New
Call for Nominations
The National Criminal Justice Section is seeking nominations for up to ten Executive Members for the term September 1, 2012 to August 31, 2013.
For further details, please see the full Call for Nominations.
The John Howard Society of Canada presents: A one-day Symposium on Prison Crowding and its Implications for Human Rights (August 25, 2012). Register for the Symposium.
CBA action on the Omnibus Crime Bill (C-10)
The CBA via the Criminal Justice Section presented a 100-page CBA submission to the House of Commons Standing Committee on Justice and Human rights on October 18 and again on November 3.
For ease of references, a 10-point summary of the submission has been developed.
To add your voice to the CBA position, we would encourage you to bring the summary and full submission to the attention of your Member of Parliament or any interested groups.
Advocacy
“Mega trials” Bill receives royal assent
On June 26, Bill C-2, Criminal Code amendments (mega trials) received royal assent. The CBA’s National Criminal Justice Section had presented a submission to the Standing Senate Committee on Legal and Constitutional Affairs on June 22 welcoming the legislation to promote the effective and efficient use of resources, and calling for some priority improvements to make the Bill more operationally effective.
The CBA recommended that a definition of “mega trial” be included in the legislation to avoid overuse of case management, and suggested that criteria be established to ensure that resources are used most appropriately. Suhail Akhtar of Toronto, member of the National Criminal Justice Section Executive, presented the CBA submission to the Senate Committee.
News release
Submission
Join the National Criminal Justice Section Listserv
The National Criminal Justice Section has a listserv which you are encouraged to join.
A listserv is a discussion group that comes to you through your e-mail! Listservs, or e-mail lists, allow you to interact with many people simultaneously and are a convenient way for members to share information, pass on client referrals, and to ask or answer questions.
Section members can join the listserv online at: http://www.cba.org/CBA_listservsEnrolment/Enrolment.aspx.
** In order to join a listserv you must be a member of the relevant CBA Section. Please contact your Branch if you wish to join the National Criminal Justice Section.**
Participants in CBA listservs are expected to conduct themselves in a courteous, civil and respectful manner, consistent with the CBA Code of Professional Conduct. To ensure this level of professionalism is maintained, the Code of Conduct for CBA Discussion Groups and Listservs was developed.
Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) in the criminal justice system
In 2010, the Canadian Bar Association passed a resolution concerning the involvement of people affected by Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) in the criminal justice system. Following that resolution, the CBA was invited to engage with a group of senior government officials working on related issues.
As part of the CBA’s engagement with government, we are distributing a Justice Canada questionnaire about the experience of justice system professionals with FASD.
If you are interested in participating in this study, please contact Ms. Charlotte Fraser at chfraser@justice.gc.ca.
Thank you,
Daniel MacRury, Q.C.
Vice-Chair, National Criminal Justice Section
Survey
The McGill University Cognitive Neuroscience Laboratory is looking at the scientific evidence in support of reduced culpability in adolescents and would like to receive feedback from CBA members.
They have created an anonymous and confidential survey which aims to assess knowledge, attitudes, opinions and beliefs about recent scientific findings and their implications on the youth Criminal Justice System.
Please take a few minutes to provide your input.
Invitation to Participate in Law Reform Activities
One of the primary activities of the Canadian Bar Association’s National Criminal Justice Section (the Section) is to analyze proposed amendments to federal legislation, mainly the Criminal Code. The Section frequently makes representations to government officials and Parliamentary Committees, for example, with the goal of improving the law and the administration of justice.
The Section’s work load on this front continues to be significant, and any member with an interest in law reform is encouraged to get involved.
Please note, it is particularly important for law makers that the Section’s comments are based on the perspective of both Crown and defence lawyers.
Please contact:
Gaylene Schellenberg
Lawyer, Legislation and Law Reform
CBA National Office
1 800 267 8860 ext 139
Recent Submissions
More CBA submissions
|
