Category: Criminal Defence

By Joseph A. Neuberger Neuberger & Partners LLP   As Canadian courts struggle with how to return to normal functioning and deal with the backlog of trials after the pandemic, suggestions are being made on how to effectively modify the trial process. Technology such as video conferencing has allowed some proceedings to continue remotely but there are compelling reasons why remote hearings should be restricted to case management, certain pre-trial...
Continue reading Restoring the Trial Process After COVID-19...

By Joseph A. Neuberger,* Neuberger & Partners LLP Criminal Defence Lawyers and Diana Davison**   On June 3, 2020, the Ontario Court of Appeal ruled that section 33.1 of the Criminal Code was unconstitutional for barring self-induced extreme intoxication as a defence in crimes of violence including those that involve bodily harm, death or sexual assault. Public outrage was quickly generated based on misinformation about what this decision means and...
Continue reading Regina v. Sullivan, 2020 ONCA 333 – Misinformation is Fueling Outrage about the Defence of Intoxication...

What started as an epidemic in China has officially become a worldwide pandemic as of March 11, 2020. The World Health Organization reported the change in category after cases in different continents were reported without direct relation to the origin continent. Citizens and governments everywhere are concerned about containing the virus and preventing its spread. This issue has become so serious that some are wondering if you can be held...
Continue reading Can You Be Criminally Charged for Spreading Coronavirus?...

While significant changes have been made to address stereotypes about women in our legal system, stereotypes about men continue to proliferate. The concept of “toxic masculinity” has grown in popularity with academics and the media but has no place in a court of law.   In a June 2019 decision, R v Cepic, the Ontario Court of Appeal ordered a retrial after the judge used myths about how men and...
Continue reading Rooting out Stereotypes about Men in our Legal System...

Joseph A. Neuberger Neuberger & Partners LLP Criminal Defence Lawyers Toronto Airbnb Hidden Camera Case Demonstrates Once Again That Police Cannot Search a Residence without a Warrant. A person’s action or suspected actions does not give the right to police to search and seize property without a warrant in a residence. This was demonstrated once again in a recent Toronto case in which Airbnb owner, Michael Chow was charged with...
Continue reading Finally, Some Respect for Charter Rights...

Joseph A. Neuberger Neuberger & Partners LLP A Bill to re-educate judges on sexual assault trials has been brought back to parliament after failing to be passed by the Senate in 2017. Rona Ambrose had introduced Bill C-337 in the wake of a scandal which resulted in a former judge being removed from the bench after making what were deemed to be inappropriate comments during a sexual assault trial. After...
Continue reading Education of Judges on Sexual Assault Trials -“Education in Secret a Risk to Fair Trials”...

Joseph A. Neuberger Neuberger & Partners LLP Criminal Defence Lawyers www.nrlawyers.com Recent changes to the bail hearing provisions in the Criminal Code of Canada, for those accused of domestic violence, including assault and sexual assault, the government has created a reverse onus for anyone with a previous, related conviction.  With the passing of Bill C-75, the presumption of innocence has taken a back seat in order to address concerns from...
Continue reading The Presumption of Guilt in Bail Hearings....

Joseph A. Neuberger Neuberger & Partners LLP Criminal Defence Lawyers The justice system depends upon public faith to give it legitimacy and that faith must remain intact for both the complainants of crime and the accused. Not only should complainants expect to have their grievances properly heard, an accused must have access to a fair and impartial hearing with procedural and evidentiary protections to ensure a fair trial. In recent...
Continue reading Attack on the Rules of Evidence in Sexual Assault Cases....

By Joseph Neuberger Neuberger & Partners Criminal Defence Lawyers Preliminary hearings have played an important role in the justice system ever since the Criminal Code of Canada was introduced in 1892. As a result of these hearings, many cases have been granted “stays” of proceedings – meaning that they did not proceed to trial, or charges withdrawn as the Crown often re-assesses reasonable prospect of conviction.  The Crown always has...
Continue reading Important Strategy to Deal with the Loss of the Preliminary Hearing...

Joseph Neuberger, Neuberger & Partners LLP Criminal Defence Lawyers As an adjunct to a previous short piece I penned on Bill C-75, I believe it is important to note another significant blow to our rights in Canada. Among many changes brought in under Bill C-75, the Liberal government also struck a direct blow to the right on an accused person to pick an impartial jury in a criminal trial. In...
Continue reading Death of Picking an Impartial Jury...