Law Times

Page 16 June 15, 2015 • Law Times www.lawtimesnews.com HAMILTON LAWYER DISBARRED The Law Society Tribunal has dis- barred a Hamilton, Ont., lawyer found to be ungovernable. On June 2, the hearing division or- dered the revocation of James William Scott's licence after finding he had failed to co-operate with an investigation by the Law Society of Upper Canada; failed to serve a client by not filing an application of appointment of estate trustee with a will or not obtaining one; failing to maintain himself in a way that maintains the integrity of the profession by misleading a client; misappropriating funds given to him in trust; failing to account for money given to him in trust to prepare a statement of defence; and failing to file a compli- ance report within 30 days of the start of his suspension. Besides revoking Scott's licence, the tribunal ordered him to pay costs of $13,167. ARMED KIDS STORM CLASS FOR GRADE BOOK BELGRADE, SERBIA — It's hard to see how storming your classroom to steal the teacher's grade book is going to be an effective way to boost your marks. It seems a couple of kids who tried that tactic weren't thinking about that, however. Accord- ing to Reuters, police in Serbia have arrested two schoolboys they accuse of having stormed a Bel- grade classroom masked and armed with a plas- tic pistol and making off with their teacher's grade book. Police said in a statement they had apprehend- ed two unidentified Grade 7 pupils and seized a replica handgun, a knife, a balaclava cap, and a pair of sunglasses after the incident during school hours in the Belgrade suburb of Kotez. School crime and violence have soared in Serbia since the war years of the 1990s when societies across old socialist Yugoslavia frayed under the pressure of gangsterism, corruption, and nationalism. Authorities in Serbia have responded by in- stalling video surveillance and deploying consta- bles at some schools. "It appears that a third boy agreed with two friends that they would grab the grade book because of his poor grades," a police officer told Reuters. Police charged the pair with violent behaviour, jeopardizing public safety, and destruction and damage of property. DETENTION OVER HAM SANDWICH REVERSED JERUSALEM — This isn't your typical military discipline case. According to Reuters, the Israeli military has spared a soldier 11 days in detention for eating pork after a public outcry. Local media said the soldier, an American immigrant, wasn't aware that his ham sandwich, obtained elsewhere, was in breach of religious di- etary restrictions enforced on military premises. "Bottom line — we made a mistake," armed forces spokesman Brig.-Gen. Moti Almoz said on Facebook of the sentence. "There are tensions in Israeli society, and there are varied positions and opinions. In the IDF [Is- rael Defence Forces] there is room for everyone," he said. APPLAUDING FAMILY MEMBERS CHARGED SENATOBIA, Miss. — Who knew celebratory applause could be grounds for a criminal charge? According to Reuters, a Mississippi school superintendent has pressed charges of disturb- ing the peace against several people who cheered during a recent high school graduation despite a request to hold their celebrating until the end. Jay Foster, superintendent for the Senatobia Municipal School District, said he told specta- tors at the Senatobia High School graduation last month not to applaud for family members until all graduates' names had been called in order to keep the ceremony dignified. "We didn't tell them they couldn't cheer. We just asked them to wait until the end so everyone has an opportunity to hear their graduate's name," he said. Four people didn't comply and were asked to leave, said Foster. The superintendent later went to the police to pursue charges against the three people he has been able to identify so far, Reuters reported. "I want them to know there are conse- quences for their behaviour," he said. Ursula Miller is among those facing charges after she shouted out for her niece who was grad- uating, she said. She and the others were expect- ing to appear in court. "I can understand they can escort me out of the graduation but to say they are going to put me in jail for it," Miller said in an interview with the WREG television station. "What else are they allowed to do?" It's a good question. It also raises the issue of whether a case like this is a good use of police and judicial resources. LT It's time to rank… 2015-16 CANADIAN LAWYER'S TOP 10 ONTARIO REGIONAL FIRMS SURVEY Complete the survey online at canadianlawyermag.com/surveys and rank your top 10 picks. SURVEY IS OPEN UNTIL JUNE 29TH Untitled-2 1 2015-05-27 12:21 PM u Bizarre Briefs By Viola James u The InsIde story ASSOCIATE CHIEF JUSTICE NAMED The province has appointed a new associate chief justice of the On- tario Court of Justice. Justice Peter DeFreitas re- places new Chief Justice Lise Maisonneuve in the role. A judge since 2008, DeFreitas has presided in Oshawa, Ont., where, accord- ing to the provincial government, he distinguished himself with various efforts related to court modernization and streamlining judicial administration. Before becoming a judge, De- Freitas was a prosecutor working for the federal government. His new appointment was effective as of June 3. NEW LAW ON GENETIC INFO The federal government has in- troduced new legislation aimed at preventing discrimination based on genetic test results and information. Last week, Justice Minister Peter MacKay announced the intro- duction of legislation that would amend the Canadian Human Rights Act, the Personal Infor- mation Protection and Electronic Document Act, and the Privacy Act in order to offer more clarity on the law around genetic tests. The proposed amendment to the human rights legislation, for example, would make it clear the law prohibits discrimination on the basis of genetic tests, according to the government. The privacy law changes, meanwhile, would limit the collection, use, and dis- closure of such information. "We commend the govern- ment for taking an important step forward and raising the urgent need to combat ge- netic discrimination in Can- ada," said Bev Heim-Myers, chief executive officer of the Hun- tington Society of Canada. "Moving forward, it is imper- ative that provincial and territo- rial governments across Canada quickly pass complementary legislation to ensure genetic dis- crimination is prevented and genetic test information is pro- tected for all Canadians across all jurisdictions." POLL RESULTS The results of the latest Law Times online poll are in. The poll suggests strong sup- port for Omar Khadr in his legal battles with the federal gov- ernment. Almost 78 per cent of participants felt the government shouldn't proceed with its appeal of Khadr's release on bail. Khadr, a former Guantanamo Bay detainee, has been living in Edmonton since his release last month. Federal politicians ex- pressed disappointment at his release and the government has vowed to fight it in court. CHANGES AT BLG Borden Ladner Gervais LLP has announced the appointment of two new executives at the firm. Taking on the role of chief operating officer is Rob Mor- ris, who during his career has worked around the world and was most recently at Baker & McKenzie LLP. Also joining the firm as chief talent officer is Phil Donnelly. Donnelly previously served as global chief people officer at White & Case LLP. LT Law Society of Upper Canada "These days, many people prefer to work from home."

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