Wise Law Blog

With the Province now poised to impose a whopping 13% Harmonized Sales Tax (HST) that is targeted to apply to legal fees, Slaw's Edward Prutschi considers the negative implications of this tax on access to justice in the Ontario, and eloquently asks why organizations representing the legal profession remain largely silent:

Starting in July 2010 when Ontario’s GST and PST are replaced by the new Harmonized Sales Tax, virtually everything, including legal bills, will be subject to the new 13% HST... To put it simply, legal bills are going up 8% across the board in every area of law purely to cover the tax consequences.

The implications of this tax grab are dire and far-reaching. Access to Justice is directly threatened by this substantial jump in the cost of legal services. Our courts are already struggling with the costs and burdens associated with an increasing number of self-represented litigants who have been driven to stand alone in court by the crushing burden of high legal fees and expensive court proceedings. The HST will have a direct negative impact on the capacity of individuals to have their cases heard in our Province’s courtrooms. The consequences for civil court cases, spousal support claims and child custody issues are serious indeed, but the devastating impact of this tax will be felt most acutely in my area of practice – criminal law.

...So, while lobbyists put the spit shine on their submissions to government as to why a new car, new home, or mutual fund, ought not to be subject to additional taxation, how is it that we lawyers appear to be entirely silent on a direct attack against the public’s ability to access the justice system in which we toil? Time is running out. The tax man cometh.

Ontario's governments of all stripes have always been good at talking the talk when it comes to access to justice. The HST tax, however, will add hundreds - or even thousands - of dollars to the costs of legal services borne by every Ontarian who is involved in a contested family law or civil litigation proceeding.

It is high time for the Ontario government to walk the access to justice walk.

The public cannot simply cannot afford any new tax on legal services. Period.

Legal services must be exempted from the HST. And as Mr. Prutschi suggests, our Law Society and Bar Associations need to get with that programme - fast.

- Garry J. Wise, Toronto

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McGuinty’s Early Christmas Gift to Auto Insurance Companies

2009-11-06T11:47:00.006-05:00

After Finance Minister Dwight Duncan stood up in the Ontario Legislature last Monday and publicly wrung his hands at the mountain of motor vehicle accident claims in the province, he did what any clear thinking and sincere politician in his shoes would do to deal with rising auto insurance premiums – give more money to the insurance companies.

The proposed changes to the Province's automobile insurance regulations, due to come into effect next summer, would see the maximum allowable medical and rehabilitation coverage drop from $100,000 (in non-catastrophic cases) to $50,000.

The changes would also remove an injured person's right to obtain an assessment from their own doctor if they disagree with the findings of the insurance company's health provider.

But he didn’t announce that for the same money the average consumer would get less in accident benefits. He talked about “choice.” And everybody knows it’s good to have choices.

He added that drivers could still purchase $100,000 or even $1-million in non-catastrophic medical and rehabilitation benefits if they chose after the proposed changes come into effect. Motorists will also get options on the level of insurance coverage they want for attendant care, housekeeping and death and funeral expenses.

The recent proposals for auto insurance reform are simply the latest salvo in a decades-long erosion of the rights of motor vehicle accident victims.

In 1990 the government introduced legislation that only permitted compensation for pain and suffering in cases where it could be shown that injuries sustained had become “serious and permanent.” In 1996, the government of the day thought that insurance companies should be awarded a $15,000.00 deductible if pain and suffering claims met the “serious and permanent” threshold. That deductible was increased to $30,000.00 in 2003.

These unconscionable changes to the auto insurance landscape have given Ontario the reputation of being the toughest jurisdiction in North America for accident victims.

What is clear is that motor vehicle accident victims, their advocates and supporters have nowhere near the power or influence the insurance industry has. And as long as that imbalance remains, the insurers can always count on government to do their bidding.

- Stephen Ellis, Toronto

Stephen Ellis is a Toronto, Ontario lawyer

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Legally Tweeting - November 4, 2009 Edition

2009-11-04T23:08:00.008-05:00

We've been on a bit of a blogging hiatus over the last week or so (while other duties called), but managed to keep up, nonetheless, with our legal tweets in the interim.

