Winners of 2024 Canadian Law Blog Awards

The winners of the 2024 Canadian Law Blog Awards (known as the Clawbies) were announced recently.

The Clawbies exist to reward the best and most innovative Canadian blogs, podcasts, videos, legal newsletters, and other forms of online commentary. 

The 2024 Fodden Award recognizing a single, outstanding publication went to Kyla Lee of Acumen Law Corporation in Vancouver:

"At a time when people need courageous voices amplifying their rights and defending their interests, no voice has been stronger or more reliable than criminal defence lawyer Kyla Lee of Acumen Law Corporation in Vancouver. An extraordinarily prolific author and broadcaster year after year, Kyla surpassed even her own high standards in 2024: more than 300 written blog posts, 50 episodes of her “Driving Law” podcast, and 41 editions of her vlog “Cases That Should Have Gone to the Supreme Court of Canada, But Didn’t.” There are well-funded legal media organizations in this country that struggle to match that output. Kyla is the face and voice of legal matters on mainstream radio and TV in British Columbia, speaking directly, accessibly, and informatively to everyday Canadians about the law."

There are awards in many categories.

The Clawbies are organized by Stem Legal, a B.C.-based strategy firm.

Winners of 2023 Canadian Law Blog Awards

The winners of the 2023 Canadian Law Blog Awards (known as the Clawbies) were announced on New Year's Eve.

The Clawbies exist to reward the best and most innovative Canadian blogs, podcasts, videos, legal newsletters, and other forms of online commentary. 

The 2023 Fodden Award recognizing a single, outstanding publication went to the Blogue du CRL:

"This year, we are excited to be honouring one of the country’s longest-running and most successful group blogs: Blogue du CRL, published by the Jeunne Barreau de Montréal’s Research and Legislation Committee."

"For well over a decade, Blogue du CRL has been the go-to current awareness tool for Quebec professionals, publishing an ample and steady stream of case summaries and legislative developments."

"The scale of the blog is huge, with more than 50 volunteer writers, and also featuring case summaries from SOQUIJ and occasional contributions from Jeune Barreau’s other committees."

There are awards in many categories.

The Clawbies are organized by Stem Legal, a B.C.-based strategy firm.

Nominations Open for 18th Annual Canadian Law Blog Awards

The nomination period for the 18th annual Clawbies is now open. 

The Clawbies, or Canadian Law Blog Awards, exist to reward the best and most innovative Canadian law-related blogs, social media accounts, podcasts, and newsletters:

"Rule #1: Our 'humble Canadian' rule: don’t nominate your own publication or project for a Clawbie. It doesn’t work that way. The only surefire way of getting your work on our radar is to give props to other commentary authors. Follow this rule and we’ll take a look at your work too!"

"Rule #2: Nominate up to three digital publications or authors via blog post or tweets (using the hashtag  #clawbies2023). They must be freely available at no cost. Be sure to include a brief explanation of why you think those authors deserve an award!"

"Nominations will be accepted until the end of day on Friday, December 15th, 2023. Then stay tuned, because this year’s winners will be announced on New Year’s Eve."

Law Society of Ontario Tip on Coming into Force of Federal Regulations

Know How, the blog of the Law Society of Ontario's Great Library, regularly posts very useful research tips.

It recently published one entitled Coming into force of Federal Regulations and Statutory Instruments:

"When conducting legislative research, many researchers will know that locating a piece of legislation is only half the battle. The next hurdle lies in decoding commencement information or coming into force date(s)."

"As outlined in previous posts, deciphering this information can be tricky and confusion often arises from the wording used. In this post we hope to shed light on three frequently used coming into force (CIF) phrases of Federal SORs and SIs."

"Three phrases (or terms) are often used in SOR/SI’s to describe coming into force date(s): when an Order is made, when an Order is registered and when an Order is published." 

"What is the difference and how do you determine which date is which?"

Law Society of Ontario Tip on Finding Unreported Ontario Decisions

Know How, the blog of the Law Society of Ontario's Great Library, regularly posts very useful research tips.

It recently published one entitled Finding “Unreported” Ontario Decisions: Unreported, but not Unretrievable?

As the text explains, it may surprise some people but there are decisions (not only from Ontario but also from other Canadian jurisdictions) that have not been published and that do not appear in any of the big legal research databases.

