Archive
14 Oct

Rulings reject guilty plea ban, sealing order

<p>An Ontario judge has found no grounds for preventing the media from reporting that one of three people accused of murder has pleaded guilty, even though the co-accused will stand trial soon. And another judge of the province’s Superior Court has refused to seal documents filed in a civil case despite a claim they reveal trade secrets.</p>

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24 Sep

Court rulings dissect responsible communication defence

<p><em>It has been almost two years since the Supreme Court of Canada created the libel defence of responsible communication on matters of public interest -- long enough for at least three courts to weigh in on what journalists must do to meet its criteria. In this column in the upcoming issue of the CAJ's Media magazine, J-Source's law section editor <strong>Dean Jobb</strong> explores how the new defence is being interpreted.</em></p>

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13 Sep

Ruling relaxes libel rules for political bloggers

<p>An Ontario judge has tossed a libel action against three political bloggers, arguing that web-based political discussions are forums for “the parry and thrust” of vigorous debate and participants whose reputations have been attacked should fight back with words, not legal action.</p>

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10 Aug

Policing the borders means policing Canadian journalism?

<p><em>Moments before Canada's Immigration Minister Jason Kenney delivered an important speech, <a href="http://rabble.ca/news/2011/07/policing-borders-means-policing-canadian-journalism">Rabble</a> journalist <strong>David P. Ball</strong> was kicked out of the press conference -- despite having a press invite and the complimentary cookie they gave him in hand. This story originally appeared on <a href="http://rabble.ca/news/2011/07/policing-borders-means-policing-canadian-journalism">Rabble.ca.</a></em></p>

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29 Mar

Lights, camera … court?

<p><span style="font-weight: bold;">By Connie Monk </span><br /><br />In an historic first this week, cameras will record closing arguments in the landmark B.C. Supreme Court case on Canada’s anti-polygamy laws.<br />

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24 Mar

CBC reporter won’t have to reveal sources to newspaper

The Yukon Supreme Court will not force a CBC News reporter to reveal her sources, CBC reports. The Yukon News had requested that reporter Nancy Thomson turn over the identities […]

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24 Mar

Twitchell trial: A new kind of court reporting

In Edmonton, the trial of an accused murderer is attracting a flurry of media attention. Having already live-blogged their way through the gruesome sentencing hearing of convicted killer Russell Williams, […]

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23 Mar

U.S. court acknowledges journalists’ spying fears

A New York appeals court has ruled that it is reasonable to assume that private phone and e-mail conversations with journalists are being monitored. The Globe and Mail reports: “The […]

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17 Mar

Court to rule on CBC reporter’s right to protect sources

In a unique case for media law, next week Fred Kozak, president of the Canadian Media Lawyers Association, will defend a CBC reporter’s journalist-source privilege — against another media outlet. […]

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16 Mar

Off the record: Confidential sources and the courts

By Melissa Wilson, Associate Editor, Precedent Magazine.An ethical dilemma: Is it okay to steal a loaf of bread to feed your starving family? Ethicists and scholars have been debating this […]

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