Podcast
Verdicts & Voices
Hosted by Canadian Bar Association · EN
Verdicts & Voices is a legal current affairs podcast presented by the Canadian Bar Association. With her retinue of expert guests, host Alison Crawford keeps listeners up to date on news, views, and stories about the law and the justice system in Canada.
10episodes
Episodes
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Indigenous practice in Canadian courts (from the archives)
2w ago00:26:29Tap to summarizeHow should Canadian courts incorporate Indigenous cultural and legal practices? Why might some judges be reluctant to do so? And are we moving toward a tri-jural system in which Indigenous legal orders exist alongside civil and common law? To mark National Indigenous Peoples Day, we’re replaying a discussion from June 2025 with two chief justices for whom these questions are front and centre: Leonard Marchand of the BC and Yukon Courts of Appeal and Glenn Joyal of the Manitoba Court of King’s Bench. Notes: Chief Justice Joyal’s Announcement of the Court of Queen’s Bench’s Trust, Reconciliation and Access to Justice Committee British Columbia Court of Appeal Reconciliation Framework CBA submission to the BC Supreme Court’s Reconciliation Working Group Verdicts & Voices is a legal current affairs podcast presented by the Canadian Bar Association. With her retinue of expert guests, host Alison Crawford keeps listeners up to date on news, views, and stories about the law and the justice system in Canada. Views expressed do not necessarily reflect those of the CBA. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
Transcribe →Approaching the bar
3w ago00:23:51Tap to summarizeIn this final episode of the spring, three law students discuss their reasons for studying law, their first forays into law firms, and their impressions of a changing profession and a tumultuous world. See you in September! Maria Kalapurayil just graduated from the University of Alberta. Sophie Poitras has one year under her belt at the Université de Moncton. And with one year to go at the Université du Québec en Outaouais, Justine Morin-Laporte chairs CBA Quebec’s student section. Verdicts & Voices is a legal current affairs podcast presented by the Canadian Bar Association. With her retinue of expert guests, host Alison Crawford keeps listeners up to date on news, views, and stories about the law and the justice system in Canada. Views expressed are not necessarily those of the CBA. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
Transcribe →“I thought she was nuts when she said I’d be a judge.”
Jun 300:22:53Tap to summarizeIn 1976, when Harvey Brownstone told his mother he was gay, she became “volcanic” and kicked him out of the house. He spent five years on welfare, without stealing – much. Somehow, though, he got a law degree from Queens, clerked for a young Rosalie Abella, and became Canada’s first openly gay judge in 1995. Now, in retirement, his celebrity interview show has 70 000 YouTube subscribers, and the memoir he just released is being made into a movie starring David Arquette. As Pride season begins, Harvey joins the pod to discuss his cinematic life, the clubby Canadian legal world of the late 20th century, and the role of the judge as public educator. Notes: Without Prejudice: My Life as a Gay Judge by Harvey Brownstowne Harvey Brownstown Interviews… Find out about CBA Pride initiatives and the CBA’s Sexual and Gender Diversity Alliance Section (SAGDA) Verdicts & Voices is a legal current affairs podcast presented by the Canadian Bar Association. With her retinue of expert guests, host Alison Crawford keeps listeners up to date on news, views, and stories about the law and the justice system in Canada. Views expressed are not necessarily those of the CBA. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
Transcribe →A turning point for a tort of family violence
May 2100:20:08Tap to summarizeThe Supreme Court of Canada issued a landmark decision earlier this month that created a new tort of family violence. This means people who have suffered harm due to intimate partner violence will be able to seek damages. The 6-3 decision in Ahluwalia v. Ahluwalia was more than a year in the making. What will it mean for victims and legal professionals? Shelley Hounsell is a family law lawyer and senior counsel at Presse Mason in Halifax. Vanessa Lam provides specialized legal advice and research to other family law practitioners through her firm, Lam Family Law, in Markham, Ontario. Both previously appeared on the podcast in February 2025 to talk about this issue. Notes: 2026 SCC 16 (CanLII) | Ahluwalia v. Ahluwalia | CanLII Verdicts and Voices: The use of AI at the Federal Court, the tort of family violence, and R v. Drybones | Verdicts & Voices Verdicts & Voices is a legal current affairs podcast presented by the Canadian Bar Association. With her retinue of expert guests, host Alison Crawford keeps listeners up to date on news, views, and stories about the law and the justice system in Canada. Views expressed are not necessarily those of the CBA. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
Transcribe →Nunavut’s Gladue dilemma
May 1300:22:08Tap to summarizeSince the Supreme Court’s 1999 Gladue decision, sentencing judges in Canada are supposed to consider the “unique systemic or background factors” that bring Indigenous people in contact with the law. The idea is to reduce Indigenous overincarceration and promote alternative sanctions. But how does this work in a place like Nunavut, where the trauma of colonialism affects just about everyone, and scarce infrastructure exists for non-carceral penalties? In cases of gender-based violence, in particular, are Inuit women being sacrificed on “the altar of reconciliation?” After a career in criminal law as both a prosecutor and defence counsel, Neil Sharkey spent 15 years as a judge, including eight as Nunavut’s Chief Justice. Qajaq Robinson is a Nunavummiuq human rights lawyer and workplace investigator who served as a commissioner on the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls. In the inquiry’s final report, Call to Action 5.17 urged a thorough evaluation of Gladue principles as they relate to violence against Indigenous women, girls, and 2SLGBTQQIA people. Notes: The Path is the CBA’s Indigenous cultural awareness course. It addresses topics including Gladue principles and alternative justice systems. The CBA’s Gladue and Beyond Resource Guide is a free resource designed to accompany the module of The Path that covers Indigenous Peoples and the Criminal Legal System. In December 2025, the Supreme Court heard R. v. Cope, which deals with the application of Gladue principles in a case of gender-based violence. Verdicts & Voices is a legal current affairs podcast presented by the Canadian Bar Association. With her retinue of expert guests, host Alison Crawford keeps listeners up to date on news, views, and stories about the law and the justice system in Canada. Views expressed are not necessarily those of the CBA. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
