By Julius Melnitzer | June 22, 2021 There’s a serious irony in the notion that the cryptocurrency landscape still resembles the Wild West. “I would argue that it never did,” says David Rotfleisch of Toronto-based tax boutique Rotfleisch & Samulovitch P.C. “After all, it’s based on blockchain, which records every single transaction on a ledger […]
By Julius Melnitzer | June 21, 2021 “inadequate” men suit financial services prototypes “Mediocre” male managers practising “fake empathy” are holding back women in the finance industry, says a new report from Women in Banking and Finance and the London School of Economics (LSE). Apparently, the men were more likely to succeed because they fit […]
By Julius Melnitzer | June 16, 2021 Make no mistake about it: Bill C-12, the federal legislation designed to achieve net-zero greenhouse gas emissions is nothing more than a top-down mandate focused on making net zero emissions commitment the obligation of the federal government. “What Bill C-12 doesn’t tell us is how the federal government […]
By Julius Melnitzer | June 9, 2021 Law school and the practice of law, it often seems, have only the law in common. But as many inductees to the profession have discovered, that’s not necessarily enough – practically or psychologically. “I was astounded how different the practise of law is from what we’re told in […]
By Julius Melnitzer | June 14, 2021 Modern Advocacy Task Force releases final report The Advocates’ Society Modern Advocacy Task Force has just released its final report, The Right to be Heard: The Future of Advocacy in Canada. The report identifies four overarching principles: the open court principle, the imperative of access to justice, the […]
By Julius Melnitzer | June 11, 2021 An arbitration clause that doesn’t explicitly prohibit a terminated employee from making a complaint to the Ministry of Labour doesn’t offend employment standards legislation, the Ontario Superior Court has ruled. “The ruling will give comfort to employers that Ontario courts will enforce arbitration clauses,” says David Vaillancourt of […]
By Julius Melnitzer | June 7, 2021 OCA: COUNSEL’S FAILURE TO EXPLAIN BLENDED PROCEDURE IMPACT VITIATES CONVICTION The Ontario Court of Appeal has ruled that an accused who testified and made what amounted to a full confession on a voir dire should have his conviction overturned because counsel failed to advise him before agreeing to […]
By Julius Melnitzer | June 1, 2021 CAN JUDGES CANCEL CHILD SUPPORT ARREARS RETROACTIVELY? On Friday, June 4, the Supreme Court of Canada (SCC) will determine whether courts can retroactively cancel child support arrears. The judgment in Colluci v. Colluci will consider whether doing so provides an incentive for payors to be delinquent. Related Article: […]
By Julius Melnitzer | May 26, 2021 In early May, a study from Toronto’s ICES research facility concluded that COVID-19 vaccination rates are lower among Ontario’s immigrants, refugees, and newcomers to the provincial health system: at the time, only 22 percent of refugees and 12 percent of newcomers had received at least at least one […]
By Julius Melnitzer | May 26, 2021 Following their formal recognition by the Quebec Superior Court and British Columbia Supreme Court, reverse vesting orders (RVO) are poised to become extremely valuable tools in insolvency and restructuring proceedings — for the energy sector in particular. Historically, courts have used standard vesting orders to transfer purchased assets […]