Supreme Court of Canada Releases 2024 Year in Review

The Supreme Court of Canada has released its annual report 2024 Year in Review.

The report covers the Court's activities over the past year, including information about decisions and statistics.

From the message of the Chief Justice of Canada, Richard Wagner:

"In our democracy, legitimacy depends on public trust in the judicial system, and confidence is built and maintained when these principles are upheld. That is why I am committed to ensuring a judicial system that is open and transparent, accessible to the public and free from outside influence."

"In 2025, the Supreme Court of Canada is commemorating its 150th anniversary. This important milestone gives us an opportunity to reflect on our past and future. It is also a chance to remind Canadians of the Court’s role in our justice system and our democracy. We have many engaging anniversary initiatives planned throughout the year aimed at members of the judicial, legal and academic communities, the media, and most importantly, the general public. These activities will promote greater awareness of the Court’s role and function, while further strengthening public confidence in the Court and our justice system."

"In an era where misinformation and disinformation are so pervasive, judges and courts must do everything they can to explain who they are and what they do. Trust in our institutions depends on it."

"To that end, it is my pleasure to present the Supreme Court of Canada’s 7th annual Year in Review. In my view, reporting back on our work is essential, because our decisions have a significant impact on the lives of citizens. I trust that you will find value reading about our work and decisions, and the various ways we are nurturing broader understanding of our Court’s role in the Canadian justice system."

Canadian Bar Association Podcast Interview with Chief Justice of Canada Richard Wagner

Modern Law: Verdicts and Voices is a monthly podcast produced by the Canadian Bar Association that looks at key legal stories and celebrates the 150th anniversary of the Supreme Court of Canada.

The first episode features an interview with the Chief Justice of Canada Richard Wagner.

It also includes a discussion of the Constitution's notwithstanding clause and an exploration of a Prohibition-era case that continues to have an impact on interprovincial trade, Gold Seal Ltd. v. Alberta.

Supreme Court of Canada Calendar of February 2025 Hearings

The Supreme Court of Canada has published its calendar of upcoming appeals that will be heard in  February 2025. 

To find out more about any particular case, click on a case number in parentheses to find docket information, case summaries as well as factums from the parties and any interveners.

Newest Episode of Arrêt sur le Droit Podcast from Bar Association of Montreal

Arrêt sur le droit is a French-language podcast whose goal is to help people better understand decisions by the Supreme Court of Canada. 

 It is co-produced by the Bar Association of Montreal and CAIJ (the free legal information portal of the Quebec Bar Association) in collaboration with the Supreme Court of Canada.

The most recent episode deals with the case R. v. Bissonnette, a 2022 Supreme Court of Canada criminal law decision that looked into the constitutionality of a specific sub-section of the Criminal Code that allowed for consecutive life sentences. 

The case arose out of the 2017 mass shooting in a mosque in a Quebec City suburb. 6 worshippers were murdered and five seriously injured by the accused.

Arrêt sur le droit is hosted by Michel Désautels who for years was one of the top current affairs hosts of the public broadcaster Société Radio-Canada. 

Supreme Court of Canada Launches New Website

The Supreme Court of Canada has redesigned its website.

Content has been streamlined and reorganized to make it easy to navigate and enhance accessibility.

Canadian Bar Association Overview of the Supreme Court in 2024

The Canadian Bar Association's publication CBA National recently provided an overview of the 2024 activities of the Supreme Court of Canada:

"The Supreme Court of Canada’s 2024 workload was not quite back up to pre-pandemic levels, but it has been getting closer. And because the Court will mark its 150th anniversary this year, it will take on additional functions to mark the occasion."

"The Court granted 35 leaves in 2024, fewer than the 41 granted in 2023 and down from the high of about 50 in the early 2010s. Eugene Meehan, a partner with Supreme Advocacy LLP in Ottawa, says those numbers have been consistent over the past few years."

"Drawing on his tracking of the Court's statistics, he says that the percentage of leaves granted remains low at about 6.5 per cent in 2024, though up from six per cent in 2023, which was the lowest in the past ten years. The high rates were ten per cent in 2014 and 2017. Those leaves do not include mandatory as-of-right appeals."

Supreme Court of Canada Calendar of January 2025 Hearings

The Supreme Court of Canada has published its calendar of upcoming appeals that will be heard in January 2025. 