Transcribe →“A landmark decision for the independence of the bar”
May 600:14:35Tap to summarizeFor two years, much of the BC legal community has been warning that changes to the regulation of lawyers in that province risk making them answerable to the state rather than their clients. Last week, the BC Supreme Court upheld the changes as constitutional, despite noting the government’s “inability, or failure, to justify overturning 150 years of self-regulation.” Connor Bildfell is First Vice President of the Canadian Bar Association’s BC Branch. He was part of a team from McCarthy Tétrault that argued against the changes on behalf of the CBA. On this episode, he discusses why the BC court’s recognition of the independence of the bar as an unwritten constitutional principle is an important silver lining. Notes: CBA responds to BC Supreme Court decision on Legal Professions Act Verdicts & Voices is a legal current affairs podcast presented by the Canadian Bar Association. With her retinue of expert guests, host Alison Crawford keeps listeners up to date on news, views, and stories about the law and the justice system in Canada. Views expressed are not necessarily those of the CBA. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
Transcribe →When courts get vexed
Apr 2900:23:20Tap to summarizeEveryone is supposed to be entitled to their day in court. But how should we weigh that principle against the reality of litigants who misuse court processes, tying up resources and subjecting other parties to harm? What approaches exist to identify vexatious or abusive litigation at an early stage and nip it in the bud? Donald Netolitzky, K.C., was complex litigant management counsel for the Alberta Court of King’s Bench. He argues that abusive litigation is often linked to mental health problems, and that letting it proceed unimpeded harms other parties, the courts, and the abusive litigants themselves. Notes: Stashin v. Van Norman, 2026 ABKB 297 Verdicts & Voices is a legal current affairs podcast presented by the Canadian Bar Association. With her retinue of expert guests, host Alison Crawford keeps listeners up to date on news, views, and stories about the law and the justice system in Canada. Views expressed are not necessarily those of the CBA. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
Transcribe →How to judge slop
Apr 1500:16:14Tap to summarizeB.C. Supreme Court Justice David Masuhara may have been the first judge in Canada to encounter AI-generated fake citations. As he wrote at the time, “generative AI is still no substitute for the professional expertise that the justice system requires of lawyers.” Two years later, the phenomenon certainly hasn’t gone away. So, there could hardly be a better guest for a discussion about the frequency of hallucinated citations, strategies for identifying them, and ways of dealing with lawyers and self-represented litigants who rely on them in court. Check out these CBA resources designed to help lawyers use AI responsibly: AI Academy AI In Practice Verdicts & Voices is a legal current affairs podcast presented by the Canadian Bar Association. With her retinue of expert guests, host Alison Crawford keeps listeners up to date on news, views, and stories about the law and the justice system in Canada. Views expressed are not necessarily those of the CBA. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
Transcribe →The badge of good character
Apr 800:19:32Tap to summarizeCanadian law societies require licensed lawyers to be of good character. But what does that mean? How is the requirement enforced? And can a person who sexually abused multiple children, and lied about it for years, still meet this standard? Nadia Liva practices regulatory and disciplinary defence at Liva Freeman Dent LLP, with additional experience in criminal law. Ben Kates chairs the Regulatory Practice Group at WeirFoulds and previously acted as Discipline Counsel for the Law Society of Ontario. Verdicts & Voices is a legal current affairs podcast presented by the Canadian Bar Association. With her retinue of expert guests, host Alison Crawford keeps listeners up to date on news, views, and stories about the law and the justice system in Canada. Views expressed are not necessarily those of the CBA. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
Transcribe →Will the Protecting Victims Act do just that?
Mar 2500:23:10Tap to summarizeWhen Justice Minister Sean Fraser unveiled the federal government's latest bill to reform the criminal justice system last December, he said Bill C-16 would confront the rise in coercive control and intimate partner violence, and “keep kids safe from predators.” But will it actually live up to that goal? The bill includes new mandatory minimum sentences, creates new criminal offences, and increases penalties for sexual crimes. It also seeks to avoid situations where charges get stayed due to excessive delays, but in a way that critics say could make delays even worse. For a discussion about the pros and cons of Bill C-16, Alison is joined by Melanie Webb, Chair of the CBA Criminal Justice Section and a criminal trial and appellate lawyer at Webb Barristers; and Simona Jellinek, senior counsel at Gluckstein Lawyers with 30 years of experience representing survivors of childhood abuse and adult assaults. Verdicts & Voices is a legal current affairs podcast presented by the Canadian Bar Association. With her retinue of expert guests, host Alison Crawford keeps listeners up to date on news, views, and stories about the law and the justice system in Canada. Views expressed are not necessarily those of the CBA. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
Transcribe →