Ontario Superior Court: New twist on class action funding approvals
November 4, 2020 | By Julius Melnitzer Sooner or later, some enterprising lawyer was going to try it on: why not intervene in a funding application brought by counsel competing for carriage of a class action? The scene of the crime was litigation over Ukraine International Airlines (UIL) flight 752. Iran shot the flight down […]
The Case Doctor: a new legal species
October 19, 2020 | By Julius Melnitzer Richard Shekter of Shekter Legal, a Toronto mediator and arbitrator, has put an interesting twist on the notion of a “second opinion”. After 44 years as an all-purpose counsel with a reputation for taking on anything with merit that came through the door, he set up shop as […]
Counsel are judge’s “lens”: Ontario Court of Appeal
October 12, 2020 | By Julius Melnitzer Putting forward the evidence isn’t enough: argue your theory at trial if you want to complain on appeal about its treatment. That’s the message from the Ontario Court of Appeal’s recent decision in Becker v. Toronto (City). “The court made it pretty clear that if an issue isn’t […]
Get a leg up on your injury’s worth – – – for free and without a lawyer
September 27, 2020 | By Julius Melnitzer You’re injured in an accident. You’re lost, alone and frustrated, and you’re looking for a lawyer. Michael Zouhri of Edmonton knows how you feel. And that’s why he created PainWorth, free online software touted as ”the world’s first fully-automated app that helps you calculate the potential value of your […]
Federal Court denies feds’ attempt to block its COVID-19 directions
Friday, September 4, 2020 | Julius Melnitzer The Federal Court of Appeal has dismissed the Attorney General of Canada’s attempt to block the court’s practice directions governing the gradual phase-out of COVID-19 suspension periods so far as the directions apply to cases involving the federal government and numerous federal boards, commissions and other tribunals. Characterizing […]
Arbitration Place to host Canada Arbitration Week
Arbitration Place Virtual will be hosting the inaugural Canadian Arbitration Week from September 21-25. CanArbWeek 2020 will feature most Canadian and some international arbitration and ADR organizations, who will be showcasing their annual conferences and events.
Bucking the trends: the gentle way to fierce advocacy
August 19, 2020 This is the first in legalwriter.net’s continuing series called Bucking the Trends: Lawyers who make a difference – – – their own way “Gentleman”, “lady”, or “stand-up comic” is rarely found in the lexicon describing the virtues of great counsel. That’s especially true in an era when regulators keep reminding lawyers that […]
Arbitrability of LTD claims in Ontario’s hospital sector heading to Supreme Court
February 26, 2020 The issue of whether long-term disability claims are arbitrable or matters for the court, which has plagued Ontario’s hospital sector for over a quarter of a century, is on its way to the Supreme Court of Canada. “The current state of the law, which denies employees seeking long-term disability benefits under insurance […]
$100M judgment against Bell may signal uptick in pension indexing litigation
February 24, 2020 The Ontario Court of Appeal has ruled that Bell and its related companies, including Bell Canada, Bell Media Inc., Expertech Network Installation Inc. and Bell Mobility Inc., have been miscalculating the cost-of-living adjustment due to their 35,000 pensioners since 2017. The judgment could cost the telecommunications company up to $100 million and signal […]
Paralegal debate: let’s settle for ‘better’ not ‘perfect’ access to justice
Thursday, July 27, 2017 The current debate about paralegal representation in Ontario’s family courts, and the degree of opposition to it in the bar and judiciary, exemplify just how far the profession is removed from reality. The lawyers and judges opposing the change rest their case on the belief that “quality of service” will erode […]