Here, then, are highlights of our recently tweeted legal headlines:

Tribunal awards $35000 to fired pregnant woman - Canada NewsWire http://bit.ly/1dBp3O
Canada to extend Employment Insurance benefits to self-employed - http://tiny.cc/WiseLaw827
Ontario court denies insurer's bid to see claimant's Facebook account - Investment Executive http://bit.ly/2l01Cx
Lawyers Warn: Bosses Who 'Friend' Are Begging to Be Sued http://bit.ly/ui4wi
Abella's message: Stand up for justice - Calgary Herald http://bit.ly/2Vvisc
Employers advised to reinforce cellphone road rule - Toronto Star http://bit.ly/okkQU
Report: Racy sex tape ends Prejean’s lawsuit against beauty pageant http://bit.ly/3J37KP
Appeals Court Lawyer 'Traffics' in Term Papers http://bit.ly/CuxhC
Italian court convicts 23 Americans of kidnapping in CIA rendition case http://bit.ly/1swr9c
Giant Wal-Mart wage and hour class action settles http://bit.ly/1i0fZW
Maine Voters Repeal Law Allowing Gay Marriage http://bit.ly/2ISfMy
EU court bans crucifix in Italian schools - http://bit.ly/3CCLE0;

Italian government vows to fight EU Court ban on classroom crucifixes http://www.cnn.com/2009/WOR...
Google Wave Simplified: How it Basically Works (with video) http://tiny.cc/WiseLaw897
Twitter's new lists: What they mean for marketers and other attention "whores" - http://davetroy.com/?p=644
Two new judges, Hoffman and Tobin, sworn in - Windsor Star http://bit.ly/FK6y8
New chief justice for Alberta court http://bit.ly/8VTER
Justice who refused interracial marriage resigns http://bit.ly/3jiRbP
U.S. hospital fined for 5th wrong-site surgery since '07 http://bit.ly/3gsPwx
Competition Bureau wants changes in real estate rules http://bit.ly/2AnteZ
U.S. court denies Maher Arar's appeal http://bit.ly/3QCUna
UK Supreme Court case will test London’s reputation as the divorce capital of the world. http://tiny.cc/WiseLaw483
Stop behaving badly, boorish lawyers told - Toronto Star http://bit.ly/2VxNFM
Pennsylvania court overturns thousands of juvenile sentences in judge kickback scandal http://bit.ly/1C31CB
Cheney ‘cannot recall’ almost anything about Plame outing http://bit.ly/qc471
U.K.: “Council bans parents from play areas” http://bit.ly/1i12e3
Why Aren’t Bad Prosecutors Held Accountable? http://bit.ly/p2EAV
Church of Scientology guilty of fraud in France http://bit.ly/o4EHH
Rookie Dallas cop tickets woman for driving while not speaking English -- UPDATED http://bit.ly/3xFAxK
LawPundit's List of Twitter Addresses of Legal Blogs (Blawgs) http://tiny.cc/WiseLaw964
'Lawyer' is a witch: Police - Toronto Sun http://bit.ly/AqLJv

As always, follow us on Twitter at http://twitter.com/wiselaw for up-to-the-minute legal news.

- Garry J. Wise, Toronto

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Nothing Is Certain (Except Death and Facebook)

2009-10-28T01:07:00.002-04:00

Facebook announces a new approach for handling deceased users' pages:

"When someone leaves us, they don't leave our memories or our social network," Facebook director of security Max Kelly said in a blog post Monday.
"To reflect that reality, we created the idea of 'memorialized' profiles as a place where people can save and share their memories of those who've passed."
Profiles of dead people do not turn up in friend recommendations or general searches at Facebook, according to Kelly. Privacy settings on memorialized accounts only let confirmed friends or family members see them.

Also see: Facebook to launch memorial profiles of deceased users

- Garry J. Wise, Toronto

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The End of the MP3?

2009-10-28T01:03:00.000-04:00

I doubt it.

- Garry J. Wise, Toronto

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Baby You Can Drive My Car...

2009-10-28T00:52:00.004-04:00

... But please don't ever try to park it, again:

But if you think that was bad, try this: Car lands on couple asleep in bed

- Garry J. Wise, Toronto

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Win!

2009-10-27T00:48:00.004-04:00

Leafs 6 - Ducks 3.

