Digital Commons Network^™

The Dead Parrot: Does Professional Self-Regulation Exhibit Vital Signs?, Harry W. Arthurs

Articles & Book Chapters

Self-governance of the legal profession, and the promulgation and enforcement of a code of professional conduct are usually justified by arguments from principle, practicality and past practice. None of these can be sustained However, if professional self-governance were replaced by governmental or judicial regulation, the operational norms of professional conduct - the way lawyers actually behave - would likely not change very much. In fact, formal regulation, by whatever means, is not a major determinant of conduct that can be characterized as unethical. Rather, such conduct is largely determined by the personal characteristics of the individual lawyer, the professional circumstances …

Calgary And Everything After: A Postmodern Re-Vision Of Lawyering, Allan C. Hutchinson

Articles & Book Chapters

Hutchinson encourages a re-thinking of the ethics of lawyering. He explores the need to transform through legal theory what is done in legal practice and what is justified to be left undone. This exploration begins with a discussion of the traditional image of the ethical lawyer. He then exposes this image to a series of critiques and introduces alternate models of legal practice. A postmodern vision of lawyering is introduced which reframes and reworks these traditional ways of thinking. By the adoption of such a postmodern revision of lawyering, change in legal practice may come about through the legal profession, …

Comment On S.M. Beck "Gatekeepers And The Commission: The Role Of Professionals In The Regulatory System", Mary Condon

Articles & Book Chapters

The theme of Beck's paper is that there is a need to re-examine the issue of the accountability of professionals, particularly lawyers, who act for clients in securities-related transactions. The role of law and lawyers in securities regulation has in the past been considered from the standpoint of the influence of legal professionals and legal ideas (such as those of fairness and equity) on the content of regulation and the practices of regulators.1 Beck's paper, however, considers the position of lawyers, not as the creators and shapers of regulation, but as objects of it.

As I read the paper, it …

Changing Opportunities For Partnership For Men And Women Lawyers During The Transformation Of The Modern Law Firm, Fiona M. Kay, John Hagan

Osgoode Hall Law Journal

Considerable controversy surrounds partnership in law firms, particularly regarding the possibility of systematic gender bias and discrimination. This article contributes to the existing literature by considering explanations of women's under-representation in partnerships within the historical context of changes in the structure of law practice. Such changes include transitions in the organization and scale of contemporary law firms, the emergence of branch offices and international markets, the diversification of recruitment practices and mobility routes through modified firm hierarchies, and rising expectations of billable hours. Using a survey of over 1,000 lawyers in Ontario law firms, the authors examine opportunities for partnership …

C 12 Courts Of Justice Statute Law Amendment Act, 1994/Loi De 1994 Modifiant Des Lois En Ce Qui Concerne Les Tribunaux Judiciaires, Ontario

Ontario: Annual Statutes

No abstract provided.

Gender Equality, Family Law And Access To Justice, Mary Jane Mossman

Articles & Book Chapters

This article focuses on recent issues in Canada concerning (in) equality of access to justice in family law matters on the basis of gender. Citing a recent report of the Canadian Bar Association's Task Force on Gender Equality which identified problems, especially in legal aid funding, for family law clients, the paper suggests that the Task Force's conclusions about gender inequality in legally-aided family law matters are closely related to other issues about gender and legal aid: the ongoing controversy about the appropriateness of student legal aid clinics which have adopted policies of representation for battered women, but not for …

Can Ontario Sustain Cadillac Legal Services?, Frederick H. Zemans, Lewis T. Smith

Articles & Book Chapters

Recently described in the American Lawyer as Canada's Cadillac legal services, the Ontario legal aid scheme--Canada's first and today its most costly-is in serious need of repair. This paper, which grows out of a presentation made by Robert Holden, Director of the Ontario Legal Aid Plan, describes both the introduction of legal aid services in Ontario and the evolution of the original pro bono scheme into a government-funded judicare scheme.

It is not surprising that in 1952, when contemporary legal aid was introduced into Canada, both the bar and government of Ontario looked to the United Kingdom for direction. In …

Lawyers And Family Life: New Directions For The 1990'S, Mary Jane Mossman

Articles & Book Chapters

No abstract provided.

Poverty Law In Ontario: The Year In Review, Randall Ellsworth, Ian Morrison, Judith Keene, Paul Rapsey

Journal of Law and Social Policy

No abstract provided.

Sex Discrimination In The Workplace May Be Hazardous To Your Health: A Call For Workers' Compensation Benefits For Victims Of Sexual Harassment, Nina Moritsugu

Journal of Law and Social Policy

No abstract provided.

Immigrant Selection And The Canadian Human Rights Act, Chatal Tie

Journal of Law and Social Policy

No abstract provided.

International Procedures For Protecting The Human Rights Of Non-Citizens, Sharryn Aiken, Tom Clark

Journal of Law and Social Policy

No abstract provided.

"Artificial Conscience": Professional Elites And Professional Discipline From 1920 To 1950, James A. Smith

Osgoode Hall Law Journal

Recent historical studies of the British and American Bars have identified their professional elites' willingness to define and enforce a concept of legal ethics which restricted less fortunate members' ability to practice and less fortunate individuals' ability to obtain legal assistance. This essay applies the thesis to the Canadian Bar's and especially the Law Society of Upper Canada's use of their increasing control over professional discipline from 1920 to 1950. Identifying similar trends in the Canadian profession's evolution, while emphasizing effects rather than intentions, it makes similar conclusions about the Canadian professional elite's use of such powers during this period.

