Build Better Arguments with Cross-Jurisdictional Research

In this largest study of its kind, Mishcon de Reya joined forces with vLex Justis,
to investigate the cross-border flow of judicial thinking

Vlex has updated its search capabilities with the latest update to Vincent, its A.I. research assistant, with cross-jurisdictional recommendations.

“As of November 2021, vLex users can discover recommendations from multiple jurisdictions that differ from that of the document they are looking at. For example, a lawyer using Vincent to analyse a document from the Caribbean or Canada will now see recommendations of textually similar and relevant authorities from the UK, and many other jurisdictions. Importantly, this will enable lawyers to build better arguments using on-point cases and persuasive authorities from jurisdictions that are most relevant to them.”

– from the vLex Blog

For more details, this post from Mishcon de Reya lays out the recent trends and advantages of searching other jurisdictions, and also explains why there is still some hesitancy and why judges typically prefer to cite jurisdictions that are geographically nearby.

For your next time researching, visit the Member’s Portal and see what vLex can do for you.

Legislative Update

Latest News Releases

Manitoba Government is Modernizing the Family Maintenance Act November 3, 2021 – ” …changes to the Family Maintenance Act to include parentage legislation for children conceived through assisted reproduction with or without surrogacy.”

Manitoba Proclaims Legislation to Promote Timely Resolution of Human Rights Complaints November 2, 2021 – “The legislative changes set out in the Human Rights Code Amendment Act will take effect on Jan. 1, 2022”

Province Proclaims New Legislation to Repeal and Replace the Limitations Act November 2, 2021 – “Statutory limitations ensure that a person can no longer seek the assistance of the court to enforce a legal right after a certain period. This legislation will clarify statutory limitations for the various causes of action in Manitoba.”

Recent Proclamations

ChapterTitle     (provisions)Date in forceDate signedProclamation
SM 2021, c. 27The Human Rights Code Amendment Act (whole Act)1 Jan 202227 Oct 2021Proclamation
SM 2021, c. 28The Administrative Tribunal Jurisdiction Act (whole Act)1 Jan 202227 Oct 2021Proclamation
SM 2021, c. 36The Planning Amendment and City of Winnipeg Charter Amendment Act (various sections)29 Oct 202127 Oct 2021Proclamation
SM 2021, c. 44The Limitations Act (whole Act)30 Sep 202227 Oct 2021Proclamation

Legal Blog Roundup September/October

A bi-monthly round-up of blog posts from the Manitoba legal community for the months of September and October 2021

Clarke Immigration Law

Matthew Gould Blog (Criminal Law)

MLT Aikins

Pitblado Law Blog

Robson Crim Legal Blog

TDS law

Journal Updates

New articles from the Canadian Journal of Law and Society and Criminal Law Quarterly are now available for Law Society members upon request. For a pdf copy of these, or other legal journal articles email us at library@lawsociety.mb.ca.

Canadian Journal of Law and Society

  • Introduction 36 No. 2 Can. J.L. & Soc’y 189 Dia Dabby, David Koussens
  • Our Culture, Our Heritage, Our Values: Whose Culture, Whose Heritage, Whose Values? 36 No. 2 Can. J.L. & Soc’y 203 Lori G. Beaman

“This article reflects on the question of how culture and religion enter legal cases and public debates about the place of majoritarian religious symbols in diverse societies that have some democratic will to inclusion. In the context of the new diversity, the article considers how the articulation of “our culture and heritage” as a strategy for preserving “formerly” religious symbols and practices in public spaces excludes particular groups from the narrative of who “we” are as a nation. The reader is invited to consider how challenges to such symbols and practices might be articulated as a challenge to privilege and power and that a refusal to acknowledge those power relations puts the reputation of democracy and human rights at risk.”