- Garry J. Wise, Toronto

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Ontario Drivers' Cell Phone Ban Now in Effect

2009-10-26T00:00:00.004-04:00

Hands-free cell phone use is now the law in Ontario.

As noted in our April 23, 2009 post on the new provincial law, which took effect today:

The Countering Distracted Driving and Promoting Green Transportation Act, 2009, Ontario's new law banning use of cell phones while driving... amends the Highway Traffic Act to provide:
Hand-held devices prohibited
Wireless communication devices
78.1 (1) No person shall drive a motor vehicle on a highway while holding or using a hand-held wireless communication device or other prescribed device that is capable of receiving or transmitting telephone communications, electronic data, mail or text messages.
Entertainment devices
(2) No person shall drive a motor vehicle on a highway while holding or using a hand-held electronic entertainment device or other prescribed device the primary use of which is unrelated to the safe operation of the motor vehicle.
Certain exceptions to this basic rule are also established:
(3) Despite subsections (1) and (2), a person may drive a motor vehicle on a highway while using a device described in those subsections in hands-free mode.
Exceptions
(4) Subsection (1) does not apply to,
(a) the driver of an ambulance, fire department vehicle or police department vehicle;
(b) any other prescribed person or class of persons;
(c) a person holding or using a device prescribed for the purpose of this subsection; or
(d) a person engaged in a prescribed activity or in prescribed conditions or circumstances.
Same
(5) Subsection (1) does not apply in respect of the use of a device to contact ambulance, police or fire department emergency services.
Same
(6) Subsections (1) and (2) do not apply if all of the following conditions are met:
1. The motor vehicle is off the roadway or is lawfully parked on the roadway.
2. The motor vehicle is not in motion.
3. The motor vehicle is not impeding traffic.

All is not lost - my recently-purchased Motorola T505 Bluetooth hands-free unit adds much value by doubling as an MP3 player, sending tunes (and phone conversations) from my Blackberry to my car stereo, via FM signal.

After a month's use, so far, so good.

- Garry J. Wise, Toronto

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Food Fight

2009-10-25T13:15:00.012-04:00

Associated Press reports on yet another intractable battle that is rearing in the Middle East. This time it's a food fight, initiated in 2008 by a Lebanese economic organization, over the marketing of hummus as an Israeli delicacy:

The issue of food copyright was raised last year by the head of Lebanon's Association of Lebanese Industrialists, Fadi Abboud, when he announced plans to sue Israel to stop it from marketing hummus and other regional dishes as Israeli.
But to do that, Lebanon must formally register the product as Lebanese. The association is still in the process of collecting documents and proof supporting its claim for that purpose.
Lebanese industrialists cite, as an example, the lawsuit over feta cheese in which a European Union court ruled in 2002 the cheese must be made with Greek sheep and goats milk to bear the name feta. That ruling is only valid for products sold in the EU.
Abboud says that process took seven years and realizes Lebanon's fight with Israel is an uphill battle.

Also see: The Association of Lebanese Industrialists's Campaign to Protect OUR FOOD.

Wikipedia also tackles the thorny issue of hummus' origins:

According to Jana Gur, "While not a single Israeli will claim that this chickpea and tahini concoction is anything but Arabic, the status it has reached in Israel is unprecedented anywhere in the Middle East: In Lebanon or in Jordan, hummus is a simple morning fare or a part of a meze table. In Israel it is a religion. The best hummus restaurants, invariably owned by Arabs, are considered national treasures. Guides are dedicated to the best places to "mop up" hummus, books and essays discuss comparative virtues of fluffy Jerusalem hummus as opposed to chunky Galilean versions. ...and supermarket shelves burst with a variety of hummus products, sporting catchy names (most of them Arabic)".^[33] According to Gur, "The success of certain brands of Israeli hummus abroad may have been what brought about Abboud's [Fadi Abboud, the president of the Lebanese Industrialist's Association] anger", leading him to claim that Israel has been "stealing" their country's national dishes, like hummus, falafel,tabbouleh and bab ghanouj.

- Garry J. Wise, Toronto

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Cudos to JD Supra

2009-10-24T19:00:00.011-04:00

JD Supra is rapidly emerging as the legal profession's deepest and most credible online repository for legal articles, precedents and documentation.

