The LCO’s Final Report recommends a comprehensive plan to reform Ontario’s laws and policies regarding powers of attorney, guardianship and health care consent. This project responds to public concerns regarding misuse of powers of attorney, elder abuse, excessive intervention in the lives of persons who have disabilities to make independent decisions, barriers to access to justice, and the widespread lack of understanding about Ontario’s complex laws in this area.
Latest News Articles
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Ontario’s freedom of information and protection of privacy act
Privacy Protection
The Act creates a privacy protection scheme which the government must follow to protect an individual’s right to privacy. This includes rules regarding the collection, retention, use, disclosure and disposal of personal information in its custody or control.
If an individual feels his or her privacy has been compromised by a public institution governed by the Act, he or she may complain to the Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario (IPC) who may investigate the complaint.
https://www.ipc.on.ca/wp-conte
Uninsured, Self Represented Litigant Learns that Perjury is a Poor Idea
From the vault of how not to represent yourself in court, reasons for judgement were released today by the BC Supreme Court, Vancouver Registry, admonishing a self represented litigant for providing the Court with perjured evidence.
http://www.ilstv.com/uninsured
Chain-reaction accidents: Who pays?
The Ontario Superior Court of Justice has provided clarity as to how the fault attribution rules ought to be applied to loss transfer disputes in chain-reaction motor vehicle accidents.
https://www.thelawyersdaily.ca
Catastrophic Car Accident Cases & Team Meetings (Ontario)
The term “catastrophic” carries a very specific medico-legal definition. It’s a term of art. This definition has been tinkered with throughout the years, over and over again. That’s how important it is for any car accident case.
Toronto Star Three-Part Series on Trial Delays
This week, the Toronto Star has published a fascinating three-part series calling “Justice in Turmoil” on the crisis of chronic delays in Canadian courts. The series discusses the fallout from the Supreme Court of Canada’s 2016 ruling, R v. Jordan, which set strict timelines to bring an accused person to trial.
http://micheladrien.blogspot.c
Self-Represented Litigants: A Survival Guide by Carol Cochrane
Why do we all shudder on learning that our client’s adversary is self-represented on a litigation file? So often we fail to appreciate opposing counsel – until we hear those dreaded words from our client: “You know, the other side won’t be getting a lawyer.” It is only then that we realize and appreciate the benefit of there being opposing counsel on a file.
http://avoidaclaim.com/2017/se
Judgmental Judges
Judges exercise considerable power, and discharge a crucial public function. They identify, interpret and even create the rules that govern us. They decide what happened. And they determine the legal consequences of what happened.
Long-Term Disability Series: Physical Injury and Its Effects on Mental Health
Life altering accidents can happen in an instant, but their effects can last months, years or a lifetime. Emergency medical treatment is focused on diagnosis and treatment of acute physical injuries, such as surgical intervention and pain management. The emergent physical needs, out of necessity, take precedent over psychological needs. However, as the accident victim makes her way through the recovery process, she may struggle psychologically to accept and adjust to the permanent impact her physical limitations will have on her life.
http://www.hshlawyers.com/blog
Canadian Community Health Survey, 2015
Perceived mental health is an important indicator of overall well-being and provides a general indication of the population suffering from some form of mental disorder, mental or emotional problems, or distress. In 2015, almost three-quarters (72.4%) of Canadians aged 12 or older reported that their mental health was excellent or very good. An additional 21.7% of Canadians reported their mental health was good, while 5.9% said that their mental health was fair or poor.
http://www.statcan.gc.ca/daily