It outlines some of the basic steps for tracking down these elusive rulings. 

The basic steps are:

• contact the courthouse where the case was heard
• find out about any offsite storage sites
• for much older cases, contact the provincial archives.

I know that many of the same steps can also apply when trying to find "unreported" cases from many other provinces.

Winners of 2022 Canadian Law Blog Awards

The winners of the 2022 Canadian Law Blog Awards (known as the Clawbies) were announced a few days ago.

The Clawbies exist to reward the best and most innovative Canadian blogs, podcasts, videos, legal newsletters, and other forms of online commentary.

The Fodden Award for the very best in Canadian legal commentary went to the The Trauma-Informed Lawyer Podcast:

"We’re hard-pressed to name a legal publication that focuses on more important and pressing issues in 2022 as Métis-Cree lawyer Myrna McCallum’s Trauma-Informed Lawyer Podcast."

"Having won Clawbies in the Best Podcast category in both 2020 and 2021, the Trauma-Informed Lawyer features fascinating interviews with judges and lawyers, profs and educators, survivors and community leaders, experts and everyday people."

"In 2022, the podcast tackled topics such as restorative justice, boundary-setting and mental health, vicarious trauma in the courtroom, trauma-informed teaching, decolonization, and much more. Powerful, frank discussions carry out the podcast’s mission to build critical competencies that are missing from law school and bar course competency requirements. Transcripts for most episodes also increase accessibility."

There are awards in many categories.

The Clawbies are organized by Stem Legal, a B.C.-based strategy firm.

Winners of 2020 Canadian Law Blog Awards

The winners of the 2020 Canadian Law Blog Awards (known as the Clawbies) were announced a few days ago.

The Clawbies exist to reward the best and most innovative Canadian blogs, podcasts, videos, legal newsletters, and other forms of online commentary.

The Fodden Award for the very best in Canadian legal commentary went to the National Self-Represented Litigants Project (NSRLP):

"Since its inception in 2013, the NSRLP has won several Clawbies for specific streams of content: their blog, their podcast and self-help resources; this year, we are awarding the NSRLP’s collective body of work with the Fodden Award. The organization’s effort in amplifying the stories and voices of stakeholders involved in the Canadian self-represented litigant phenomenon–from litigants to A2J groups to judges to lawyers–is well deserving of this recognition."

"Nominations praised the NSRLP for:

• “their continued effort in making the legal system more accessible to SRLs. Their recent primer is an essential tool for SRLs to be better prepared”
• “maintaining a current list of court changes nationwide due to COVID-19 ever since shutdowns started!”
• “promoting dialogue between self-reps and members of the legal profession.  Understanding the ‘other’ side’s experiences and concerns is a very necessary part of resolving the current A2J crisis” "

There are awards in many categories, including one for Best Law Library Resources. And I won (along with 2 other institutions)!:

"@greatlibrary Twitter Account
Only on Twitter since March of 2020, the Law Society of Ontario’s Law Library “leads the way with its engaging, effective, and entertaining Twitter account.” This feed shares useful and interesting information, uses photos to great effect, and runs weekly fun facts, legal research tips and more."

"Great LEXpectations
The Law Society of Manitoba’s Great Library blog is a one-stop shop for court notices & practice directions, library news & resources, substantive law updates, legislation, legal research tips and local legal community blog posts. An invaluable current awareness tool for Manitoba legal professionals."

"Library Boy
For an incredible 15 years now, SCC librarian Michel-Adrien Sheppard has been steadfastly sharing the things well-rounded and well-informed law library folks need to know (aka “law library blogaliciousness”). From conferences to research, statistics to court news, Library Boy captures an astonishingly wide variety of citations related to the library and legal worlds."

The Clawbies are organized by Stem Legal, a B.C.-based strategy firm.

Nominations Open for 15th Annual Canadian Law Blog Awards

 The nomination period for the 15th annual Clawbies is now open. 

The Clawbies, or Canadian Law Blog Awards, exist to reward the best and most innovative Canadian "blogs, podcasts, videos, social accounts, legal newsletters, platform commentary, CanLII Connects, whitepapers, and beyond."

As the website explains:

"Nominate up to three digital publications or authors via blog post or tweets (using the hashtag #clawbies2020). Please include a brief explanation of why you think those authors deserve an award!"