A recent experience with the site, however, reveals that JD Supra also offers the added benefit of a truly personal touch that demonstrates, quite unexpectedly, another manner in which the site appears to be a cut above its many social media competitors.

A few weeks ago, after uploading an initial draft of my paper, Lawyers in the Cloud - A Cautionary Tale, to the site, I noted a few, remaining formatting issues. After completing a further revision, I posted my final, updated version at JD Supra.

I was having difficulties deleting the earlier, superseded version. I didn't report the issue to the site, however.

Shortly thereafter, I received the email below from the site:

Dear Mr. Wise,

http://www.jdsupra.com/profile/wiselaw/

Just touching base with you quickly to be sure that this morning's document on your JD Supra profile is indeed the one you want live and in public view. We see that you tried to replace - and it looks like you have succeeded in getting the correct one up there, but want to be sure.

We've noticed a technical issue to do with your initial attempt to replace the original document (an issue overcome, it seems, by the fact that you then uploaded a second time).

Suffice to say: we just want to be sure that this is the document you want live on the site. Please let me know. If so, we will delete the other versions currently in limbo on JD Supra's servers. If it isn't the version you want live, we'll take care of things.

We like the doc and want to feature it in our network later, and so I want to be certain it is the correct one.

Please let me know.

Adrian Lurssen
@JDSupra

As someone who has at times waited literally weeks for any response at all from Facebook, Google and Technorati (among others) to my technical and account-related enquiries, I can't tell you how pleasant a surprise it was to encounter a site that actually has a real, human interface - and beyond that - is genuinely proactive in addressing its users' issues.

The email discussions following Mr. Lurssen's initial contact were just as pleasant and helpful. He was even good enough to point out to me that the Twitter bugs had already tweeted on the original.

Well done, JD Supra, and thank you, Adrian Lurssen.

Our article article on cloud computing, by the way, is now featured at JD Supra's Electronic Discovery Document Center.

- Garry J. Wise, Toronto

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Recently Tweeted - October 23, 2009 Edition

2009-10-23T14:13:00.011-04:00

With the weekend upon us, here are the leading legal headlines we've been following on Twitter, this past week or so - we note that Craigslist has certainly been prominent in the news of late:

“Craigslist Not Responsible for Sex-For-Hire Ads, Judge Rules” http://bit.ly/UZfLW; Judge Tosses Sheriff’s Suit Against Craigslist Over Prostitution Ads http://bit.ly/2l3SSy
Ethics Complaint: Lawyer Lied About ‘Adult Gig’ Craigslist Ad for Secretary http://bit.ly/OxGVl
Ontario Cell Phone Driving Ban Comes Into Effect Monday http://bit.ly/2WSKX0
Michael Bryant case put over until mid-November http://bit.ly/9T1cp
B.C. seeks ruling on polygamy vs. charter http://bit.ly/hYQW4; Polygamy Law Taken to Court in British Columbia - FOXNews http://bit.ly/2aDirb
Top court strikes down Quebec English school law http://bit.ly/dDyHI
Quebec prisoners fighting smoking ban http://bit.ly/3eESwE
Lax copyright laws put Canada on U.S. naughty list http://bit.ly/1XCcmC
Protection for nannies - Toronto Star http://bit.ly/7IYZ7
CanWest wants quick creditor deal - Globe and Mailhttp://bit.ly/yleWi
Retired Justice O’Connor’s Family Home Is Moved to Museum http://bit.ly/g8tcr
'Birthers' Lose Again as Federal Judge Nixes Challenge to Obama Presidency http://bit.ly/1401hu
Attention, Sarah Palin bashers: Lookalike book 'Going Rouge' is coming! (Thom Geier/EW.com) http://bit.ly/3PrHNL
Twitter Jitters: Can What You Tweet About Police Land You in Jail? http://bit.ly/UwKBf; Twitter can be a legal minefield: Watch what you say - Vancouver Sun http://bit.ly/4moo2
Legal Pitfalls of Outsourcing May Outweigh Benefits, Says New Survey http://bit.ly/w9yP9
U.S. eases stance on medical marijuana http://bit.ly/2ptRhL
Federal judge rules against releasing Guantanamo interrogation documents http://bit.ly/2beKIF; Copyright Infringement in Playing Loud Music to Soften Up Guantanamo Detainees? http://bit.ly/70FWc
Sharpton threatens suit against Limbaugh (CNN) http://bit.ly/y21Mo; Does Limbaugh Have a Libel Suit Against CNN? http://bit.ly/2U0lZF
France court denies woman access to semen of deceased husband http://bit.ly/KwbFh
International convention needed to combat organ trafficking: report http://bit.ly/poEQW
Cloud computing and the legal significance of terms of service http://bit.ly/36U2ne

A good weekend to all.