  • Formalizing Secularism as a Regime of Restrictions and Protections: The Case of Quebec (Canada) and Geneva (Switzerland) 36 No. 2 Can. J.L. & Soc’y 283 Amélie Barras
  • Voting on Belonging 36 No. 2 Can. J.L. & Soc’y 263 Dia Dabby , Assistant Professor, Département des sciences juridiques, UQAM, Dabby.dia@uqam.ca
  • Introduction 36 No. 2 Can. J.L. & Soc’y 195 Dia Dabby, David Koussens
  • L’État Canadien et la Reconnaissance des Droits Religieux Autochtones  36 No. 2 Can. J.L. & Soc’y 245 Claude Gélinas
  • La Loi sur la Laïcité de L’État et les Conditions de la Fondation Juridique D’Un Modèle Interculturel au Québec 36 No. 2 Can. J.L. & Soc’y 323 Louis-Philippe Lampron
  • Marge ou Crève 36 No. 2 Can. J.L. & Soc’y 225 Xavier Delgrange
  • L’Effacement de la Laïcité Libérale en France. De la Séparation du Politique et du Religieux vers la Promotion du ⪡ Vivre-Ensemble ⪢ 36 No. 2 Can. J.L. & Soc’y 303
  • Convergence Culturelle et Légistique: Pour un Modèle Québécois D’Intégration Distinct Consacré par une Loi-Cadre 36 No. 2 Can. J.L. & Soc’y 339 Guillaume Rousseau

Criminal Law Quarterly

  • No More Extensions of Criminal Law Through Injunctions? Policing Blockades 69 C.L.Q. 402 Kent W. Roach
  • The Objectivity of Proof Beyond a Reasonable Doubt 69 C.L.Q. 513 Gerald T.G. Seniuk

“The thesis postulated here explains how the vague standard of “proof beyond a reasonable doubt” can be understood as an objective standard of proof even though the decision is based on a subjective feeling of certitude. In the main, the objective nature of the reasonable doubt standard of proof can only be discerned as patterns emerge over time through the decisions made by individual judges in different cases. Most guilty verdicts depend on the trier’s strong subjective feeling of certitude about the guilt of the accused, a subjective certitude that is much closer to absolute certainty than it is to a probability, but still short of absolute certainty. This subjective feeling of certitude is constrained from slipping into arbitrariness or whimsy by the legal requirements that the verdict is correct in law, is reasonable, and is supported by the evidence. However, even with those constraints, there is room for uncertainty and disagreement. What elevates the subjective feeling of certitude to the level of objective proof is the agreement of a defined group of reasonable, informed people. In other words, the objectivity of proof beyond a reasonable doubt is a socially constructed objectivity that is defined by a methodology of agreement. This methodology of agreement is similar to what sociologists refer to as an objectivation and epistemologists as objectification.”

  • Requiem for a Representative Jury? So Long Peremptory Challenge and Hello Expanded Judicial Stand By  69 C.L.Q. 436 Brian Manarin
  • Notes and Comments R. v. Griffith and R. v. Leonard : A Dangerous Assumption in Recent Right to Counsel Cases Criminal Law Quarterly 2021 69 C.L.Q. 404 Kent W. Roach
  • Notes and Comments Revisiting the Air of Reality Test Within the Context of the Defence of Provocation: A Case Comment on the Court of Appeal for Ontario’s Decision in R. v. Alas Criminal Law Quarterly 2021 69 C.L.Q. 411 Kent W. Roach
  • Jury Selection Is Not Random Selection: A Methodological Critique of R. v. Kokopenace and a Recommended Solution  69 C.L.Q. 464 Michelle I. Bertrand, David Ireland and Richard Jochelson

Law Court Main Entrance Now Open

Newly Renovated Entrance at 408 York. Ave
News Release – Renovations for Accessibility Now Complete at Law Courts Building at 408 York Ave.
October 25, 2021
Main Entrance Reopens for Use, Barrier-Free Access to the Site Now Complete: Friesen, Squires

“Renovations to ensure the physical accessibility of the Winnipeg Law Courts Building at 408 York Ave. are now complete and the main entrance has reopened to the public, Justice Minister Cameron Friesen and Families Minister Rochelle Squires, minister responsible for accessibility, announced today.”

Lawyers and the public can now use the main entrance located at 408 York Avenue. The new entrance provides better accessibility, signage, and improved security screening areas. Please note that current COVID-19 protocols limit access to Manitoba court buildings to those dealing with court matters.

The library will be closed on Good Friday, March 29.
The courthouse will be closed on Monday, April 1 but the library will be open for remote requests.