Bill C-47, Budget Implementation Act, 2023, was recently tabled in the House of Commons with amendments on reportable and notifiable transactions sought by the CBA. First, an overly narrow definition of “solicitor-client privilege” is deleted from the Income Tax Act. Second, the new notifiable transactions regime will not apply retroactively.

The Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Community Section, the Health Law Section, the Criminal Justice Section and the Child and Youth Law Section of the Canadian Bar Association, in a letter to Minister for Women and Gender Equality and Youth Marci Ien, urge the federal government to launch a public consultation on non-consensual, deferrable and medically unnecessary surgeries on intersex children.

In a letter to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and several of his ministers, the President of the Canadian Bar Association, Steeves Bujold, exhorts them to make a detailed action plan to effectively implement the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Children, or UNCRC.

The Aboriginal Law Section, Equality Subcommittee and Family Law Section of the Canadian Bar Association applaud the federal government’s vision for a countrywide early learning and child care system. As detailed in a letter to the Chair of the House of Commons Standing Committee on Human Resources, Skills and Social Development and the Status of Persons with Disabilities, Bill C-35, the Canada Early Learning and Child Care Act, would benefit from a few improvements.

The Immigration Law Section of the Canadian Bar Association, in a letter to Immigration Minister Sean Fraser, raises some cautions and suggests improvements to the recent pilot project lifting the 20-hour-per-week cap on the number of off-campus work hours for international students during their school term.

Current legislation related to parentage and international surrogacy arrangements could stand to be clearer and more predictable, especially for 2SLGBTQI+ families.

Few things matter more to the law than consistency in its interpretation and predictability in its application. Both are essential to ensure immigration applicants are in a position to comply, and to help legal representatives advise their clients properly.

The Family Law Section of the Canadian Bar Association wrote to Justice Minister David Lametti to express its continued support for the expansion of Unified Family Courts, or UFCs, across the country.

Three Sections of the Canadian Bar Association, in a letter to Justice Minister David Lametti, express their support for a strong and independent commission to rectify wrongful convictions and offer further comments on a select number of recommendations from the LaForme/Westmoreland-Traoré report on the proposed creation of a Miscarriage of Justice Commission.

On January 1, 2023, the Prohibition on the Purchase of Residential Property by Non-Canadian Act came into force.