- Garry J. Wise, Toronto

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Video: The FOX News War on Obama

2009-10-23T12:27:00.002-04:00

Who started it?

- Garry J. Wise, Toronto

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U.K. Supreme Court Officially Opened

2009-10-17T14:23:00.005-04:00

Washington Post reports on yesterday's opening of the new, U.K. Supreme Court, which replaces the venerable Law Lords as the nation's court of last resort:

Queen Elizabeth II formally opened Britain's new Supreme Court on Friday in a ceremony attended by high court justices from the United States and around the world.

Prime Minister Gordon Brown and top judges from Canada, Australia, India, South Africa and Europe attended the ceremony for a court the government says will make the workings of justice visible and accessible to the British public.

U.S. Chief Justice John Roberts and justices Stephen Breyer and Antonin Scalia watched the ceremony, which included prayers led by Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams and a verse for the new court by former poet laureate Andrew Motion.

For more background on the modernization of the U.K. judicial system, also see:

- Garry J. Wise, Toronto

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Quoteworthy

2009-10-17T07:22:00.007-04:00

MSNBC writer, Daniel Harrison on Google Wave, which reportedly heralds "either the death or the future of e-mail:"

All the average Joe wants to know, of course, is: Do I have to worry about all this Google Wave stuff or can I go back to poking people on Facebook for a few more months?

See: Google Wave: What is it? Why Should You Care?

Legal professionals may be particularly interested in David Carns' comments on the complications Google Wave will pose in the context of e-discovery and document retention:

The Wave allows you to use dynamic web technologies (such live maps, automatic content generation, live news content, etc) to augment each wave conversation. This means that, unlike email, a wave has the potential to change each time you view it. The idea of creating a TIFF image of a wave is as vexing as creating a TIFF image of a Facebook page - it may never be the same twice. Time and context in the wave matter just as much as content.
...Robots are participants in a wave, just like a client or colleague, but they are fully automated. Robots can check your typing for spelling errors and fix them. Robots can “sanitize” a wave, by going back and omitting expletives from some one’s text. Robots can even write whole paragraphs in a wave on your behalf (imagine a stock broker who mentions a stock in a wave to a customer and a Robot which immediately comes behind and inserts disclaimer text about risks and assurances). And although every action a Robot makes is recorded in a wave’s XML file (so we know what was automated and what was “hand-written”) there is the potential for lots of confusion about who wrote what and when.
Gadgets are possibly even worse for e-discovery. Gadgets are wave add-ons that extend the wave and add outside content. A Gadget can be a map, a slideshow to a Flickr photo gallery or local weather. They can look fancy, but in the end a Gadget is simply an XML file that can store data in a wave. What makes Gadgets frustrating from an e-discovery perspective is that Gadgets are hosted outside the Wave on a separate web server. In order to piece together the content of a Gadget, you will need to collect information not only from the Wave server, but also the web server that published the Gadget. It can get very confusing and it is leap-years more complex than today’s email.

- Garry J. Wise, Toronto

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Headline of the Day

2009-10-17T06:51:00.009-04:00

All-male college cracks down on cross-dressing - from CNN.

(The real story-within-the-story here may be about the apparent discrimination by a gay students' organization against its own, small minority-within-a-minority).

- Garry J. Wise, Toronto

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Lawyers in The Cloud

2009-10-17T05:51:00.008-04:00

My paper on cloud computing, Lawyers in the Cloud, A Cautionary Tale, from yesterday's Law Society of Upper Canada Teleseminar, Security For Lawyers in a Wired World, is now up at JD Supra.

Below is a brief excerpt from my conclusions:

The litany of security concerns, mishaps and challenges documented in this paper must militate against any overly-enthusiastic embrace of the Cloud by the legal profession – at least for now.

