Use of human reproductive material after death, procedural unfairness in transferring a transgender female inmate to a jail for men, and a note rather than a will
The first topic on the show: Sperm, recovered from a man shortly after his death, pursuant to an interim court order, will not be provided to the man’s wife because the man had not provided his written consent before he died. The Assisted Human Reproduction Act requires written consent for the “removal of human reproductive material” from a donor’s body, after death, for the purpose of creating an embryo. In this case, the sperm had been collected and stored, pursuant to an emerge...
12 Dec 201922min
$20,000 award for an unlawful arrest for not holding a handrail, what can breach your ICBC coverage, and Law Society rules for lawyers making public statements
Police officers in Montreal believed that a warning picture on an escalator, suggesting that people hold the handrail, made this a legal requirement. The police officers ordered a woman to hold onto the handrail and, when she refused, they arrested her, placed her in handcuffs, searched her purse, and issued her a ticket for not holding onto the handrail. After being acquitted of the non-existent offence of failing to hold onto the handrail, the woman sued the police officers. The woman...
6 Dec 201923min
Three parents on birth registration, Sentencing where facts are disputed, and a $600,000 judgement when house purchase not completed
What’s required for three people to be listed as parents on birth certificates, for children of a same-sex couple, who were conceived with sperm from a friend, who also wished to participate in raising the children? The British Columbia Family Law Act attempts to contemplate a wide range of modern scenarios, involving surrogates and other assisted reproduction. Unfortunately, not every eventuality can be anticipated, as demonstrated by a recent court case. Two women, in a long term committ...
29 Nov 201925min
Religious oaths in court, a poisoned blueberry farm, and Police Act staffing requirements
In British Columbia witnesses who are testifying in court are required to choose between swearing a religious oath, or making an affirmation, to tell the truth. Children under 14 are only asked to promise to tell the truth. The origin of oaths, to tell the truth, was a belief that divine retribution would visit those who lied under oath. While witnesses are not told they have the option to swear an oath on something other than a bible, that is permitted. Alberta recently ann...
22 Nov 201927min
Education removed from list of essential services prior to the Saanich school strike, funding for poverty law clinics, and litigation over law school naming rights
With Saanich schools closed for a third week as a result of a strike, 2019 amendments to the Labour Relations Code are discussed. These amendments removed a specific provision that declared “the provision of educational programs for students and eligible children under the School Act” to be an essential service. This change was an example of the labour relations changes made each time the NDP is elected, or defeated, in British Columbia. This same legislation, Bill 30, would also have inc...
14 Nov 201926min
Saanich School Strike and the Labour Relations Code, Limitation Periods for Criminal Cases, and Credit Union Class Action for Overdraft Fees
After almost two weeks Saanich schools are still closed as a result of a strike by support staff. Support staff are seeking a wage increase to match other school districts. The support staff ended up with lower salaries as a result of past contracts that provided for greater benefits, instead of larger salary increases. The Saanich School District has offered all of the money they are permitted to pursuant to a provincial bargaining mandate. This amounts to an overall 6% increase in pay...
7 Nov 201927min
Foreign Buyers' Tax discrimination and unconstitutional limits on experts in ICBC cases
Canada, and British Columbia, have a very unfortunate history of racist legislation intended to restrict Chinese immigration. This includes the Chinese Immigration Act (1885), which imposed a head tax, the Opium Act (1908) which was passed following anti-Asian riots in 1907 that involved destruction in Vancouver’s Chinatown as well as Japanese neighbourhoods, and the Chinese Immigration Act (1923) which banned new Chinese immigration all together. It’s in this historical context that 20...
31 Okt 201925min
Publication Bans, Judicial Recounts, Extradition, and Distracted Driving by an Interlock Device
A new BC Supreme Court policy concerning bans on publication, and closed courtrooms, permits automatic notification of applications for the media as well as a web site listing publication bans, to make it easier to determine if there is a publication ban is in place. Judicial Recounts: what is required for an automatic, or discretionary, judicial recount, and how the recount proceeds when one is required. Issues on a recount include whether it’s possible to determine the intention of the vote...
24 Okt 201927min
