In December 2018, amendments to the Criminal Code (sections 278.92 to 278.94) came into force which, for the first time, required defendants in sexual assault cases to disclose material in their possession to the prosecutor (the Crown) and to the complainant before being allowed to use that material at trial. In the years following the amendments, some lower courts had…
If you’re arrested inside your home, can police search parts of your home without a warrant? This blog provides preliminary legal information about the power to search a home incident to arrest.
The police do not have the authority to arrest someone engaging in lawful conduct in order to prevent others from breaching the peace.. This blog explores the Supreme Court of Canada’s decision in Fleming v. Ontario, a decision which placed additional limits on police powers.
Entrapment or the rule against entrapment is a limit on how police conduct their investigations. This blog provides preliminary information about this unilegal defence.
Introducing Edelson Foord Law.
We’re thrilled to welcome Principal Partner James Foord , Partner Brandon Crawford and Law Clerk / Business Manager Erin Stafford to 200 Elgin, and to announce the launch of our new criminal defence firm, Edelson Foord Law.
Valérie Bégin and Robin McLachlen, our Articling Students from 2021-2022, will also be joining the firm as Associates in July and August.
Tony Paciocco has been appointed a Partner at the firm.
Why Do We Have the Presumption of Innocence? Famed American educator and diplomat Kingman Brewster once explained that the presumption of innocence, when approached in commonsense terms, “rests on that generosity of spirit which assumes the best, not the worst, of the stranger.” In Canada, we take this same approach. In fact, the presumption of innocence is not just a…
A Brief History of the Law Relating to Marihuana in Canada Before the Cannabis Act In the 1920s, the Canadian government criminalized cannabis (Opium and Narcotic Drug Act, 1923). In 1937, someone was arrested and charged with marihuana possession for the first time in Canadian history. The message at the time was clear: marihuana was not just bad, it was…
Consider these hypothetical scenarios: Someone accidentally dials 911 and then immediately hangs up when the operator answers. A short time later, four police officers show up at the door and force their way inside. Police show up at a homeowner or renter’s door. The police tell the owner or renter that they are responding to an “unknown trouble call.” They…
Just being accused of a sexual assault can be devastating. But being convicted of a sexual assault is even worse: a conviction can lead to a loss of your livelihood, your reputation, to you being continuously monitored as a sex offender, and for many if not most sexual assaults, going to prison. Indeed, while not the case for sexual assaults,…
According to the Department of Justice, impaired driving is one of the leading causes of criminal death throughout all of Canada. It shouldn’t come as a surprise then that the penalties for impaired driving or DUI charges can be severe. But how do they differ from province to province? (Yes, in addition to penalties under the Criminal Code, there are…