Practitioners, however, should resist any false sense of security arising from the limited protections represented by their current in-house, local systems and software.

In or out of the Cloud, personal security habits are the greatest predictor of information safety.

In spite of the significant threats discussed in this paper, the Cloud also offers added layers of protection for data, through redundant storage, automated security patches and upgrades, and overall reliability of access.

Such discussions aside, however, the bottom line, however, is that the Cloud’s time is – or will soon be - upon us.

If the legal profession’s history of tentative, but eventual adaptation of new technologies is any guide, we will slowly incorporate the Cloud into our practices. As the Cloud’s popular appeal increases and its track-record on security stabilizes, our clients will increasingly embrace these services and demand that we do so as well.

Even if nothing does last forever online, this next generation of services and tools has arrived.

Software as a service and the Cloud will increasingly tempt our profession with increased efficiencies, convenience and functionality. It is the trend to watch in our profession’s digital future, now just ahead.

And it will continue to be so - until the next ‘breakthrough,’ that is.

- Garry J. Wise, Toronto

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Meanwhile in "Post-Racial" America

2009-10-15T21:44:00.006-04:00

I had trouble believing my eyes when I saw this, via Associated Press:

NEW ORLEANS – A Louisiana justice of the peace said he refused to issue a marriage license to an interracial couple out of concern for any children the couple might have. Keith Bardwell, justice of the peace in Tangipahoa Parish, says it is his experience that most interracial marriages do not last long.
"I'm not a racist. I just don't believe in mixing the races that way," Bardwell told the Associated Press on Thursday. "I have piles and piles of black friends. They come to my home, I marry them, they use my bathroom. I treat them just like everyone else."
Bardwell said he asks everyone who calls about marriage if they are a mixed race couple. If they are, he does not marry them, he said.

The A.C.L.U. has now intervened:

"It is really astonishing and disappointing to see this come up in 2009," said American Civil Liberties Union of Louisiana attorney Katie Schwartzmann. She said the Supreme Courtruled in 1967 "that the government cannot tell people who they can and cannot marry."

The ACLU sent a letter to the Louisiana Judiciary Committee, which oversees the state justices of the peace, asking them to investigate Bardwell and recommending "the most severe sanctions available, because such blatant bigotry poses a substantial threat of serious harm to theadministration of justice.

"He knew he was breaking the law, but continued to do it," Schwartzmann said.

- Garry J. Wise, Toronto

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The Procreation Argument

2009-10-15T04:20:00.003-04:00

The "procreation argument," dealt a fatal blow by Chief U.S. District Judge Vaughn Walker, at a hearing of a challenge to Californa's ban on gay marriage.

Law.com reports:

Many of the arguments discussed for two hours in court on Wednesday centered on the more philosophical issue of why the government would be in the business of sanctioning marriages at all. Cooper argued that marriage existed to support and to encourage “natural procreation” – something that gay couples can’t do.
Judge Walker scoffed at that idea, saying the last wedding he officiated was between people aged 95 and 83. “I did not demand that they prove they intended to engage in procreation,” he said.

- Garry J. Wise, Toronto

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Quotable

2009-10-15T03:47:00.011-04:00

U.S. Chief Justice John Roberts, to appellate counsel Paul Clement during argument before the Supreme Court on the entitlement of lawyers to significant fee enhancements for the achievement of exceptional results:

"Maybe we have a different perspective. You think the lawyers are responsible for a good result, and I think the judges are."

- Garry J. Wise, Toronto

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Top 10 Legal News Headlines: Recently Tweeted - October 14, 2009 Recap

2009-10-14T12:42:00.013-04:00

Time to catch up on the best of the legal headlines we've posted to Twitter since our last recap.

Here are Wise Law Blog's Top 10 Recently Tweeted legal news stories from the previous ten days:

A Day About Bad Lawyering at the U.S High Court http://bit.ly/Wp82
Quebec specialists support legalizing euthanasia http://bit.ly/2OACxM
A Facebook Poke Can Put You in the Pokey - PC World http://bit.ly/4dXoOl
Jury vetting's legal upshot - National Post http://bit.ly/ZvXJG
“Criminal Defendant Escapes After Being Mistaken for Lawyer” http://bit.ly/hZUS0
Dismissal of NHL Ref for Union Activity? http://bit.ly/mTS9j
Court Hears Free-Speech Case on Dogfight Videos http://bit.ly/VtcFP
Throw out 'bizarre' prostitution laws, court told - CBC.ca http://bit.ly/Sb4Sj
Harper Government proposes random breathalyzer tests http://bit.ly/2gC6vg
Legal Sector Lost 2,000 Jobs in September http://bit.ly/3dkD03

See you again, shortly.

