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Page 16 September 24, 2018 • Law timeS www.lawtimesnews.com u Bizarre Briefs By Viola James u The InsIde story "They applied for a minor variance to the zoning bylaws, for a basement renovation." WOMAN WANTED FOR 'SEA WEED' THEFT FLAGLER COUNTY, Fla. — Police in Florida are trying to track down a woman caught on camera hugging a bale of marijuana that washed up on the beach, according to WTHR. The Flagler County Sheriff 's Office on the state's Atlantic coast posted a photo of the woman on her knees in the sand, with one arm around the plastic-wrapped bale and one arm reaching inside. The sheriff 's department said in a release that packages of marijuana had been washing up on the beach in three Florida counties over two days last week. A woman called police and said several people were seen trying to open the packages. One of those suspects, identified as Robert Kelley, told police he was holding the narcot- ics in his car until law enforcement arrived. Police found a five-kilogram brick of marijuana wrapped in a beach towel in Kelley's trunk. He was arrested for attempting to steal mari- juana. The sheriff 's office said they have recovered about 45 kilograms of marijuana that washed up on the county's beaches. THIEVES GET STUCK WITH £2 BOOZE LONDON — Four thieves who tried twice to raid a shop escaped with only a single bottle of Lambrini, according to BBC News. The robbers used axes and sledgehammers to smash their way into a Co-op in an attempt to steal a cash machine, but they were unable to remove it, according to BBC News. They returned later to the shop in Wood- cote, Oxfordshire, but their stolen Land Rover Discovery got stuck. Police believe they f led in a BMW 5 Series with the bottle of Lambrini, an alcoholic drink made from fermented pears that costs about £2 ($3.40) a bottle. "The offenders made more than one attempt to steal the cash machine, and their efforts ap- pear to have been thwarted by one of the vehi- cles becoming stuck," said Det. Con. Dan Tibble of Thames Valley Police. NO RABBIT'S FOOT SPARED IN L.A. FUR BAN LOS ANGELES — The city of Los Angeles, a leading centre of the world's fashion industry, moved toward becoming the largest U.S. me- tropolis to outlaw the sale and manufacture of most fur products within its limits, reports Reuters. Following the lead of San Francisco and two smaller California municipalities, the Los An- geles City Council voted 12-0 to direct the City Attorney's Office to draft an ordinance ban- ning fur apparel and accessories ranging from mink coats to rabbit's foot charms. The draft must then gain final approval by the council and be signed by Mayor Eric Garcetti to be enacted. Supporters said they hoped adoption of a fur ban in the nation's second-largest city, despite its vibrant shopping scene and association with glamour, would lead to similar actions on be- half of animal rights around the globe. "Los Angeles is one of the fashion capitals of the world, and if we can do it here, we can do it anywhere," Councilman Paul Koretz, a sponsor of the measure, told a news conference before the vote. "We hope that New York City and Chi- cago and Miami are all watching." Los Angeles is home to one of the largest fashion districts in the world, a hub of some 4,000 apparel outlets, showrooms and manu- facturers covering about 100 blocks of the city's downtown, though only a handful of those merchants sell fur products. Under the plan tentatively approved on Sept. 18, a fur ban would go into effect in January and be phased in over two years, giving retailers un- til 2020 to sell off existing inventories. Used fur products would be exempt. LT PRO BONO PROJECT Gowling WLG will be working with the Canadian Centre for Gender & Sexual Diversity to help transgender and non- binary people change gender markers on their identification documents. Roberto Aburto, a partner with the firm in Ottawa and one of the co-chairpersons of the national diversity and inclu- sion council, says the firm has a "long-time history" with the centre. "It's a strong, visible support for the LGBTQ2+ community, and I think that that's critical. Internally, externally, if we're going to be a more diverse and inclusive workspace, it's abso- lutely critical that we're project- ing that's who we are and who we want to be," he says. "For people who are in the process of changing gender markers or transitioning, this is a service that provides a safe space to go," he says. "Not everybody knows a law- yer or a notary, and so it provides a safe space for them to get their affidavits commissioned or no- tarized as necessary." Aburto says he's hopeful the firm will work with more than 20 people per year through the partnership. NEW OCJ JUDGE Ontario Attorney General Caroline Mulroney has ap- pointed a new judge to the On- tario Court of Justice. Justice Maria N. Sirivar practised family and labour law after being called to the bar in 2007. In 2012, she founded her own practice, Sirivar Law. Before being appointed, a provincial announcement said Sirivar was working as an agent for the Office of the Chil- dren's Lawyer and as duty counsel in Milton, Ont. "A founding member of the Sanyu Youth Foundation, Jus- tice Sirivar has directed and implemented initiatives that benefit at-risk youth in Canada and around the world," accord- ing to a provincial announce- ment. She will preside in Toronto. NEW COUNSEL AT BLG Liviu Cananau has joined Bor- den Ladner Gervais LLP's en- vironmental, municipal, ex- propriation and regulatory group as counsel in Toronto. From 2012 to 2016, Cananau was in-house counsel for the Regional Municipality of Waterloo. "Liviu brings over 10 years of experience in the areas of land acquisition, expropriation, real estate and municipal law, in both the private and public sec- tors," states a news release from the firm. "He has also advised on pro- curement matters, including rolling stock acquisitions, and has negotiated a wide variety of project implementation agree- ments." YES, I AGREE 19 % 81 % NO, I DO NOT AGREE LAW TIMES POLL Ontario's provincial govern- ment said it would use both the courts and the legislature to cut the size of Toronto's city council ahead of an Oct. 22 election. Readers were asked if they thought lawyers' efforts to stop this move would be successful. About 19 per cent said yes, the province's efforts to change the electoral boundaries is unlikely to be successful. Another 81 per cent said no, due to the use of the notwith- standing clause, the province will be able to change electoral wards, despite opposition. LT Legal News at Your Fingertips Sign up for the Canadian Legal Newswire today for free and enjoy great content from the publishers of Canadian Lawyer, Law Times, Canadian Lawyer InHouse and Lexpert. Visit www.canadianlawyermag.com/newswire-subscribe THE LATEST NEWS THE BEST COMMENTARY DELIVERED WEEKLY FOR READING ON ANY DEVICE Untitled-1 1 2018-08-14 12:49 PM Roberto Aburto says a pro bono initiative by his firm assists people in changing gen- der markers on their identification.

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