Jan. 30, 2020

Professor published in second series of Supreme Court Law Review

Professor Lisa Silver has published an article in the latest issue of the review.

According to Lisa's article "Vice, Universe and Everything" in the Supreme Court of Canada context is everything, impacting the legal lens through which the Court interprets various issues. This context-driven approach provides the backdrop to the Vice Media decision in which the Court grapples with a complex mix of evidentiary principles, case-generated frameworks and criminal procedural rules. Overlaid on this legal matrix is the influence of the Charter in the form of freedom of the press and right to privacy. Yet, in this decision, the Court is divisive, not decisive as the majority and minority decisions are split between two visions of Charter engagement. Each decision provides differing views on the prominence of the Charter when the media obtains confidential investigatory information. To understand these opposing visions, the Lessard framework, section 2(b) of the Charter, and journalistic confidentiality are examined.

The Supreme Court Law Review is a collection of papers reviewing noteworthy Constitutional Law decisions of the Supreme Court of Canada released in 2018. The Volume covers cases presented at Osgoode Hall Law School’s 22nd Annual Analysis of the Constitutional Decisions of the Supreme Court of Canada. Major decisions discussed include R. v. Comeau, 2018 SCC 15 and Reference re Pan-Canadian Securities Regulation, 2018 SCC 48 (Division of Powers), Williams Lake Indian Band v Canada (Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development), 2018 SCC 4 and Mikisew Cree First Nation v Canada (Governor in Council), 2018 SCC 40 (Constitutional Obligations and First Nations).