To find out more about any particular case, click on a case number in parentheses to find docket information, case summaries as well as factums from the parties and any interveners.

Supreme Court of Canada Calendar of December 2024 Hearings

The Supreme Court of Canada has published its calendar of upcoming appeals that will be heard in December. 

To find out more about any particular case, click on a case number in parentheses to find docket information, case summaries as well as factums from the parties and any interveners.

Newest Episode of Arrêt sur le Droit Podcast about Governmental Autonomy for Indigenous People

Arrêt sur le droit is a French-language podcast whose goal is to help people better understand decisions by the Supreme Court of Canada. 

 It is co-produced by the Bar Association of Montreal and CAIJ (the free legal information portal of the Quebec Bar Association) in collaboration with the Supreme Court of Canada.

The most recent episode deals with the rights of Indigenous people to self-government.

Arrêt sur le droit is hosted by Michel Désautels who for years was one of the top current affairs hosts of the public broadcaster Société Radio-Canada. 

His guests for this episode are lawyer Caroline Daniel and professor Ghislain Otis.

Supreme Court of Canada Calendar of November 2024 Hearings

The Supreme Court of Canada has published its calendar of upcoming appeals that will be heard in November. 

To find out more about any particular case, click on a case number in parentheses to find docket information, case summaries as well as factums from the parties and any interveners.

CanLII, the Canadian Legal Information Institute, has just added a new book to its commentary collection, Decoding the court : legal data insights from the Supreme Court of Canada:

"This edited collection combines state-of-the-art legal data analytics with in-depth doctrinal analysis to study the Supreme Court of Canada (SCC), Canada’s top court. A data analytics perspective adds new dimensions to the study of courts and their case law. It renders legal analysis scalable, making it possible to investigate thousands of judicial decisions, adding new breadth and depth. It also enables researchers to combine doctrinal questions about how the law evolves with institutional questions about how courts operate, shedding new light on how law works in practice. By applying a range of methods to study the content of SCC decisions, this work bridges the gap between qualitative and quantitative research. Demonstrating how new analytical perspectives can generate new insights about the Supreme Court, an institution which is closely studied by scholars both within and outside Canada, the book will be essential reading for legal scholars and political scientists, particularly those working in public law and in empirical legal studies."

It is edited by 3 University of Ottawa legal scholars, Wolfgang Alschner, Vanessa MacDonnell and Carissima Mathen.

CanLII is a portal funded by Canada’s provincial and territorial law societies to make legal information content (court judgments, tribunal decisions, statutes and regulations, commentary) available to Canadians free of charge.

In recent years, it has been rapidly expanding its offerings of legal commentary, including law reviews, reports, newsletters, e-books and thousands of case commentaries.

posted by Michel-Adrien at 8:43 pm 0 comments

Supreme Court of Canada to Celebrate its 150th Anniversary in 2025

The Supreme Court of Canada will turn 150 next year and has announced a series of initiatives and events to mark the occasion.

These include:

• visits by the Court to 5 Canadian cities
• a major legal conference
• an essay competition for law students
• an art competition for young people
• a reunion of current and former Supreme Court judicial law clerks
• a ceremonial ‘Opening of the Judicial Year’ on October 6, 2025

The Court has created a special anniversary website where more announcements will be published.

Supreme Court of Canada Calendar of October 2024 Hearings

he Supreme Court of Canada has published its calendar of upcoming appeals that will be heard in October.

To find out more about any particular case, click on a case number in parentheses to find docket information, case summaries as well as factums from the parties and any interveners.

Canadian Bar Association Podcast on Indigenous Self-government in Child Welfare

The most recent episode of The Every Lawyer, a podcast series of the Canadian Bar Association, features Professor Naiomi Metallic of Dalhousie University in Halifax discussing Bill C-92, an Act respecting First Nations, Inuit and Métis children, youth and families:

"An in-depth look at Bill C-92, an Act respecting First Nations, Inuit and Métis children, youth and families, with Professor Naiomi Metallic, which turns into a broader discussion on legislative reconciliation and the ‘braiding together’ of existing legal orders."

"For those interested in advocacy, Prof. Metallic also makes the case for academia as THE place to change the law, and with it, society (...)"

