Aside from the early to mid-80’s when the Charter of Rights and Freedoms got here into impact and was interpreted by the Courts, the previous 5 years have hosted unequaled change and paradigmatic shifts in Canada’s prison regulation, historical past and information; 2014 isn’t any exception.
Our yr ends whereas peaking at this pattern with drastic modifications in prison justice laws, controversial Supreme Court docket of Canada judicial appointments (and a profitable problem), factually unprecedented high-profile crimes and investigations, palpable pressure (if not disdain) of our courts from Parliament, and sweeping legislative modifications affecting us in methods that can solely change into obvious when police forces come to combine new powers and investigative methods.
From a defence lawyer’s standpoint, it has been a relentless assault on civil liberties of Canadian residents, the rights of accused, the presumption of innocence, and respect for the Court docket system. It’s all too ironic that on the finish of the yr, Canada’s champion of civil liberties and defender of due process, Eddie Greenspan, handed away peacefully in his sleep whereas the turmoil of Canada’s regulation spins in a route we’re unfamiliar with as a rustic.
To get a small sense of those modifications, now we have compiled a listing of the highest 10 most essential circumstances in prison regulation in Canada. It was a judicial yr obsessive about privateness, digital proof, and entry to info. When you’re like me, you’re impatient andneed to know issues now.
So, right here is the record (with explanations and commentary on the next pages numbered under):
| #10 | R. v. Steele, 2014 SCC 61 | Long run and harmful offender regulation – which means of “critical private harm offence” – statutory interpretation |
| #9 | R. v. MacDonald, 2014 SCC 3 | Search and seizure – Constitution of Rights – Police frequent regulation powers of search – possession of a firearm – mens rea |
| #8 | R. v. Taylor, 2014 SCC 50; | Proper to counsel – Responsibility of police to facilitate counsel – scene of the accident – exclusion of proof – Constitution of Rights of Freedoms |
| #7 | R. v. Quesnelle, 2014 SCC 46 | Disclosure of police occurrences – definition of “file” underneath s.278 of CCC – obligations of Crown |
| #6 | R. v. Hutchinson. 2014 SCC 19 | Sexual assault primarily based upon fraud – important nature of the act – consent – vitiation of consent – definition of bodily hurt |
| #5 | R. v. Sekhon, 2014 SCC 15 | Skilled proof – Correct scope and use of experience at trial – “final concern” testimony |
| #4 | R. v. Summers, 2014 SCC 26 | Pre-trial custody – Reality in Sentencing Act – enhanced credit score – Constitution of Rights and Freedoms |
| #3 | R. v. Hart, 2014 SCC 52 | Confessions – Mr. Large approach – proof and admissibility – Constitution of Rights and Freedoms – voluntariness |
| #2 | R. v. Spencer, 2014 SCC 43 | Constitution of Rights and Freedoms – Search and Seizure – Search Warrants – youngster pornography – police acquiring subscriber info through IP addresses |
| #1 | R. v. Fearon, 2014 SCC 77 | Search and seizure – police powers to look incident to arrest – cellphone searches – privateness rights – Constitution of Rights and Freedoms |
