After being charged with several criminal offences I hired Matthew Day to represent me. Matthew was very friendly and he explained every step of the way to me so that I was never wondering what was going on. I was able to continue my daily life as usual while he did all the work. I […]
The Ministry of the Attorney General for Ontario announced today that three new judges have been appointed to the Ontario Court of Justice in Ottawa - the Honourable Justice Norman D. Boxall, a former defence lawyer, the Honourable Justice W. Vincent Clifford, a former defence lawyer, and the Honourable Justice Marlyse Dumel, a former prosecutor […]
An “offence” is a legal rule that imposes a penalty for doing something that is prohibited or for not doing something that is mandatory. In other words, it is a law that punishes someone for not following a rule. It is one of the many tools that governments use to regulate society and uphold values. […]
Earlier today, Michael A. Johnston was interviewed on Ottawa Today with Mark Sutcliffe at 1310 News. Michael discussed the Supreme Court of Canada's recent decision in R. v. Jordan, which changed the rules governing a defendant's right to a trial within a "reasonable time" under subsection 11(b) of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Michael also discussed the Ontario […]
Our client's wife kicked him out of their home and started divorce proceedings. Almost immediately, she began making claims to the police about our client's apparently abusive behaviour against her, their young son, and her other children. When the police refused to lay charges, she went to a justice of the peace and started "peace […]
The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms imposes limits and obligations on government authorities and grants rights and privileges to persons suspected or charged with offences. As part of our constitution, the rights and freedoms protected by the Charter supersede other legal rules, including the provisions of the Criminal Code and the Controlled Drugs and […]
Someone stole a cheque from a small business. That person legitimately had possession of our client's bank card, but he deposited the cheque into our client's bank account without his knowledge or consent. When the cheque was reported missing by the business, the police traced it back to our client's bank account. Our client was […]
Michael A. Johnston presented his paper "Johnston on Juries for Junior Jurists" as part of the "Awaiting the Verdict: Are Trials by Jury Still a Thing?" panel at the 28th DCAO / CCLA Criminal Law Conference: "Younger members of the profession start their careers with very little, if any, understanding about trial by jury; the […]
Michael A. Johnston's article "The Automatic Exclusion from Juries of Those with Criminal Record Should be Ruled Unconstitutional" has been published in the latest edition of the Criminal Reports (at (2015) 17(2) CR 335): "The civic act of serving as a juror gives a citizen the responsibility of determining another person's guilt or freedom, as well as […]
Michael A. Johnston publishes his paper "Spare the Rod, Spoil the Code - The Unconstitutional Actions of the Supreme Court of Canada in Canadian Foundations for Children, Youth and the Law v Canada (Attorney General)" in the latest edition of the Defence Counsel Association of Ottawa's magazine, The Last Line (at 3:2 (Dec 2015) 12): "By analyzing the […]
