This week on Legally Speaking with Michael Mulligan: When the divorced father of an adult child with learning disabilities was diagnosed with terminal cancer, he established a trust with $750,000 to provide for his son following his death. As he had been through an acrimonious divorce, the father was concerned that his ex-wife did […]
Medicare Protection Act constitutional, sentencing for contempt and drugs on appeal
/in Legal News /by mtp_adminThis week on Legally Speaking with Michael Mulligan: The British Columbia Medicare Protection Act purports attempts to protect Medicare by prohibiting any doctor from charging any more than what Medicare pays for any service that it covers and effectively prohibiting people from purchasing private insurance for any of these services. These market interventions, combined with […]
A car dealership liable for an accident, ICBC unfairness, and a builder’s lien
/in Legal News /by mtp_adminThis week on Legally Speaking with Michael Mulligan: In August of 2018, two sisters were walking their dogs on Central Saanich Road in Saanich BC when a vehicle struck them. One of the women, and her dog, were killed. The other woman survived with devastating injuries. The woman who survived spent a year in […]
Deck litigation, an estate without a will, and criminal jury trials almost back to normal
/in Legal News /by mtp_adminThis week on Legally Speaking with Michael Mulligan: Twenty-five years ago, a man and his family moved into a home they had built in the Highlands with only a temporary occupancy permit. A final occupancy permit was never obtained, and the lack of compliance was noted on title. As his wife passed away and […]
A murder conviction appeal, a ban on publication of disclosure material and a drug conviction appeal
/in Legal News /by mtp_adminThis week on Legally Speaking with Michael Mulligan: An appeal in a criminal case does not involve asking the judges hearing the appeal to retry the case. It’s a review of what took place at the original trial. The Court of Appeal can allow an appeal if the verdict at trial was unreasonable and […]
Bill C-21 unintended consequences, no fault and a highway blockade injury and a search warrant quashed
/in Legal News /by mtp_adminThis week on Legally Speaking with Michael Mulligan: Bill C-21 proposes various amendments to the Criminal Code and Firearms Act to restrict gun ownership. One part of the legislation is a proposal to freeze the sale or transfer of handguns. This has already had the unintended consequence of causing handgun sales to skyrocket in […]
An ex-wife attempt to get control over a trust and a financial advisor claims a marriage-like relationship with a client
/in Legal News /by mtp_adminThis week on Legally Speaking with Michael Mulligan: When the divorced father of an adult child with learning disabilities was diagnosed with terminal cancer, he established a trust with $750,000 to provide for his son following his death. As he had been through an acrimonious divorce, the father was concerned that his ex-wife did […]
150 years or parole ineligibility cruel and unusual and a credit card class action settlement
/in Legal News /by mtp_adminThe week on Legally Speaking with Michael Mulligan: The Supreme Court of Canada has found that making people ineligible to even apply for parole for 150 years is cruel and unusual punishment. In 1967 Canada repealed the Criminal Code provisions that allowed people convicted of murder to be put to death by hanging, except […]
The right to a trial in English or French and the BC Legislative Clerk not guilty of most charges
/in Legal News /by mtp_adminThis week on Legally Speaking with Michael Mulligan: Section 530 of the Criminal Code provides a right to a trial in either English or French. It also requires a judge or justice “before whom an accused first appears” to inform accused people of this right. If someone requests a trial in French or English […]
Automatism, Horizontal stare decisis, and ICBC No Fault in the BCCA
/in Legal News /by mtp_adminThis week on Legally Speaking with Michael Mulligan: Criminal offences require two things, often described with Latin names: actus reus and mens rea. Actus reus is an intentional physical act. Mens rea is a guilty mind. We don’t wish to convict people for physical acts that were not intentional: crashing your car when you […]
History of abortion law in Canada, an acquittal for criminal contempt, and credibility in criminal cases
/in Legal News /by mtp_adminThis week on Legally Speaking with Michael Mulligan: The leaked draft decision on abortion from the US Supreme Court has raised questions concerning the law in Canada. For 100 years in Canada, from 1869 until 1969, having or performing an abortion was a criminal offence in Canada. In 1969 the Criminal Code was amended […]