Law Times

PAGE 16 November 15, 2010 • Law Times Bizarre #1 Power House application for real estate. www.doprocess.com ntitled-3 1 The 2ND TAX LAWYER LEAVES FMC FOR MCCARTHYS Wendy Brousseau has joined McCarthy Tétrault LLP's tax group as a partner in Toronto. Brousseau made the move from Fraser Milner Casgrain LLP. She joins Chia-yi Chua, who made the same transition from FMC just a week earlier. Brousseau specializes in commodity taxation issues, including the implications of new business ventures, cross- border transactions, and cor- porate reorganizations. "I look forward to working closely with McCarthy Té- trault's outstanding tax team," Brousseau said. "Together we will be able to provide clients with the sophisticated tax ad- vice they need in commercial transactions and ensure they are getting fair tax treatment from the government." 4 FORMER MEMBERS RETURN TO IRB The federal government has announced four new appoint- ments to the Immigration and Refugee Board at its Toronto regional office. All four are former members of the IRB. In a news release, the government said they would be able to tackle the backlog of claims due to the new refugee determination system after only a short training period. James Railton, a former area director for Legal Aid Ontario and deputy judge of the small claims branch of the Superior Court, was also a member of the IRB between 2003 and 2006. Michael Somers has lectured in law-related matters at Ryer- son and York universities in ad- dition to stints that include serv- ing as a member of the Ontario Municipal Board. He was also an IRB member between 2003 and 2006. Nina Stanwick served with the IRB between 1997 and 2007. Before her current appointment, she was a member of the Land- lord and Tenant Board. George Wang returns to the 10/19/10 10:06:09 AM Inside Story IRB after a stint from 2003 to 2006. He has also worked as a tax auditor for Ontario's Min- istry of Finance. AIDWYC EVENT WITH DENNIS EDNEY The Association in Defence of the Wrongly Convicted will celebrate the newly conferred charitable status of its AIDWYC Foundation with a speaker se- ries designed to raise funds for the program. One of Omar Khadr's law- yers, Dennis Edney, will be the first speaker at the Injustice Speaks series at the Arcadian Court in downtown Toronto on Dec. 1. The new AIDWYC Founda- tion also hopes to raise the profile of the organization, which has been providing legal services and financial assistance for wrongly convicted people since 1993. "The newly created AID- WYC Foundation will increase our levels of financial support from stakeholders in the crimi- nal justice system and from the general public," said Jonathan Freedman, the foundation's president. "Increased support will allow us to assist more indi- viduals who have been wrongly convicted in a more expedient manner and to advance our ef- forts to prevent future wrong- ful convictions." Tickets for Edney's speech are available online at aidwyc.org or by calling 416-504-7500. NEW PARTNER AT GOWLINGS Jim Wilson has joined Gowl- ing Lafleur Henderson LLP as a partner in the Ottawa office working in the firm's national tax practice group. Wilson has 32 years of expe- rience at the Canada Revenue Agency, where he held posi- tions in its legislative policy di- vision and training and learning directorate. He also developed a specialty in tax treaties over the last decade. LT For more Inside Story, please visit www.lawtimesnews.com. COUPLE BATTLES 'HETEROPHOBIC' LAW LONDON, England — In a case of alleged reverse discrim- ination, a British couple is go- ing to court to win the right to unite under a civil partner- ship now available only to gay couples. The pair, Tom Freeman and Katherine Doyle, both 26, aren't interested in tradi- tional marriage. "The titles of husband and wife and all the things that pop into people's heads when you say you're getting married don't appeal to us," said Doyle. "In our day-to-day life, we feel like civil partners — we don't feel like husband and wife and we want the government to rec- ognize that." Last week, officials in Is- lington turned down their application for a civil part- nership, The Associated Press reported. Despite the fact that marriage and civil partner- ships are virtually identical in law, gay rights activists are supporting their plans to go to court. They hope a decision to allow heterosexuals to enter into civil partnerships would imply that gay couples could get married as well. "We think it's time there was one law for everyone," said activist Peter Tatchell, who has eight couples inter- ested in taking their cases to Briefs By Viola James court. "Denying heterosexual couples the right to have a civil partnership is heteropho- bic." According to The Associ- ated Press, some legal experts say the couples have a point. "How can the government justify this when the legal rights attached to each legal institution are identical?" said law professor Robert Win- temute, who is advising the campaign. NO BABY DESPITE 40 MONTHS IN WOMB? AUGUSTA, Maine — Who would want to be pregnant for 40 months? Well, you might if it got you state benefits you weren't entitled to. That's exactly what offi- cials are accusing a Winslow woman of having done in or- der to fraudulently get food stamps by forging state docu- ments, the Kennebec Journal reported. A grand jury has now in- dicted Leah L. Wright, 34, on one count of theft by decep- tion and eight counts of ag- gravated forgery. According to the indict- ment, Wright received be- tween $1,000 and $10,000 from the Department of Health and Human Services between Sept. 28, 2006, and Feb. 1, 2010, by claiming to be pregnant. "You can't con- tinue food stamps benefits forever unless there is a reason you can't work," said assistant attorney general Leane Rob- bin, who noted Wright re- ceived about $4,000 in food stamp benefits. According to the Kennebec Journal, the forgery allegations involve letters from medical practitioners and agencies that verified Wright's pregnancies, gestational periods, and due dates. Two notes from sepa- rate agencies show one preg- nancy followed another by a day, the paper reported. PHONE THIEF GIVES HIMSELF AWAY ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — With identity at the heart of so many criminal cases, it appears a man who took a photo of himself with a sto- len cellphone wasn't thinking very hard. Now police are searching for the thief with some pretty solid evidence in hand. The case began when some- one stole the phone from a parked pickup truck. Because the phone was the only thing taken, the owner didn't report the crime, according to 970 WFLA. But in looking through his account a few days later, the owner saw that someone had sent three text messages from the phone to an acquaintance by the name of Jewls. They included one message that had a picture attached with a facial view of the apparent suspect. As a result, the own- er called police to report the crime, which officers are now investigating. LT "We prefer to emphasize the court's decision that the primary purpose of the balaclavas is to 'intimidate and psychologically overpower by creating an overwhelming sensory uniformed kind of appearance.' But yes, the bobbles are colour co-ordinated with the guns." Recruiting? Post your position on GREAT RATES. GREAT REACH. GREAT RESULTS. Contact Sandy Shutt at sshutt@clbmedia.ca for details. www.lawtimesnews.com JobsInLaw 1/4 pg 5X.pdf 1 11/10/10 12:02:13 PM

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