Summaries Sunday: Supreme Advocacy

• Author: Administrator
• Date: May 12, 2019

One Sunday each month we bring you a summary from Supreme Advocacy LLP of recent decisions at the Supreme Court of Canada. Supreme Advocacy LLP offers a weekly electronic newsletter, Supreme Advocacy Letter, to which you may subscribe. It’s a summary of all appeals as well as leaves to appeal granted so you will know what the SCC will soon be dealing with (April 20 to May 10, 2019 inclusive).

Oral Judgments

Criminal Law: Delay; Mootness

R. v. Thanabalasingham, 2018 QCCA 197; 2019 SCC 21 (37984)

The Chief Justice: “The test to be applied in this case is a two-part test as stated in Borowski v. Canada (Attorney General), [1989] 1 S.C.R. 342, and R. v. Smith, 2004 SCC 14, [2004] 1 S.C.R. 385 … In this case, the majority of the Court of Appeal erred at the first stage of the test because the case is clearly not moot. The mere fact that an individual has been deported, even if he has been deported to a country with which Canada does not have an extradition treaty, does not render a case moot. The underlying basis for the criminal proceedings has not disappeared and there remains a live controversy even if the accused’s return to Canada is unlikely …We would all … allow the appeal and remit the matter to the Québec Court of Appeal for decision on the merits.”

Criminal Law: Homicide; Conspiracy
R. v. Kelsie, 2017 NSCA 89; 2019 SCC 17 (38129)

“Karakatsanis J.: “We agree with the conclusion of the Court of Appeal that the trial judge’s instructions on party liability for first degree murder were in error. As a result, the conviction for first degree murder cannot stand. We do not, however, agree with the Court of Appeal that the trial judge was required to charge the jury on manslaughter. … the appeal is allowed in part. The conspiracy conviction is restored and a second degree murder conviction is entered … The matter is remitted to the trial court for sentencing.”

Criminal Law: Homicide; Hearsay
R. v. Larue, 2018 YKCA 9; 2019 SCC 25 (38224)

Publication ban, sealing order and certain information not available to the public.

Abella J.:”Applying R. v. Bradshaw, 2017 SCC 35, [2017] 1 S.C.R. 865, a majority of this panel would dismiss the appeal largely for the reasons of Dickson J.A., and Justices Karakatsanis and Brown would allow substantially for the reasons of Bennett J.A. The appeal is therefore dismissed.”

Criminal Law: Manslaughter

R. v. Wakefield, 2018 ABCA 360; 2019 SCC 26 (38425)

The Court: “… The trial judge failed to consider the crucial question of...