{"title":"Reasonable Bail or Bail at All Costs? Defence Counsel Perspectives on a Coercive Environment","authors":"Jenaya Nixon, Carolyn Yule, Dennis Baker","doi":"10.1017/cls.2024.3","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1017/cls.2024.3","url":null,"abstract":"Bail decisions are largely shaped by private, out-of-court negotiations between Crown attorneys and defence lawyers. While accused persons rely on the professional expertise of defence lawyers to navigate bail negotiations and secure them the best possible outcome, much remains unknown about how lawyers prepare for and negotiate bail. This study examines the process of bail preparations and negotiations from the defence’s perspective based on data from 18 semi-structured interviews with defence lawyers. The findings show that, while defence lawyers argue for reasonable bail terms, their ultimate goal is to obtain a release for their client. Defence lawyers also prioritize collecting and strategically using information about the case and the Crowns and justices with whom they work. They often adopt a risk-averse and cooperative approach with Crowns to avoid delaying or preventing their client’s release, even if that means agreeing to additional conditions. Our findings inform efforts to reform bail processes.","PeriodicalId":45293,"journal":{"name":"Canadian Journal of Law and Society","volume":"364 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.7,"publicationDate":"2024-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141881995","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"L’éthique et l’éthos de la profession chez les avocats en droit criminel et en droit social","authors":"Évelyne Jean-Bouchard, Pierre Noreau","doi":"10.1017/cls.2024.7","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1017/cls.2024.7","url":null,"abstract":"Résumé Quelle relation les avocats entretiennent-ils avec les exigences éthiques de leur profession? Ce texte pose l’hypothèse qu’il existe un décalage entre la définition déontologique, universelle et abstraite établie par le Code de déontologie des avocats et les prises de décisions éthiques prises au quotidien par les professionnels du droit dans le contexte de leur domaine de pratique et des relations qu’ils tissent avec leurs clients, leurs collègues et l’administration judiciaire. Ainsi, nous avons identifié les différents sites de socialisation où les professionnels sont susceptibles de faire l’apprentissage des normes propres à leur pratique. Nous nous sommes alors plus directement intéressés aux dimensions systémiques et institutionnelles de celle-ci. À partir des résultats d’une série d’entretiens semi-directifs menés auprès d’avocats en droit criminel et en droit social, nous avons pu constater que leurs prises de décisions éthiques étaient fortement influencées par les manières d’être et les logiques de pratique au sein de leur communauté, c’est-à-dire par l’ethos spécifique à leur profession.","PeriodicalId":45293,"journal":{"name":"Canadian Journal of Law and Society","volume":"99 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.7,"publicationDate":"2024-05-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140828663","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Dalia Gesualdi-Fecteau, Maxine Visotzky-Charlebois, Johanne Clouet, Chloé Leclerc, Arianne Morin-Aubut
{"title":"Le recours aux modes alternatifs de règlement des conflits : une exploration au prisme d’une analyse des coûts humains et financiers de la justice","authors":"Dalia Gesualdi-Fecteau, Maxine Visotzky-Charlebois, Johanne Clouet, Chloé Leclerc, Arianne Morin-Aubut","doi":"10.1017/cls.2024.1","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1017/cls.2024.1","url":null,"abstract":"Résumé Les modes alternatifs de règlement des conflits s’inscrivent dans une volonté de transformation de l’organisation de la justice en cherchant à régler « autrement » les litiges judiciarisés. L’émergence de ces modes répond également aux impératifs de la nouvelle gouvernance publique, où les questions de l’efficacité et de la célérité de la justice deviennent cardinales. Ces modes alternatifs exigent que les parties y participent volontairement. Or, les justiciables composent avec certaines contraintes subjectives qui se répercutent sur leur motivation à s’engager sur la voie d’un mode alternatif de règlement des conflits. À partir de données empiriques, ce texte présente de quelle façon les coûts humains et financiers qu’assument les justiciables sont susceptibles de se répercuter sur leur décision de s’engager sur une telle voie, laquelle découle généralement de l’atteinte d’un point de rupture par rapport à ces coûts. Cette recherche, effectuée au Québec, fait état de la situation en droit civil, en droit criminel et en droit administratif.","PeriodicalId":45293,"journal":{"name":"Canadian Journal of Law and Society","volume":"23 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.7,"publicationDate":"2024-05-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140828809","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Bad Religion and Bad Business: The History of the Canadian Witchcraft Provision","authors":"Riley Klassen-Molyneaux","doi":"10.1017/cls.2024.8","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1017/cls.2024.8","url":null,"abstract":"Witchcraft