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Russell Brand was just convicted in the UK of rape and sexual assault. The allegations went back decades to the late 1990s and 2000s. On November 5, 2026, a London jury found him guilty of one count of rape and three counts of sexual assault. The jury decided primarily from what women said under oath on the stand. That is how criminal trials work in Canada, too. Evidence is people testifying. Physical evidence such as objects, text messages, videos, and medical records only b

My client was found in the back seat of his car with the keys. He was charged with impaired driving and refusing a breath sample. The judge agreed he was not in care or control of the vehicle and acquitted him. No record and no driving ban. Most people assume impaired driving means driving. It doesn't have to. Canada's Criminal Code defines "operating" a vehicle to include having care or control of it, even if it never moves. That means a person can be charged while parked, s

Winning cross-examinations don't wait for the accused to take the stand. They poke so many holes in the Crown witnesses' story that it falls apart like Swiss cheese. When that happens, the accused never has to say a word. The burden is on the Crown The Crown carries the entire burden of proof. It must prove every element of the charge beyond a reasonable doubt, and the accused has to prove nothing. So the defence doesn't need a competing story. It needs to show that the Crown

On September 29, 2026, a B.C. Supreme Court judge ruled that the federal offence of possession for the purpose of trafficking breaks the Charter. The ruling turns on one thing: there is no legal way to run a safer-supply club that tests drugs and sells them at cost. It is one B.C. court, so it does not bind Ontario. And the law stays in force for six months. The case The case is R v Kalicum, 2026 BCSC 1855, decided by Justice Catherine Murray. Jeremy Kalicum and Eris Nyx co-f

Bill C-16 changed how criminal harassment is proved in Canada. The Crown no longer has to show that the complainant actually feared for their safety. The question is now whether a reasonable person in that person's shoes would believe their safety was threatened. Same offence. Different evidentiary test. In June 2026, Bill C-16 — the Protecting Victims Act — received Royal Assent. Most of its Criminal Code amendments, including the rewrite of section 264 (criminal harassment)

Ontario’s cash-bail “pay in 2 days” rule is on hold. In mid-August 2026, Ontario started requiring something new at bail. If a release order included a promise to pay — by you or a surety — the province expected that money deposited within two business days of release. Not later. Not only if someone skipped court. Up front. Then, on August 31, 2026, Ontario Superior Court Justice William Chalmers put key parts of that system on pause while a constitutional challenge proceeds.

As we head into 2026, Ontario initiates new penalties that will impact some drivers when arrested for impaired driving after January 1, 2026. The Highway Traffic Act, and its regulations, increase and add new administrative penalties. Here are the main changes beginning January 1, 2026: Longer roadside licence suspensions for young and novice drivers: Drivers under 22, or with G1, G2, M1, or M2 licences (plus commercial drivers), have zero tolerance for any alcohol or drugs.