Keep Current: A review of provincial Section meetings.

by Stacy Kirpichova

Section News
For enrolled CBA members, more detailed information and available minutes from the Section meetings are online at www.cba.org/bc in Sections under Professional Development.

 

Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Conference (SOGIC) Meeting: March 31, 2011 Speaker: Various Photo: Brian Yuen, Co-Chair Topic: The Current State of the Law on the Criminalization of HIV Transmission, Exposure and Non-Disclosure		Young Lawyers-Okanagan Meeting: January 19, 2011 Speaker: The Honourable Judge Marguerite Shaw Topic: Views from the Bench Relating to the Practice of Law by Young Lawyers
Young Lawyers-Victoria Meeting: April 28, 2011 Speaker: The Honourable Judge Evan Blake and The Honourable Judge Adrian Brooks Photo: Steve Chapman, Chair Topic: Provincial Court Small Claims Practice - Settlement Conferences and Hearings		Freedom of Information and Privacy Law Meeting: February 21, 2011 Speaker: Professor Benjamin Goold (photo) Topic: Why Privacy Matters: Privacy, Democracy and the Limits of Police Power

Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Conference (SOGIC)
Guest speaker Janet Dickie provided an overview of the provisions of the Criminal Code relied upon, and the legal tests developed to prosecute HIV transmission, exposure and non-disclosure. This included a discussion of the relevant assault provisions of the Criminal Code, R. v. Cuerrier, and the interpretations of “serious bodily harm,” “significant risk” and “deprivation.” Janet also discussed the sentencing options and the factors considered in determining them. Jenny Rutherford discussed the assessment of “significant risk” and the complexities of this assessment in light of factors such as condom use, viral load and rates of transmission. She addressed the impact of expert evidence in the prosecution and defence of these charges, including the use of expert evidence to determine the significance of the particular risk by calculating the actual risk of transmission in the circumstances (given condom use, viral load, etc.). Michael Vonn spoke to the challenges faced by public educators and persons with HIV given the uncertainties of the relevant legal tests; specifically, regarding how risk will be calculated and what constitutes sufficient disclosure.

Young Lawyers-Okanagan
The Honourable Judge Marguerite Shaw emphasized many keys points to remember with respect to the practice of law in general. These included tips such as: get off on the right foot when you come to court, and learn good habits from the start. Be ethical, as it takes a lifetime to build your reputation but only a nanosecond to destroy it. No client, colleague or case is worth your reputation. If you have made a mistake, as we all do, say you have made a mistake. If you do not know something, say so. Judge Shaw brought some comments on this topic from her colleagues at the Provincial Court and provided the attendees with some very useful strategies and recommended practise when appearing in court. The Judge also shared suggestions that were more specific to criminal cases.

Young Lawyers-Victoria
The Honourable Judge Evan Blake and The Honourable Judge Adrian Brooks commented on many issues relevant to young lawyers in Settlement Conferences and Hearings in Small Claims Courts. The Settlement Conference is a tremendous opportunity for the lawyer’s clients, as settlement can remove the stress of a possible trial. Sometimes the possible solutions are simple – does the adverse party merely want an apology? It is important for lawyers to examine the hurdles to settlement, especially where those hurdles do not involve money. The Settlement Conference is not the end of settlement talks. These can continue up to trial. Small claims practise is frequently difficult for younger lawyers because the solutions are typically about the facts and not about the law, as are small claims trials. Lawyers at small claims trials tend to overemphasize the law and underemphasize the facts. The speakers advised that lawyers should always prepare thoroughly, have their documents in order, and focus on their “winning point.”

Freedom of Information and Privacy Law
Professor Benjamin Goold of the University of British Columbia Faculty of Law, focused on understanding privacy as a restraint on the power of the state, explaining why law enforcement ought to refrain from surreptitious surveillance and give greater weight to privacy rights, both individual and collective. Professor Goold sought to define the concept of privacy, and to give it a meaning that carries a substantial weight when it is balanced against other interests, such as crime prevention and national security. Highlights included Professor Goold’s argument that privacy is not merely an individual right, but a collective right that is the necessary bedrock to the effective exercise of other fundamental collective rights, such as freedom of association, religion and expression. Thus, when viewed as a collective right, privacy carries a much greater weight when balanced against other interests, including law enforcement and security.

This article was published in the June 2011 issue of BarTalk. © 2011 The Canadian Bar Association. All rights reserved.