is a fascinating subject on which many volumes continue to be published. But not in Canada. This article stands in contrast to earlier Canadian pieces on witchcraft whose primary goals were to prove that the witchcraft provision marginalized women and to encourage legislators to repeal it. Parliament finally repealed the Canadian witchcraft prohibition in 2018. The moment is thus ripe to ask how—and why—this legislative oddity migrated from England into Canada. The first section of the paper considers the religious origins of the witchcraft prohibition in England and how it made its way into the Canadian <jats:italic>Criminal Code</jats:italic>. The second section explores how the prohibition evolved from one against unwanted spiritual practices to one against unwanted economic practices. The last section of the paper considers how witchcraft morphed into a viable <jats:italic>Charter</jats:italic> defence based on freedom of religion and why the prohibition against it was eventually repealed. In conclusion, the article reflects on the peculiar trajectory of witchcraft in Canada and what it might suggest not only about Canadian criminal law, but also about broader Canadian society.","PeriodicalId":45293,"journal":{"name":"Canadian Journal of Law and Society","volume":"1 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.7,"publicationDate":"2024-05-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140842523","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Unthinkable, Thinkable, and Back Again: The Use of Incarceration in Ontario during the COVID-19 Pandemic","authors":"Brendyn Johnson, Chloé Leclerc","doi":"10.1017/cls.2024.2","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1017/cls.2024.2","url":null,"abstract":"The arrival of COVID-19 added potentially deadly consequences to incarceration. In response, jurisprudence developed allowing for some to be spared the deprivation of their liberty. However, there is insufficient empirical evidence that this avoidance of incarceration occurred in practice in Ontario. Using fieldwork methods conducted in Ontario criminal courts coupled with data from Statistics Canada, we investigate if a change in the use of incarceration during the COVID-19 pandemic occurred, and if friction emerged between those who may and may not espouse this new outlook. We find a notable and persistent decrease in the use of incarceration, that this was welcomed by many court actors but also that a fatigue with such leniency grew among others. We discuss what this fatigue might signify for the potential longevity of this more exceptional use of incarceration and more largely what this can signify about changes in Canada’s criminal justice system.","PeriodicalId":45293,"journal":{"name":"Canadian Journal of Law and Society","volume":"43 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.7,"publicationDate":"2024-05-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140828686","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Vulnerability of Asylum Seekers and Undocumented Migrants in Toronto","authors":"Idil Atak, Sara Asalya, Jona Zyfi","doi":"10.1017/cls.2024.5","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1017/cls.2024.5","url":null,"abstract":"This article examines the underlying structural elements contributing to the vulnerability experienced by asylum seekers and undocumented migrants across two critical domains: refugee eligibility examination and accessibility of essential social services, particularly healthcare. By drawing insights from fieldwork conducted in Toronto between 2020 and 2022, this article investigates how migrants navigate and perceive vulnerability encountered both at the front-end of the refugee status determination and while trying to access social services. It discusses the perspectives of key stakeholders, including lawyers, representatives of immigrant-focused non-profit organizations, and municipal officials, shedding light on their experiences and insights regarding the challenges faced by migrants. Furthermore, this article critically evaluates Canada’s adherence to the principles articulated in the 2018 United Nations Global Compacts on Migration and Refugees concerning the mitigation of vulnerability among migrant populations.","PeriodicalId":45293,"journal":{"name":"Canadian Journal of Law and Society","volume":"95 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.7,"publicationDate":"2024-04-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140587843","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Misunderstandings and Intentional Misrepresentations: Challenging the Continued Framing of Consensual and Nonconsensual Intimate Image Distribution as Child Pornography","authors":"Alexa Dodge","doi":"10.1017/cls.2024.6","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1017/cls.2024.6","url":null,"abstract":"Many educational presentations continue to straightforwardly frame both consensual and nonconsensual intimate image distribution among youth as child pornography. This continues despite the availability of a purpose-built offence for nonconsensual intimate image distribution (NCIID) that was designed, in part, to avoid the use of child pornography offences in NCIID cases and the existence of a “private use exception” that limits