In the meanwhile, follow us on Twitter, for timely updates on breaking legal and political news.

- Garry J. Wise, Toronto

Visit our Toronto Law Firm website: www.wiselaw.net

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Video: OMG! Law Talk - Episode 2

2009-10-14T09:14:00.011-04:00

It is time for Episode 2 of OMG! Law Talk. Think of it as a Wednesday-after-a-long-weekend version of OMG! Monday, if you will...

I'm joined again this week by legal bloggers Omar Ha-Redeye and Michael Carabash. We continue our 'robust' discussions, with topics that include:

· Google “Juice”
· Law Firm Public Relations Strategies
· Getting Legal Information Online
· Blogging and the Election of George Bush
· Responding to Torture
· On Mark Steyn and Freedom of Speech in Canada and America

So here we go with OMG! - Episode 2:

- Garry J. Wise, Toronto

Visit our Toronto Law Firm website: www.wiselaw.net

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"Birther" Lawyer Taitz Slapped with $20,000 Sanction By U.S. District Court

2009-10-13T20:00:00.005-04:00

Orly Taitz, the "birther" lawyer who contends U.S. President Barack Obama was not born in the United States, and is thus constitutionally ineligible to serve as President, has been fined $20,000 for misconduct by a Georgia court.

The sanctions ruling of U.S. District Court Judge Clay D. Land leaves little doubt as to the Court's impression of Ms. Taitz' conduct - and her cause:

When a lawyer files complaints and motions without a reasonable basis for believing that they are supported by existing law ... that lawyer abuses her privilege to practice law. When a lawyer uses the courts as a platform for a political agenda disconnected from any legitimate legal cause of action, that lawyer abuses her privilege to practice law. When a lawyer personally attacks opposing parties and disrespects the integrity of the judiciary, that lawyer abuses her privilege to practice law. When a lawyer recklessly accuses a judge of violating the Judicial Code of Conduct with no supporting evidence beyond her dissatisfaction with the judge’s rulings, that lawyer abuses her privilege to practice law.

...Regrettably, the conduct of counsel Orly Taitz has crossed these lines, and Ms. Taitz must be sanctioned for her misconduct. After a full review of the sanctionable conduct, counsel’s conduct leading up to that conduct, and counsel’s response to the Court’s show cause order, the Court finds that a monetary penalty of $20,000.00 shall be imposed upon counsel Orly Taitz as punishment for her misconduct, as a deterrent to prevent future misconduct, and to protect the integrity of the Court. Payment shall be made to the United States, through the Middle District of Georgia Clerk’s Office, within thirty days of today’s Order. If counsel fails to pay the sanction due, the U.S.Attorney will be authorized to commence collection proceedings.

...The Court further directs the Clerk of this Court to send a copy of this Order to the State Bar of California, 180 Howard Street, San Francisco, CA 94105, for whatever use it deems appropriate.

The full ruling is here.

- Garry J. Wise, Toronto

Visit our Toronto Law Firm website: www.wiselaw.net

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Obama Wins 2009 Nobel Peace Prize

2009-10-09T05:33:00.002-04:00

President Obama has been awarded the 2009 Nobel Peace Prize.

CNN reports on this surprising announcement:

President Obama was awarded the 2009 Nobel Peace Prize on Friday.

The first African-American to win the White House, Obama was praised by the Norweigan Nobel Committee for "his extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation between peoples."

"Only very rarely has a person to the same extent as Obama captured the world's attention and given its people hope for a better future," the committee said. "His diplomacy is founded in the concept that those who are to lead the world must do so on the basis of values and attitudes that are shared by the majority of the world's population."

The committee also said Obama has "created a new climate in international politics."

Also see CBC's coverage here.

- Garry J. Wise, Toronto

Visit our Toronto Law Firm website: www.wiselaw.net

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