"Professor Naiomi Metallic, divides her time between practice and teaching at Dalhousie University’s Schulich School of Law where she holds the Chancellor’s Chair in Aboriginal Law and Policy. She was part of the legal team that intervened on behalf of the First Nations Child and Family Caring Society led by Cindy Blackstock, a longtime advocate for child welfare and Indigenous children’s rights. The SCC referenced Prof. Metallic’s article, Aboriginal Rights, Legislative Reconciliation and Constitutionalism (dal.ca) , in their Reference re An Act respecting First Nations, Inuit and Métis children, youth and families, and she is this year’s winner of the CBA’s Ramon John Hnatyshyn Award for Law."

Chief Justice Wagner's Annual News Conference

Yesterday morning, the Rt. Hon. Richard Wagner, Chief Justice of Canada, held a news conference to update Canadians on the work of the Supreme Court of Canada and answer questions from journalists.

Among other topics, Chief Justice Wagner talked about his concerns regarding disinformation undermining confidence in the justice system, including instances where political actors, columnists and social media pundits attacked Court decisions without or before having read them.

He also touched upon the topic of delays in the justice system and the under-funding of courts in many provinces.

The event was broadcast live on CPAC.ca.

Newest Episode of Arrêt sur le Droit Podcast about Good Faith in Contracts

Arrêt sur le droit is a relatively new French-language podcast whose goal is to help people better understand decisions by the Supreme Court of Canada.

It is co-produced by the Bar Association of Montreal and CAIJ (the free legal information portal of the Quebec Bar Association) in collaboration with the Supreme Court of Canada. 

The most recent episode analyzes the Ponce v. Société d’investissements Rhéaume ltée decision (2023 SCC 25, October 27, 2023). The case was about the obligation of good faith imposed on corporate directors when dealing with shareholders.

Arrêt sur le droit is hosted by Michel Désautels who for years was one of the top current affairs hosts of the public broadcaster Société Radio-Canada. His guests for this episode are Paul Martel, a lawyer with Blakes, and Stéphane Rousseau, law professor at the Université de Montréal.

Supreme Court of Canada Calendar of April 2024 Hearings

The Supreme Court of Canada has published its calendar of upcoming appeals that will be heard later this month.

To find out more about any particular case, click on a case number in parentheses to find docket information, case summaries as well as factums from the parties and any interveners.

Supreme Court of Canada Releases 2023 Year in Review

The Supreme Court of Canada has released its annual report 2023 Year in Review.

This is the 6th edition of the annual report that covers the Court's activities over the past year, including information about decisions and statistics.

Newest Episode of Arrêt sur le Droit Podcast about Supreme Court of Canada Decisions

Arrêt sur le droit is a relatively new French-language podcast whose goal is to help people better understand decisions by the Supreme Court of Canada.

It is co-produced by the Bar Association of Montreal and CAIJ (the free legal information portal of the Quebec Bar Association) in collaboration with the Supreme Court of Canada.

The most recent episode analyzes the Ward v. Quebec (Commission des droits de la personne et des droits de la jeunesse) decision (2021 SCC 43). 

That decision dealt with the limits of freedom of expression in a case involving one of Québec's most famous stand-up comics.

Arrêt sur le droit is hosted by Michel Désautels who for years was one of the top current affairs hosts of the public broadcaster Société Radio-Canada.

LawBytes Podcast on 20th Anniversary of Landmark CCH Copyright Case

In his most recent LawBytes podcast, University of Ottawa law professor Michael Geist talks with Scott Jolliffe, an IP litigator with the law firm Gowlings, about the Supreme Court of Canada decision in CCH Canadian v. Law Society of Upper Canada:

"Twenty years ago today the Supreme Court of Canada released CCH Canadian v. Law Society of Upper Canada, a decision that stands as perhaps the most consequential in Canadian copyright law history as it would firmly establish fair dealing as a users right and serve as the foundation for copyright law in Canada for decades to come. Leading off the hearing several months earlier for the Law Society was Scott Jolliffe, an IP litigator with the law firm Gowlings. Jolliffe was charged with arguing the fair dealing aspects of the case, but it was only at last moment that users right entered the picture. To mark its 20th anniversary, Jolliffe joins the Law Bytes podcast to talk about the CCH case, his strategy and insights from the hearing, and his thoughts on its impact many years later."