Helping "Concerned Volunteers Working Out Of Their Kitchens": Funding Citizen Participation In Administrative Decision Making, Marcia Valiante, W. A. Bogart

Osgoode Hall Law Journal

Broad citizen participation in decision making by administrative bodies is important in achieving fairness, improving the quality of decisions, and realizing accountability and legitimacy. Yet such broad participation often hinges on adequate financial capacity. In this regard, the authors review a number of mechanisms used for funding citizen participation. These mechanisms are variations of essentially two models: public funding (direct and indirect) and direct funding by proponents. The article concludes with a plea for such mechanisms--even in a time of severe financial restraint-as one reflection of a vigorous participatory democracy.

The Problems Of Public Choice: The Case Of Short Limitation Periods, Kent Roach

Osgoode Hall Law Journal

This article examines public choice as a predictor of legislative behaviour and as a guide for statutory and constitutional interpretation. It focuses on short limitation periods, which have often been criticized as special interest legislation benefiting well-organized groups, such as medical doctors. The author concludes that the economic assumptions of public choice cannot adequately explain complexities in interest group behaviour, and that the Canadian legislative process has the ability to advance the interests of diffuse and unorganized groups, such as patients. The author also argues that given the absence of normative content in public choice analysis, Canadian courts have rightly …

Withholding And Withdrawing Life Support From Adults At Common Law, Joan M. Gilmour

Osgoode Hall Law Journal

This article examines the circumstances in which life support can legally be withheld or withdrawn from adults. It analyzes the situation of patients who are both capable and incapable of making decisions, taking into account recent jurisprudence in Canada, the United States, and the United Kingdom. Where competence is not an issue, both law and modern medicine espouse a strong normative commitment to patient self-determination. However, when no clear indication of the patient's treatment preference can be ascertained because of decisional incapacity, then the question of terminating life support is much more difficult. The author describes and analyzes the two …

Paradise Lost, Paradox Revisited: The Implications Of Familial Ideology For Feminist, Lesbian, And Gay Engagement To Law, Shelley A. M. Gavigan

Osgoode Hall Law Journal

In this article the author addresses the theoretical and political challenges issued to feminists and feminist scholarship by recent debates and litigation concerning "family" and "family-based" benefits. The argument proceeds in four parts: first, the discussion is relocated within socialist feminist theory. The implications of the qualified pro-family stance in the critiques advanced or influenced by women of colour is considered next, followed by an examination of some proposals to extend the definition of "spouse" and "family" to lesbian and gay relationships. The author is critical of both "critiques" and illustrates with reference to Canadian welfare and immigration law that …

Minimum Income Requirements In Rental Applications: Are They Discriminatory?, Noelle Spotton

Journal of Law and Social Policy

No abstract provided.

Poverty Law In Ontario: The Year In Review, Randall Ellsworth, Ian Morrison, Judith Keene, Paul Rapsey

Journal of Law and Social Policy

No abstract provided.

Desperately Seeking Sustenance: Where To Now?, Louise Thurtell, Roger Smith

Journal of Law and Social Policy

No abstract provided.

Toward A Comprehensive Legal Aid Program In Canada: Exploring The Issues, Mary Jane Mossman

Articles & Book Chapters

Proposals to incorporate civil legal aid services into a comprehensive legal aid program provide a unique opportunity to re-examine the policy rationales for legal aid in Canada Traditionally, the rationale for legal aid was based upon the norms of legal services for paying clients. The author explores the "social indicator" approach as an alternative method of defining needs, by means of identifying target populations. The paper assesses the criteria for choosing policy objectives by looking at the legal obligations, including those required by sections of the Charter, to provide legal aid services. The functioning of Canadian federalism is taken into …

Gender Equality And Legal Aid Services: A Research Agenda For Institutional Change, Mary Jane Mossman

Articles & Book Chapters

No abstract provided.

The Industry Of The Living Dead: A Critical Look At Disability Insurance, David Schulze

Journal of Law and Social Policy

No abstract provided.

Police Implementation Of Supreme Court Of Canada Charter Decisions: An Empirical Study, Kathryn Moore

Osgoode Hall Law Journal

Little empirical research has been done on the Charter's impact on the public policy process. This paper presents the results of an empirical research study designed to fill that gap. The study examined the manner in which a municipal police force and the RCMP implemented changes to procedures following two Supreme Court of Canada Charter decisions. The paper concludes that, while steps have been taken to develop a process by which Supreme Court decisions are implemented, the process would be improved if one body were allocated responsibility for the provision of interim information to the police.

The Impact Of The Charter On The Public Policy Process And The Department Of Justice, Mary Dawson

Osgoode Hall Law Journal

No abstract provided.

The Charter Of Rights And Public Policy In Canada, Patrick J. Monahan, Marie Finkelstein

Osgoode Hall Law Journal

Much of the literature on the Charter has focused on the manner in which the courts have interpreted the document. This essay examines the Charter from another perspective-its impact on the policy process within government. Drawing on a series of papers prepared by senior government officials at both the federal and provincial levels, the authors argue that the Charter has permanently changed the way in which governments formulate and implement public policy in Canada. Virtually all policy proposals making their way to the Cabinet table must be examined to ensure that they conform to the requirements of the Charter. This …

C 32 Consent And Capacity Statute Law Amendment Act, 1992/Loi De 1992 Modifiant Des Lois En Ce Qui Concerne Le Consentement Et La Capacité, Ontario

Ontario: Annual Statutes

No abstract provided.

C 31 Consent To Treatment Act, 1992/Loi De 1992 Sur Le Consentement Au Traitement, Ontario

Ontario: Annual Statutes

No abstract provided.

Payment Into Court Under Section 113(6) Of The Landlord And Tenant Act, Jack Fleming

Journal of Law and Social Policy

No abstract provided.

Poverty Law In Ontario: The Year In Review [1992], Randall Ellsworth, Ian Morrison

Journal of Law and Social Policy

No abstract provided.