Archive
14 May

Ontario limits access to court documents

NewsOntario’s Ministry of the Attorney General is restricting access to court documents that reveal the name of an alleged victim of a sexual offence, citing a 2005 Criminal Code amendment […]

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17 Apr

Pickton judge sets access rules

NewsThe judge presiding over Robert Pickton’s murder trial has instituted a “sensible and practical protocol” to allow journalists to apply for access to exhibits. See the Vancouver Sun report.

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18 Feb

Youth sentencing sessions opened to media

Sentencing conferences convened by youth court judges are part of the court process and open to journalists and members of the public, but concerns about confidentiality and the administration of […]

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31 Dec

Cameras could come to Ontario courtrooms

NewsTelevision cameras are generally barred from Ontario’s courtrooms, but an August 2006 report recommends partial lifting of the ban. “Our justice system is ready for its close-up,” says Attorney General […]

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21 Dec

Gaining access to court files

BackgrounderKenneth Singer, a Vancouver media law specialist, reviews the limits on media access to court files.

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21 Dec

The case for cameras in the courts

CommentaryCBC lawyer Daniel Henry makes the pitch for camera access to Canada’s courts.

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15 Nov

N.S. judge opens youth court records

By Dean JobbYoung offenders handed an adult sentence for serious crimes not only lose the right to remain anonymous – they should expect pre-sentence and psychological reports filed with the […]

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25 Oct

Open justice is best

Every Canadian has a stake in knowing what goes on in our courts. It is a democratic right, enshrined in our Constitution and as old as the common law. And […]

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23 Oct

Media access to court exhibits

By David Crerar and Majda DabaghiIn the summer of 2005 Justice Morris Fish, writing for the Supreme Court of Canada in Toronto Star Newspapers v. Ontario, 2005 SCC 41, confirmed […]

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22 Oct

Lifting the lid off search warrants

By Dean Jobb In the late summer of 2003 the Ontario Provincial Police, armed with six search warrants, descended on a meat-packing plant in Aylmer. The plant, police alleged, had […]

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