Articles 2019

There were a large number of Child and Youth Law court decisions and news stories in 2018. We’ve compiled this list to highlight the growing recognition of the many legal issues directly affecting children and the list for 2019 is already well along its way.

Considering Dr. Christine Blasey Ford, Judge Brett Kavanaugh, youth justice, and the rights of the child.

One of the most frequent questions a family lawyer is asked is “at what age can my child choose to live with me?” Shmuel Stern explores what it means to be a “mature minor” in health law, and as a family lawyer, compares how health law and family law treat older children’s views and preferences.

An exploration of a case that serves as a helpful reminder of both the value of digital evidence and how to interpret it, but also how the law of post-offence conduct continues to evolve alongside the technologies that seem to dominate the lives of young people.

The CBA has launched an online toolkit packed with information and resources to help lawyers, judges and other professionals make better decisions for children.

The CBA response to consultations on the Canadian Border Services Agency’s new National Immigration Detention Framework.

If someone were to write a history on electronic evidence in family law, they could probably summarize it as a series of waves.

Should adult criminal courts consider the best interests of an offender's dependent children when making sentencing decisions? Could the application of this principle reduce, or even eliminate, a custodial sentence where one might otherwise be entirely appropriate?

Lauren Warner summarizes the recent case of R. v. M.B., 2016 ONCA 760, in which the Ontario Court of Appeal has reminded us that a youth court judge has discretion to determine whether and how much credit to give a youth for pre-sentence custody, especially where considering imposing an adult sentence.

Access to the court records of children and young persons who interact with the criminal or civil justice systems is tightly controlled. For example, youth records created for the purposes of a criminal investigation or prosecution are protected by a strict and comprehensive set of provisions found in Part VI of the Youth Criminal Justice Act.