Criminal Law: Special Issues 2011


Course Date: February 5, 2011

Welcome and Introduction

Vincent Michaels — Michaels & Filkow, Richmond
David Patterson — Murchison, Thomson & Clarke LLP, Surrey

Section 24(2) of the Charter: Post Grant

  • Much of the prior court jurisprudence on s. 24(2) of the Charter is no longer of importance.
  • In Grant, the Supreme Court of Canada arrived at a new approach to s. 24(2) of the Charter, replacing the old Collins and Stillman tests.
  • Learn what role the traditional three lines of inquiry play post-Grant—the seriousness of the Charter-infringing state conduct, the impact of the breach on the Charter-protected interests of the accused, and the societal interest in an adjudication on the merits.
  • Hear how Grant has and will continue to impact s. 24(2) inquiries in light of the Supreme Court of Canada’s direction to trial judges to consider “all the circumstances” of the case.

The Honourable Mr. Justice Gregory T.W. Bowden — Supreme Court of British Columbia, New Westminster
W. Paul Riley — Public Prosecution Service of Canada, Vancouver
Marvin N. Stern — Stern & Albert, Surrey 

Networking Break

Police Use of Computer Forensics

  • Introduction to technical issues
  • Challenging a computer forensics expert
  • Circumstantial inferences: the battle over analogies

Michael T. Mulligan — Mulligan Tam Pearson Law Corporation, Victoria
Paul E. Pearson — Mulligan Tam Pearson Law Corporation, Victoria

Internet Luring

  • Internet luring is a real and present danger.
  • Learn about s. 172.1 of the Criminal Code and judicial interpretation of Canada’s law against using a computer to lure children for the purpose of committing sexual offences.
  • Understand what is required in law by way of the actus reus and the mens rea to make out the offence of Internet luring.

Joyce DeWitt-Van Oosten, QC — Crown Counsel, Criminal Appeals and Special Prosecutions, Victoria
James I.S. Sutherland — Sutherland Jette, Vancouver 

Lunch (on your own)

Impaired Driving After Bill C-2: Two Years On

  • Learn how Bill C-2 has fundamentally changed the law of impaired driving in Canada, including expanded police powers, by giving police the authority to demand physical sobriety tests and bodily fluid samples for s. 253(a) investigations, increased penalties with respect to both alcohol and drug-impaired driving, and the creation of new offences.
  • Discover current trial trends, including approaches to challenging the new law’s restriction on defence counsel’s ability at trial to challenge or counter blood-alcohol concentration test results.
  • Consider the impact the new impaired driving law has had on legal counsel and the citizen’s right to a fair trial.

The Honourable Judge David A. St. Pierre — Provincial Court of British Columbia, Port Coquitlam
Roger F. Cutler — Crown Counsel, Victoria
Vincent Michaels — Michaels & Filkow, Richmond

Prolific Offender Programs

  • Prolific offender programs have either come to a courthouse near you or soon will.
  • Learn the nuts and bolts of how prolific offender programs work and what the expectations are of the various participants, including the judiciary, prosecutors, defence counsel, defendants, corrections, and social agencies. 

The Honourable Judge Ellen Gordon — Provincial Court of British Columbia, Surrey 
Kelly H. Johnston — Sicotte & Henry, Surrey
Michelle Wray — Crown Counsel, Surrey

Networking Break

Mr. Big Sting Operations

  • Learn what Mr. Big sting operations are and what to do if your client becomes entangled in one.
  • Hear what academics think of Mr. Big sting operations.
  • Consider Mr. Big sting operation case law and just how the police are able to do what they do.

Joan Brockman — School of Criminology, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby
Wendy E. Dawson, QC — Regional Crown Counsel, New Westminster
Kouri Keenan — School of Criminology, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby
Paul S. McMurray — Defence Counsel, Paul McMurray Law Corporation, Burnaby

Concluding Remarks

Vincent Michaels — Michaels & Filkow, Richmond
David Patterson — Murchison, Thomson & Clarke LLP, Surrey