortunately, they failed to take action within the limitation period for doing so, with the result that Heather had to seek

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Clare’s Case: Labour Law, Duty of Fair Representation and Ontario Labour Relations Board

Allan Rouben

Background: Clare had been working for General Motors for 23 years before his termination. The company claimed that he had threated a supervisor after being told that a urine sample he had given was diluted. Clare denied the allegation and asked the Union, Canadian Auto Workers Local 222, to grieve the termination. He communicated frequently

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Damages for Mental Distress in Employment Law Cases after Keays v. Honda Canada Inc.

Allan Rouben

The purpose of an award of damages in a wrongful dismissal action is to compensate the employee for breach of the implied term of the employment contract to provide reasonable notice of termination. In the seminal case of Bardal v. Globe & Mail Ltd. (1960), 24 D.L.R. (2d) 140 (Ont. H.C.J.) McRuer, C.J.H.C. set out a list

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Is There a Constitutional Right to a Jury in Civil Cases?

Allan Rouben

For as long as anyone can remember, judges have had a discretion to strike out a jury where the complexities of the case warrant it, the rationale being that judges are better able by training and experience to understand and process difficult issues. The Administration of Justice Act, 1877, section 255, provided that: “Notwithstanding anything in

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The Quality of Mercy and the Case of Justice Ted Matlow

Allan Rouben

Canadians are justifiably proud of the integrity of their judicial officers. The removal of a Federally appointed Superior Court judge for misconduct is exceedingly rare. There has been only one such instance in Canadian history, dating back to 1967. On December 3, 2008, the Canadian Judicial Council, by a vote of 17-4, decided not to

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What is Wilful Blindness?

Allan Rouben

Liability for criminal conduct requires an intent to cause harm. An important question in criminal law is the degree to which lesser states than actual knowledge can form the basis for a criminal conviction. In the decision of the Supreme Court of Canada in R. v. Briscoe, 2010 SCC 13 released today, the Court makes

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The Qualities of a Good Witness

Allan Rouben

Trial lawyers are constantly searching for those elusive qualities of clients and witnesses which will capture the attention of the Court and result in favourable treatment by a judge or jury. Opinions on the subject are frequently based on little more than gut reactions. In the recent case of Catholic Children’s Aid Society of Toronto

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The Scope of Expert Evidence

Allan Rouben

In an interesting decision, the Court of Appeal for Ontario took the unusual step of overturning an acquittal by a jury on a charge of first degree murder. The decision in R. v. Abbey, 2009 ONCA 624, is noteworthy for the extended analysis by Mr. Justice David Doherty on the scope of expert evidence, in

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