Canadian coverage, focused on patient and detainee rights, with verified short holdings, original analysis and links to the underlying sources. A publication date isn't the same as a decision date. The dates below identify which is shown.
25 verified publications. Showing the 25 most recent.
Published 2026-10-28 · Open coverageThe federal government introduced Bill C41 on October 27 to propose advance medical assistance in dying requests for eligible adults facing an incurable illness expected to remove decision making capacity. The proposal would require safeguards and leave provinces and territories to decide whether to make advance requests available. It is not enacted law, and Ottawa also announced it would not proceed with the scheduled mental illness expansion.
Decision 2023-11-07 · Open coverageA Yukon Charter challenge to a five day eviction power led the Supreme Court to admit one homelessness expert report while excluding another and a late academic article. The ruling addresses what evidence the court would hear, not whether the eviction provision was constitutional.
Decision 2026-01-21 · Open coverageA BC judge rejected a son's habeas corpus challenge to his father's placement in long term care. A lawful substitute consent from the Public Guardian and Trustee and compliance with discharge procedures defeated the detention challenge, while a separate statutory review route remained available.
Decision 2026-09-10 · Open coverageThe BC Human Rights Tribunal found that Vancouver police discriminated against a Black woman during a traffic stop when they escalated an identification dispute into an arrest. It awarded $25,000 for injury to dignity and $1,398.90 for her damaged phone, while dismissing a separate place of origin allegation.
Published 2026-10-23 · Member analysisCorrectional Service Canada carried 15,100 privacy requests into the next fiscal year, with 94% already past statutory timelines. Its annual report also records seven material privacy breaches.
Decision 2026-10-19 · Open coverageThe Alberta Court of Appeal refused release pending an aggravated assault conviction appeal. The applicant did not establish sufficient merit in his proposed appeal or meaningfully address the public safety risk identified in his record of violent offences.
Published 2026-10-22 · Open coverageCanadian law recognizes addiction as an illness that can impair control over drug use. Families struggling to prevent another overdose are left confronting a difficult distinction between dangerous behaviour, decision-making capacity and the power to compel treatment.
Published 2026-10-21 · Member analysisImmigration detention hearings follow a statutory timetable, but their substance depends on access to documents, interpreters and realistic alternatives to keeping a person in custody.
Published 2026-10-21 · Member analysisOntario's Residents' Bill of Rights protects everyday choices, personal communication and involvement in care. Safety concerns must be examined without making institutional convenience the measure of a person's freedom.
Decision 2008-05-16 · Open coverageThe Supreme Court held that young people benefit from a constitutional presumption of diminished moral blameworthiness. The former Youth Criminal Justice Act provisions placing the onus on a young person to avoid an adult sentence and loss of publication protection violated section 7 of the Charter.
Decision 2017-06-01 · Open coverageThe Supreme Court held that release on the least onerous appropriate terms is required by the Criminal Code's bail ladder. The bail review judge erred by requiring a cash deposit and surety arrangement without properly applying that principle.
Published 2026-10-21 · Member analysisPretrial custody places people under substantial institutional control before guilt has been established. The law requires a disciplined examination of grounds for detention and the least onerous workable form of release.
Published 2026-10-21 · Member analysisThe Youth Criminal Justice Act requires more than safe confinement. A designated youth worker must help prepare a reintegration plan that can connect education, family, services and supervised release.
Decision 2011-05-12 · Open coverageThe Supreme Court held that the pleaded facts didn't establish a general fiduciary duty by Alberta to long-term care residents over accommodation charges. The appeal succeeded in part and some other pleaded claims survived the motion to strike.
Decision 2013-10-18 · Open coverageThe Supreme Court held that withdrawing life support as proposed in this Ontario case required consent under the Health Care Consent Act, 1996. A dispute with the substitute decision maker belonged before the Consent and Capacity Board.
Decision 2019-05-10 · Open coverageThe Supreme Court held that the immigration detention review system wasn't as broad and advantageous as habeas corpus for Chhina's specific challenge to prolonged detention and its conditions. His application had to be heard.
Published 2026-10-21 · Member analysisAfter a stroke, returning home can feel like freedom. But discharge planning can become a struggle over safety, autonomy, unfamiliar teams, the cost of equipment and the burden placed on an older spouse.
Decision 2026-10-02 · Open coverageThe B.C. Court of Appeal upheld certification of a proposed class action concerning medical isolation conditions in federal correctional institutions. The judgment didn't decide whether the alleged harms or Charter breaches occurred.
Decision 2026-10-02 · Open coverageThe B.C. Human Rights Tribunal denied reconsideration of a correctional disability complaint. Simply disagreeing with the earlier dismissal didn't establish the fairness or justice grounds required to reopen it.
Published 2026-10-17 · Open coverageA correctional building may hold people serving sentences, people waiting for a court proceeding and people whose legal circumstances call for a different placement. PEI's official custody program information describes a
Published 2026-10-17 · Open coverageA modern correctional statute changes more than the rules inside a cell. It affects how health care is arranged, how discipline is documented and what happens when a person leaves custody. Newfoundland
Published 2026-10-17 · Open coverageAlberta's upcoming Care First system raises questions about patient choice, rehabilitation records and institutional responsibilities.
Decision 2023-11-07 · Member analysisA Yukon Charter challenge to a five day eviction power led the Supreme Court to admit one homelessness expert report while excluding another and a late academic article. The ruling addresses what evidence the court would hear, not whether the eviction provision was constitutional.
Published 2026-10-11 · Open coverageOntario's Patient Ombudsman highlights how complaints and trauma-informed responses can reveal system problems. Institutions need to treat that information as part of accountability, not merely customer service.
Published 2026-10-11 · Open coverageAlberta's Mental Health Act allows detention in defined circumstances and also provides review and treatment protections. Those safeguards are part of the institutional process, not an afterthought.