The Docket

Special Note: Emile Taman and Michael Spratt have both been nominated for Canada's top 25 most influential lawyers: vote for them here! Is it a criminal offence to lick an opponent during a hockey game? After Boston Bruins forward Brad Marchand licked Tampa Bay Lightning's Ryan Callahan during a play off game this is a burning issue. So, Emilie and I dive into the law around consent fights and loo...

This episode we are joined by good friend of the podcast (TM) Peter Sankoff to take a deep dive into Justice Minister Jody Wilson-Raybould 's new BOLD justice bill. The legislation, Bill C-75 , was billed as a silver bullet to unclog our courts and bring about a “cultural shift” in the justice system. The changes may be bold, but in this case the proposed reforms will likely result in more delays,...

So episode 73 - a new record. But you know that right? Because you subscribe to the show on iTunes and have already rated and reviewed the podcast - right? You should. Hey look we have a sponsor! Let the podcast money start rolling in! But seriously a huge thanks to Emond Publishing ! So, after some technical difficulties we have a new episode - sorry about that. Maybe it is time to start one of t...

Not a fun episode this week. On Friday Gerald Stanley was acquitted of murdering Colten Boushie. People are often acquitted of serious crimes but this case was different. Boushie was a young indigenous man. Stanley was a white farmer. Boushie's friends said that they had some car trouble and went to the Stanley farm for help. Then Stanley murdered Boushie - for no real reason. Stanley said that Bo...

This episode we look at two high profile murder case in Toronto. First, the case Berry and Honey Sherman who Toronto police now say were murdered. Berry's cousin Kerry Winter says he definitely did not do it - except his denial may raise more questions than answers. Then, we look at Bruce McArther, a landscaper and mall Santa, who the Toronto police now say is a serial killer responsible for strin...

Fresh off our #Clawbies2017 award we had a New Year party and invited all of our friends! Emilie and I kick of 2018 with a call in show - with predictions, resolutions, and admissions from past Docket guests: Louise Arbour , Senator Kim Pate , Making a Murderer's Jerry Buting & Dean Strang, Naomi Sayers , Anne-Marie McElroy , Member of Parliament Nate Erskine-Smith , the crew at PolitiCoast podcas...

Emilie and I take a depot dive into two new Supreme Court of Canada cases about text messages. In a majority decision , authored by Chief Justice McLachlin, the Court ruled that individuals have a privacy interest in the text messages they send - even if those messages are found on someone else phone. And in a companion case the court clarified who can bring a privacy claim for text messages store...

A special guest! Ian Bushfield - the Executive Director of the @BCHumanist , @bccla board member, and the left half of @PolitiCoastPod - returns to talk about the Supreme Court. But we start with the important stuff - a deep dive into the red hot debate about the best Canadian TV show of all time. And I have an epiphany about Danger Bay. Then we dive into some law an politics. Justin Trudeau annou...

Cannabis legislation is being debated on Parliament Hill. One MP called me a renowned lawyer and one MP said marijuana was as dangerous as fentanyl . At lest one of those MP is batshit crazy. Yes, Peter Kent claimed that by legalizing marijuana we might as well as be force feeding our kids fentanyl - well that was the gist of it. So we make some fun of him. We also update the tragic Ezekiel Stepha...

Hey look we have a sponsor! Let the podcast money start rolling in! But seriously a huge thanks to Emond Publishing . And holy hell this was a good episode. We kick off the episode looking at the recent litigation in Toronto involving the best worse movie ever made - The Room . Tommy Wiseau tried to block the release of the documentary Room Full of Spoons . His performance in court was about as go...

So episode 64 - a new record. But you know that right? Because you subscribe to the show on iTunes and have already rated and reviewed the podcast - right? You should. The conversation about the justice system and sexual assaults has become a polarizing topic. But it should not be. It is possible to believe and support victims without throwing away the fundamental principles of our justice system....

So episode 64 - a new record. But you know that right? Because you subscribe to the show on iTunes and have already rated and reviewed the podcast - right? You should. Good friend of the podcast Peter Sankoff makes a triumphant return to the podcast studio. Peter was in town making arguments at the Supreme Court of Canada in the very interesting case of R. v. Suter . You will want to follow this c...