"Nominations will be accepted until the end of day on Friday, December 18th, 2020."

"Then stay tuned, because this year’s winners will be announced on New Year’s Eve."

Over the years, quite a few law library efforts have been recognized. Among them:

• Great LEXpectations (Law Society of Manitoba )
• Legal Sourcery (Law Society of Saskatchewan Library)
• Robeside Assistance (County of Carleton Law Association in Ottawa)
• SlawTips (initiative of Slaw.ca - Vancouver law librarian Susannah Tredwell is a regular contributor)
• CALL for Innovation ("The Canadian Association of Law Libraries (CALL) partnered with vLex for an exclusive podcast series in which Colin Lachance, interim General Manager of North America for vLex, carried out out brief interviews with CALL / ACBD 2019 conference speakers, exhibitors, sponsors and organizers, about their experience at the May 2019 conference, what’s hot in their world, and their thoughts on the future.")

Winners of 2019 Canadian Law Blog Awards

The winners of the 2019 Canadian Law Blog Awards (known as the Clawbies) were announced a few days ago.

The Fodden Award 2019 for the very best in Canadian legal commentary went to the Supreme Advocacy Newsletter:

"A veritable institution in the Canadian legal community, readers come for the Supreme Court of Canada case news and stay for the Last Word. Eugene Meehan and his team have been generously sharing their expertise with an enjoyable side of miscellany since the mid ‘90s. The newsletter represents an impressive commitment to free and open sharing of legal knowledge—the true hallmark of any Fodden Award winner."

Two sites were recognized as the Best Law Library Resource:

"O’Faolain
There’s really only one word—stellar—to describe David Whelan’s blog, where he writes first-person reflections on law libraries and technology. From the nominations: “One of the most useful sites where I learn things to move forward with my work.”
CALL for Innovation Podcast
Colin Lachance recorded this series of interviews at the 2019 CALL/ACBD conference in partnership with vLex—we think this is probably the first-ever Canadian law library podcast! More please!"

There were awards in many other categories.

The Clawbies are organized by Stem Legal, a B.C.-based strategy firm.

Nominations Open for 2019 Canadian Law Blog Awards

Nominations are now being accepted for the 2019 Canadian Law Blog Awards known as the Clawbies.

As the organizers explain:

"Before getting too far into this, we want to acknowledge a small truth: the gradual morphing of these Awards beyond blogs. We’re not looking to change too much. We won’t stop celebrating quality writing or the strong online legal voices that Canada has to offer. But we feel the need to expand the spectrum of Canadian commentary and authors that we shine a light on (...)"

"It’s all going to be fair game: blogs, podcasts, videos, social accounts, legal newsletters, platform commentary, CanLII Connects, whitepapers, a stellar SSRN account or a serial magazine column. We’re basically looking at everything that’s online and free, short of books."

The deadline for nominations is end of day on Thursday, December 20th and the winners of the 2019 Clawbies will be announced on New Year’s Eve.

Winners of 2018 Canadian Law Blog Awards

The winners of the 2018 Canadian Law Blog Awards (known as the Clawbies) were announced a few days ago.

The prize for Best Canadian Legal Blog went to The Docket by Michael Spratt and Emilie Taman. This is how the organizers describe it: "The Docket has the honour of being the first podcast to take home the big prize, thanks to the duo’s inimitable blend of whip-smart analysis, conviction and humour. Alongside an impressive roster of guests, the Docket team dissected the year’s many constitutional and criminal justice developments and the cases and issues that had everyone talking".

The Best Law Library Blog award went to O’Faolain by David Whelan.

There were awards in many other categories.

The Clawbies are organized by Stem Legal, a B.C.-based strategy firm.

Simon Fodden (1944 – 2018)

Simon Fodden, the founder of the pioneering Canadian legal blog Slaw.ca, has died.

His disappearance is a huge loss to the legal community.

More on Slaw.ca.

Blog Series for 10th Anniversary of Supreme Court Dunsmuir v New Brunswick Decision

Dunsmuir v. New Brunswick, 2008 SCC 9 has become the most cited Canadian court decision ever.

It will soon the 10th anniversary of what many scholars believe is the decision that rewrote Canadian administrative law.

