Law Times

September 13, 2010

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STORE & SHRED Exceptional Quality at Reasonable Prices! COPY, SCAN, Call us today to fi nd out how much you can Save. TF: 1.888.781.9083 www.docudavit.com $3.55 • Vol. 21, No. 28 ocdavit_LT_June7_10.indd 1 6/4/10 9:22:44 AM Inside This Issue 5 Sophisticated Scams 6 HST On Trial 9 Focus On Human Rights Law Quote of the week "In our view, certainly there was vandalism, and you don't want to minimize the fact that there were some criminal actions involved in this. But you go after the people that have committed the crimes and you don't arrest 1,000 in- nocent people. I mean, there were bystanders, women with grocer- ies, journalists, and so on." — Nathalie Des Rosiers, Canadian Civil Liberties Association See G20, page 12 Covering Ontario's Legal Scene A. NEUMAN ASSOCIATES INC. The Boutique Investigative, Forensic Accounting & Valuation Firm For Damage Quantifi cation, Fraud Detection, Business/Estate Disputes, Family Law, Personal Injury, Insurance Claims, Expert Testimony. Contact us by E-mail: andrew@IFAccountant.com Tel: (416) 223-5991 www.IFAccountant.com euman_LT_Sep13_10.indd 1 September 13, 2010 9/8/10 4:07:23 PM Former Crown charged with conspiracy awaiting his fate BY TONY RICCIUTO For Law Times WELLAND, Ont. — A former federal prosecu- tor charged with two counts of conspiracy and two counts of attempting to possess and laun- der the proceeds of crime will learn his fate next month following the submission of evidence in his retrial in Welland. Jeff rey Root, 45, a Welland lawyer who han- dles mostly criminal and family cases, was origi- nally charged back in 2004. Th e latest proceedings began in the Superior Court of Justice in Welland late last month in front of Justice Harrison Arrell. It was transferred to Brampton, Ont., for continuation on Oct. 27 because that's where Arrell normally sits. At that time, the judge will hear submissions from de- fence lawyer Mark Evans and Crown attorney Jim Leising. Root has pleaded not guilty to all four charg- es. He was charged in March 2004 with a num- ber of off ences, but a year later all of the charges were discharged after a preliminary hearing. Th e Crown then went for a direct indictment of the same charges, which meant the case went straight to trial. Th ose proceedings were held in 2006 in front of Justice Linda Templeton, who found Root not guilty of fi ve charges, including money laun- dering. She ruled there wasn't enough evidence to convict him. Th e Crown then appealed the judgment, af- ter which the Court of Appeal sent the matter back for a new trial on four of the fi ve counts. Former federal prosecutor Jeffrey Root is on trial on four of the five original counts authorities charged him with in 2004. During the latest proceedings, court heard from now-retired RCMP sergeant Ron Nichol- son, who at the time was working undercover using the name Paul Cox. Nicholson, 60, spent the majority of his career on drug-related inves- tigations. According to testimony, he presented himself as someone who was looking to move substantial sums of money generated from the sale of cocaine and claimed to have partners who operated a trust company in southern Florida. Th e company had some Canadian clients who wanted the proceeds of their business from traf- fi cking in cocaine transferred off shore to a safe haven. Nicholson, posing as Cox, had come to Canada to ensure the transfers took place with- out a trace. He was introduced to Root by former justice of the peace George Radojcic of Niagara Falls, Ont., who owned property there and was look- ing to sell it, court heard. Nicholson worked with an RCMP operative who assumed the See Root, page 4 Hamilton firm's art reflects Steeltown flavour BY MICHAEL McKIERNAN Law Times HAMILTON, Ont. — A scream- ing child greets every visitor to the offi ces of Scarfone Hawkins LLP. Luckily for those with sensitive hearing, it's a silent scream. Mi- chael Briand's haunting "Portrait of a Steel Town Child," which features a faded sketch of a child in apparent agony peering out of a metal plate, sits in a corner of the Hamilton fi rm's 14th-fl oor lobby. Th e spookiness of the "hunk of rotting steel," as described by Da- vid Th ompson, the partner who chose the work, is enhanced by the dim lighting in the reception. "Everyone thought I was wacky, but I like stuff that is a little bit out there," Th ompson says. "I remember people saying, 'You've got to be kidding. We're not buy- ing that.' But I think it's great." Th e class action litigator off ered to put the work in his own offi ce if nobody else would agree on the selection, but the moving piece has become a mainstay and talking point in its prominent spot. Th ompson's own work frequently takes him to downtown where he marvels Toronto, at the collections of larger fi rms. "I love going down to their offi ces because I'm blown away by some of the Art and the art that's in their collections," he says. "It always astounds me, and you can only imagine how enor- mously expensive they must be. We've tried in our own humble way to put together a little collection." Th ere's a local fl avour to many of the works in the fi rm's collection as many Hamilton-area landmarks feature heavily. In "Early Dundurn," for example, Maria Panko captures the 19th-century castle soon after its completion in 1835. Th e steel plants with which the city remains synonymous appear in a number of works and are evoked in several others, including Law Frances Ward's "Turn- ing a third dimension. "We try to be good local sup- porters, in particular for Hamilton itself, because Hamilton needs all the help it can get," Th ompson says. Visit us online! canadianlawyermag.com & lawtimesnews.com Fresh content delivered weekly. Canadian Lawyer | Law Times | 4Students | InHouse www.lawtimesnews.com Online Ad 1/8 5X.indd 1 12/16/09 9:59:00 AM ings." Little springs and metal pieces jut out from the canvas to give the paint- "We're a Hamilton-based fi rm, our clients are Hamilton-based, so our support would be for local artists." Near a window that looks onto James Street in downtown Hamil- ton, a painting by Paul Duff shows the same streetscape more than 100 years ago that looks remark- ably similar to the present despite changes in transport and fashion. "I love the dresses they're wear- ing in that one," says Cindy Yates, a law clerk at the fi rm. Upstairs, opposite some old shelves packed with aging refer- ence books, there's another piece she's not so enthusiastic about. Th e colourful version of the Hamilton farmers' market, full of shoppers with exaggerated features, isn't to her taste. "Th is is the ugliest piece See Open, page 4 LT Digital version.indd 1 6/25/10 12:59:47 PM Click here to subscribe today to LAW TIMES Photo: Tony Ricciuto

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