Blind Justice
August 15, 2023
What is justice? Is it about establishing responsibility, imposing punishment, or getting revenge? If there is a place for compassion within justice, what is that place? In honour of […]
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My thoughts respecting issues in Canadian immigration, deportation, citizenship & prison law
In-Canada Spousal Work Permit Policy
February 1, 2015
SINCE 2004, IF A SPOUSE or common-law partner was sponsored for permanent residency from inside Canada, he or she could apply for an open work permit by filing an application to […]
Read MoreHouse Arrest & Deportation
December 15, 2014
THANH TAM TRAN left Vietnam in 1989 and became a permanent resident of Canada. Twenty-four years later he was convicted in British Columbia of producing marihuana and given a 12-month […]
Read MoreNew Ways to Practice Law are Coming
October 31, 2014
HERE IN ONTARIO the practice of law is restricted within relatively narrow and traditional parametres. To provide legal services one must be a lawyer or paralegal licensed by the Law Society […]
Read MoreWhat’s Sauce for the Goose is not Sauce for the Gosling
September 26, 2014
WHEN THE IMMIGRATION AND REFUGEE BOARD considered the refugee claim of Jkwon Jaheim Corneille and his mother Jeannette Corneille, Jkwon was only eight years old. During the hearing his mother maintained that […]
Read MoreYou Spin the Wheel
January 3, 2014
ACCORDING TO POLICE OFFICERS, motorist Matthew Duncan resisted arrest. Was a crime actually committed? Mr. Duncan said “no”, and made his case forcefully, first, to the officers; and then to the […]
Read MoreVisiting Canada
December 23, 2013
Not as Easy as You May Think FOUR HUNDRED YEARS AGO Sir Francis Bacon, the Great English philosopher and essayist, wrote that “Friendship increases in visiting friends, but in visiting […]
Read MoreFor better or for worse
December 14, 2013
The Case of Jean Rosalie Morales Laomoc HERE’S A RIDDLE FOR YOU: when is a marriage not a marriage? An answer that you may not anticipate is, “when it is assessed […]
Read MoreCan Rehabilitation Applications be Granted at a Port of Entry?
May 24, 2013
YOU MAY BE CRIMINALLY INADMISSIBLE to Canada if you were convicted of a crime outside the country. Sometimes you may be inadmissible even if you were not convicted, if the […]
Read MoreGo Straight Home!
April 29, 2013
IT’S HARD IN PRISON, but it’s harder if you are not a Canadian citizen. Jamaican citizen John McLeod, who is incarcerated in a Canadian prison, and who is the subject of […]
Read MoreA Closed Mind?
March 29, 2013
YVES LEBON, a Canadian man who is incarcerated in the United States, wanted to come home. Vic Toews, the Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness, thought that was a bad idea. Does […]
Read MoreCitizenship & Language Skills
March 14, 2013
THE CITIZENSHIP ACT provides that Canadian citizenship shall be granted to any person who meets certain criteria. These criteria include having “an adequate knowledge of one of the official languages of […]
Read MoreAbandonment Issues
March 7, 2013
THE GRANT OF REFUGEE STATUS protects its subject from being returned to a country in which persecution might be experienced. In many cases, the determination of whether or not status should […]
Read MoreDon’t Let Me Be Misunderstood
February 28, 2013
YUE LI ZHOA wanted to live in Canada, and so she applied for permanent residency as a Federal Skilled Worker. She filed evidence that she was qualified to do so under […]
Read MoreCriminality and Refugee Claims
February 25, 2013
FEW WILL DENY that it is generally best to avoid criminal trouble. Engaging in criminality risks not only a loss of liberty, but also the possibility that in future doors of […]
Read MoreSame-Sex Spousal Sponsorships
January 31, 2013
IN CANADA one can sponsor one’s same-sex partner to become a permanent resident. Of course, in many parts of the world it is not possible to marry a same-sex partner, […]
Read MoreSchizophrenia and Deportation
January 27, 2013
CLEARLY, SCHIZOPHRENIA IS A SERIOUS MENTAL ILLNESS. What has not been so clear is what that fact should mean for those who suffer from it and are facing deportation at […]
Read MoreThe Art of the Advocate
January 17, 2013
AMERICAN KEVIN STORDOCK DISCOVERED, to his chagrin, that the materials he provided in support of his immigration application were insufficient to make the case that he should be allowed to remain with […]
Read MoreKeep it Clean
January 13, 2013
The Omar Ghazal case reminds us that sometimes mum really does know best: you should always keep your hands clean! Mr. Ghazal was convicted in Canada of criminal offences which are considered […]
Read MoreBe Careful Returning to Canada
May 26, 2012
IF YOU LIKE to cross into the United States for dinner and a few drinks, be careful driving home. A recent case decided in the Ontario Court of Appeal confirms […]
Read MoreSenior Citizens Behind Bars
March 26, 2012
AN EDITORIAL IN TODAY’S New York Times reminds us of yet another cost of get-tough-on-crime policies: when more people are required to spend more time in jail, the population of elderly inmates increases. Amongst other serious […]
Read MoreIf You Do the Crime, Be Sure to be on Time
November 8, 2011
“Punctuality is the thief of time”, said the Irish wag Oscar Wilde. In this, as in perhaps other ways, it would seem Wilde’s position differs from that of the Federal Court of Canada. This […]
Read MoreIt’s a Bird, it’s a Plane, it’s Super Visa!
November 6, 2011
IF YOUR MOTHER lives in Kenya, your father in Argentina, or your grandparents in Tanzania, you could expect to wait over eight years to sponsor them to immigrate to Canada […]
Read MoreForeign Workers and Kingston: The Numbers
October 8, 2011
AN URBAN ECONOMY must be dynamic to attract and secure foreign workers, particularly in difficult economic times, when the barriers to their admittance to Canada is understandably higher. It would […]
Read MoreIrwin Cotler on Refugee Reforms
December 1, 2010
IRWIN COTLER is the Liberal Member of Parliament for the Quebec riding of Mount Royal, and a former federal Justice Minister and Attorney General. An expert on international and human […]
Read MoreOpportunities for Masters Degree Students
June 22, 2010
Are you a foreign student in a Masters degree program in Ontario? If so there is a new program that may assist you to become a permanent resident of Canada. […]
Read MoreWould I Li to you?
June 22, 2010
Perhaps in your case you would be glad if I did Li to you. The Federal Court case of Li v. Canada (Citizenship and Immigration) 2009 FC 992 reminds us that it is an […]
Read MorePaint It Black
June 13, 2010
A recent article by Conrad Black is good reading, but have a dictionary within reach: Lord Black likes you to remind you he knows fancy words! The article, “Canada’s inhumane […]
Read MoreGetting tough with crime seems to be an important part of the current federal government’s agenda
March 15, 2010
Getting tough with crime seems to be an important part of the current federal government’s agenda. Recent government initiatives include, amongst others, increasing the number of offences with minimum punishments. […]
Read MoreAre Canadians still a welcoming people?
March 8, 2010
According to a poll conducted by TransAtlantic Trends, the answer is “yes”. Of the Canadians polled, only 25% felt that immigration was more of a problem than an opportunity, a lower […]
Read MoreBe Careful What You File
March 5, 2010
Being consistent with Canada Immigration is very important. Conflicts between applications you wish to file and those filed in the past can not only lead to the refusal of the […]
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