To mark the occasion, the blogs Double Aspect and Administrative Law Matters will be publishing a series of posts by major scholars between now and the anniversary date (March 7):

"These contributions will subsequently be published in the Canadian Journal of Administrative Law & Practice, the overall goal being to enrich discussion of Canadian administrative law and to blend new and old forms of legal writing. Contributors will be encouraged to edit their contributions in light of comments received from blog readers and other discussants on social media ― so don’t be shy!"

 Posts will cover:

• The Background to Dunsmuir 
• The Philosophy of Dunsmuir 
• Correctness Review 
• Reasonableness Review 
• Dunsmuir and Fairness 
• Dunsmuir and the Constitution 
• Indigenous Peoples and Dunsmuir 
• Teaching Dunsmuir 
• Judicial Perspectives 
• Comparative Perspectives 
• The Effects of Dunsmuir

Winners of 2017 Canadian Law Blog Awards

The winners of the 2017 Canadian Law Blog Awards (known as the Clawbies) were announced a few days ago.

The prize for Best Canadian Law Blog went to Cowling Legal, which the organizers describe as a blog that "combines sharp insights into the Canadian litigation landscape and timely commentary on vital social issues with terrific writing and a unique personal style".

The Best Law Library Blog award went to Legal Sourcery maintained by the Law Society of Saskatchewan.

There were awards in many other categories.

The Clawbies are organized by Stem Legal, a B.C.-based strategy firm.

Winners of 2016 Canadian Law Blog Awards

The winners of the 2016 Canadian Law Blog Awards (known as the Clawbies) were announced a few days ago.

The prize for Best Canadian Law Blog went to The Court, a blog covering the Supreme Court of Canada that is produced by faculty and students at Osgoode Hall Law School in Toronto.

The Best Law Library Blog award went to Robeside Assistance maintained by the County of Carleton Law Association library in Ottawa. Library Boy was a runner-up in that category. Cool!

There were awards in many other categories.

The Clawbies are organized by Stem Legal, a B.C.-based strategy firm.

Nominations Open for 2016 Canadian Law Blog Awards

Nominations are now being accepted for the 2016 Canadian Law Blog Awards known as the Clawbies.

As the organizers explain:

"You can nominate a blog by:

• Writing a blog post nominating up to three Canadian law blogs you currently read, with a brief explanation of why you think those blogs deserved an award in 2016.
• Tweeting your nomination on Twitter, using the hashtag #clawbies2016" 

The deadline for nominations is end of day on Thursday, December 22nd and the winners of the 2016 Clawbies will be announced on New Year’s Eve.

ABA Journal 10th Annual Blawg 100 List

The ABA Journal has released its 10th annual list of "the 100 most compelling" law-related blogs, otherwise known as the Blawg 100.

It has also published an article on What bloggers told us about the state of the legal blogosphere.

Slaw Reader Survey

Slaw.ca, Canada's major law-related blog, has released its first ever Slaw Readers Survey Report. I have occasionally contributed to the site.

The survey reveals details such as:

• Who reads Slaw
• Where readers come from
• How frequently people visit
• Why people come to the site

Full results are available in HTML or in PDF format.

Directory of Quebec Law Blogs

Édith Guilhermont, a legal scholar at the University of Sherbrooke in the province of Quebec, has created a directory of Quebec law-related blogs.

It lists blogs that deal with law applicable to Quebec an whose main audience is the Quebec legal community.

Guilhermont's recent research has been trying to answer the question of whether law-related blogs can be included in the category of "doctrinal literature" (scholarly commentary) alongside traditional formats such as treatises, seminar/conference papers, theses, etc.

Legal Sourcery Named Best Canadian Law Library Blog

Legal Sourcery, the blog produced by the Law Society of Saskatchewan Library, won the 2015 Clawbie (Canadian Law Blog Award) for best law library blog:

"Few categories prompt so many nominations from our readers as Best Law Library Blog, and no blog receives so many or such enthusiastic nominations as Legal Sourcery. The blog of the Law Society of Saskatchewan consistently generates engaging and informative posts about legal developments, regulatory changes, research trends, and just plain fun observations and contests. Ken Fox, Melanie Hodges Neufeld, Alan Kilpatrick, Kelly Laycock and Sarah Roussel-Lewis lead the way."

The complete list of winners and runners-up in the many Clawbie categories is online.