So episode 63 - a new record. But you know that right? Because you subscribe to the show on iTunes and have already rated and reviewed the podcast - right? You should. Canada has a drug problem but it is a problem of policy. The war on drugs has failed and the results are laid bare in our court, hospitals, and morgues. People are dying. This is not new but is seems that the general public has fina...

So episode 62 - a new record. But you know that right? Because you subscribe to the show on iTunes and have already rated and reviewed the podcast- right? You should. Its back to school and we offer our advice to new law students - but it really applies to just about every one. The short version - Don't be a dick. But before we tell you how to succeed in school we break down the Liberals' marijuan...

So episode 61 - a new record. But you know that right? Because you subscribe to the show on iTunes and have already rated and reviewed the podcast- right? You should. This episode we are joined by Ian Bishfield - Executive Director of the @BCHumanist , @bccla board member, and the left half of @PolitiCoastPod . First we nerd out about British Columbia politics and then we talk about the strange ca...

So episode 60 - a new record. But you know that right? Because you subscribe to the show on iTunes and have already rated and reviewed the podcast- right? You should. First thing first. Go back and listed to episode 59 for your Omar Khadr primer. Conservative member of parliament Erin O'Toole was one person who listened and he had some stuff to say about the episode. So we invited him on the podca...

So episode 59 - a new record. But you know that right? Because you subscribe to the show on iTunes and have already rated and reviewed the podcast- right? You should. Before we jump into the heavy stuff lets look at something fun. Brendan Richmond's Canadian comedy song " Out For a Rip " went viral in 2013 raking up over 12 million views, but this Canada Day he was shocked to find his trademarked...

So episode 58 - a new record. But you know that right? Because you subscribe to the show on iTunes and have already rated and reviewed the podcast- right? You should. Last month, after 28 years on the Supreme Court, Chief Justice Beverley McLachlin announced her retirement . She was first appointed to the court by Brian Mulroney in 1989 - when we were still in grade school. McLachlin also holds th...

So episode 57 - a new record. But you know that right? Because you subscribe to the show on iTunes and have already rated and reviewed the podcast- right? You should. This week the CBC's Janice Johnston shed light on a horrifying courtroom injustice - the victim of a brutal sexual assault was remanded into custody because she had difficulty answering questions. The victim was a vulnerable indigeno...

So episode 56 - a new record. But you know that right? Because you subscribe to the show on iTunes and have already rated and reviewed the podcast- right? You should. Do we really want to know how the sausage is made? This week we take a look at juries. We trust 12 non-legal experts to pass judgement on the most serious criminal charges. But we have no idea who they are, they don't explain their d...

So episode 55 - a new record. But you know that right? Because you subscribe to the show on iTunes and have already rated and reviewed the podcast- right? You should. Emilie Taman returns! This week we talk about the Liberal government's new marijuana legislation. But it is not just pot that gets a legislative makeover. The government has adopted the contents of an old Conservative bill that will...

So episode 54 - a new record. But you know that right? Because you subscribe to the show on iTunes and have already rated and reviewed the podcast- right? You should. With Emilie on campaign trial award winning blogger and friend of the podcast Anne-Marie McElroy jumps into the void. We chat about the ill-informed political push to eliminate the preliminary hearing to speed up trials. Then Emilie...

So episode 53 - a new record. But you know that right? Because you subscribe to the show on iTunes and have already rated and reviewed the podcast- right? You should. A very Special episode this week. The awesome Emilie Taman is running for the NDP in the soon-to-be announced federal by-election in Ottawa-Vanier. Emilie will be a fantastic member of parliament. Lets start with the obvious: she is...

So episode 52 - a new record. But you know that right? Because you subscribe to the show on iTunes and have already rated and reviewed the podcast- right? You should. A busy month at podcast headquarters here. Emilie won her case at the Federal Court of Appeal! Last year Emilie ran in the general election for NDP in Ottawa-Vanier. Emilie was a federal prosecutor (and a really good one) - but the P...

So episode 51 - a new record. But you know that right? Because you subscribe to the show on iTunes and have already rated and reviewed the podcast- right? You should. This week we sat down with Renu Mandhane - the Chief Commissioner of the Ontario Human Rights Commission to talk about... well.... human rights. Renu Mundane and the Human Rights Commission have been a leading voice against the deepl...