the applicability of child pornography offences in cases of consensual “sexting” among youth. This sometimes inaccurate and, I argue, inappropriate focus on child pornography offences is especially common in presentations by police and public safety personnel. Through a discursive analysis of Canadian case law and a case study of educational approaches provided by the CyberScan unit, I find that the continued dominance of a child pornography framing is based on both genuine misconceptions of how these offences apply to intimate image distribution and intentional misrepresentations of the legal context.","PeriodicalId":45293,"journal":{"name":"Canadian Journal of Law and Society","volume":"17 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.7,"publicationDate":"2024-04-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140587744","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"How enforcement shapes compliance with legal rules: the case of long-term care homes in Ontario","authors":"Poland Lai","doi":"10.1017/cls.2024.4","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1017/cls.2024.4","url":null,"abstract":"<p>This paper contributes to the legal and socio-legal literature on long-term care (LTC) facilities (also known as nursing homes) by drawing from the responsive regulation literature and empirical research conducted in 2021 and 2022. Enforcement is an under-explored aspect in the legal and socio-legal literature on LTC. This research asks how the regulator’s enforcement activities shape compliance of LTC homes in Ontario. This paper reports the results from eleven semi-structured key informant interviews with associations that represent LTC facilities, advocacy organizations, unions, and professionals, such as lawyers. The current enforcement activities do not appear to evoke responsiveness in at least some of the LTC homes because the regulator’s approach is not dynamic: the regulator does not change its mix of “persuasion” and “coercion” in order to respond to the motivations and behaviours of homes. Inspection and enforcement activities have had little impact on how homes respond to rules.</p>","PeriodicalId":45293,"journal":{"name":"Canadian Journal of Law and Society","volume":"46 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.7,"publicationDate":"2024-04-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140587747","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Le droit à l’expression sexuelle chez les personnes âgées vivant en milieu d’hébergement : comment concilier le consentement et les troubles neurocognitifs?","authors":"Louise Langevin","doi":"10.1017/cls.2023.32","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1017/cls.2023.32","url":null,"abstract":"Résumé Contrairement aux préjugés, les personnes aînées ne sont pas asexuelles ou post-sexuelles. Elles sont titulaires de droits sexuels, reconnus dans de nombreux textes législatifs. Cependant, la mise en œuvre de ces droits pose des défis, particulièrement pour les personnes aînées vivant en établissement et souffrant de problèmes neurocognitifs. Le Code criminel interdit tout contact sexuel entre personnes qui ne sont pas en mesure de consentir ou lorsqu’un des partenaires ne peut consentir. Cette règle a été critiquée parce qu’elle nie le droit à l’expression sexuelle de personnes aînées incapables de consentir en raison de maladies neurocognitives. Mon étude analyse un enjeu majeur en matière de lutte contre la maltraitance envers les personnes aînées : comment reconnaître et respecter à la fois le droit à l’expression sexuelle des personnes aînées vivant en établissement et leur droit à la sécurité, lorsque les maladies neurocognitives altèrent l’aptitude à consentir.","PeriodicalId":45293,"journal":{"name":"Canadian Journal of Law and Society","volume":"298 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.7,"publicationDate":"2024-03-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140587673","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Pandemics and Paradigms of Governance: Futures of the Rule of Law in the 21st Century","authors":"Amy Swiffen, Joshua Nichols","doi":"10.1017/cls.2023.30","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1017/cls.2023.30","url":null,"abstract":"Is the COVID-19 pandemic truly a pivotal moment in contemporary governance? This question has sparked multifaceted responses and spurred diverse debates and perspectives. On one side of the spectrum, there are those who ardently argue that this pandemic represents an exceedingly rare and profoundly impactful historical juncture, specifically within the domain of law and governance. In contrast, a counterpoint in this debate contends that the pandemic, rather than introducing an entirely new era, has primarily functioned as an amplifier and extension of pre-existing governing paradigms. Additionally, there is a notable contention that the pandemic has invigorated and revitalized social movements with a central focus on challenging established state structures.","PeriodicalId":45293,"journal":{"name":"Canadian Journal of Law and Society","volume":"172 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.7,"publicationDate":"2024-02-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"139926788","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}