Law Times

Page 16 April 4, 2016 • lAw Times www.lawtimesnews.com u Bizarre Briefs By Viola James u The InsIde story OK! If counsel have finished conferring, next on our list of items to be mediated — who gets the pussycat? LSUC AWARD WINNERS ANNOUNCED Fourteen members of Ontario's legal profession will be recog- nized by the Law Society of Up- per Canada for outstanding ca- reer achievements and contribu- tions to their communities at the annual awards ceremony in May. The 2016 Lincoln Alexander Award recipient is Mary Lou Dingle. Recognized for her life- time of service to the Hamilton community, Dingle is called a trailblazer, mentor, and role mod- el to numerous lawyers. She has a high level of expertise as a solicitor and a great knowledge of estates and trusts. Among those nominated for the Law Society Medal are Jennifer E. Babe and Ronda Bessner. Babe, a solicitor at Miller Thomson LLP, "exemplifies leadership" in the profession through her work with clients, her teaching and writing, and community service. Babe is chairwoman of the firm's pro bono committee and donates many hours to the development of projects in conjunction with Pro Bono Law Ontario and Ryerson University. Visiting professor at Osgoode Hall Law School and adjudicator on the Consent and Capacity Board are but two of the many hats Bessner wears in the legal profession. She has made significant contributions to Ontario and its legal community through her involvement in the Women's Law Association, serving the people in five public inquiries, and recently co-designing and co-chairing a pre-inquiry roundtable on Canada's missing and murdered indigenous women. Ronald Caza, Orlando Da Silva, David Estrin, Linda Geh- rke, Kathy Laird, Professor Errol Mendes, Peter Rosenthal, and Prof. Frederick Zemans round out the remaining eight re- cipients of the Law Society Medal. The recipient of the William J. Simpson Distinguished Parale- gal Award is John Tzanis. The recipient of the Laura Legge Award is Lisa Forsook. Jenny Vuay Quan will take home the J. Shirley Denison Award. The ceremony will take place on May 25. LSUC CALL FOR HUMAN RIGHTS AWARD NOMINATIONS The Law Society is seeking nomi- nations for the 2016 Human Rights Award. The award rec- ognizes outstanding contribu- tions to the advancement of hu- man rights and/or the promotion of the rule of law. Members from all communities, practice areas, firm sizes, and regions across the province are eligible. Nominations can be submit- ted to the Law Society by May 31. 2015 MUNDELL MEDAL RECIPIENTS Julie Macfarlane and Justice Todd Archibald are this year's recipients of the David Walter Mundell Medal for excellence in legal writing. Macfarlane, a professor at the University of Windsor Faculty of Law, is the author of many legal academic articles and books as well as a weekly blog. With a bestselling book, The New Lawyer, and thousands of regular readers of her blog, Macfarlane writes "ex- tensively and inf luentially" on the need to modernize the justice system and legal profession. Archibald is a judge in the Superior Court of Justice whose "outstanding" legal writing has made a "huge contribu- tion" to the practice of law. LAW TIMES POLL RESULTS Law Times reported the presi- dent of the Chartered Shorthand Reporters' Association of Ontar- io has been fielding complaints since the province outsourced production of court transcripts. The poll question last week asked our readers if they noticed a dif- ference in quality since the out- sourcing began. The vast major- ity — 90.5 per cent of respondents — say yes, they have noticed the quality has deteriorated and have concerns about the outsourcing. The remaining 9.5 per cent in- dicated they noticed no quality change and are content with the current system. LT Mary Lou Dingle is the recipient of the 2016 Lincoln Alexander Award from the Law Society of Upper Canada. LAW CHANGE COULD MEAN GR8 LICENCE PLATES AUGUSTA, Maine — Maine has loosened re- strictions on vanity licence plates after a 2015 law change, Bangor News reports. The change was prompted by a breast cancer survivor who wanted one of the state's breast cancer awareness plate series to read BQQBS. Her request was rejected, but Maine Secretary of State Matt Dunlap says it "started a broader conversation in the office." After speaking to the attorney general's of- fice and the Civil Liberties Union, Dunlap says they realized they were "on really, really thin ice constitutionally in being the language police." Dunlap says states have been facing lawsuits stating that banning certain plates infringes on their right to free speech. In Indiana, a police officer sued the state for not renewing his plate — which read oINK — even though it had been allowed twice previously. A state court ruled in his favour, but the state has appealed to the fed- eral circuit court. In New Hampshire, a plate reading COPSLIE was recalled, but it was allowed after a lawsuit. Now, Maine will reject "only messages that are considered a racial slur or are clearly discrimi- natory, as well as language that demonstrates hate or encourages violence or other illegal ac- tivities." It is possible some of the banned list — such as variations on the spelling of the F word, HOTDAM, HOTS, IDIOTS, and MCDUDU — could be allowed under the law change. LONG OVERDUE VHS TAPE PROMPTS MAN'S ARREST CONCORD, N.C. — He was pulled over for a broken brake light but arrested for failing to re- turn a VHS copy of Freddy Got Fingered to a video store 14 years ago. Reuters reports that James Meyers, a 37-year- old North Carolina man, appeared "dumb- founded" as he recounted being pulled over while driving his daughter to school. The officer ran his licence, brought him to the back of the car, and told him, "Sir, I don't know how to tell you this, but there's a warrant out for your arrest from 2002. Apparently you rented a movie, Freddy Got Fingered, and you never returned it." The local police department confirmed the arrest. The warrant was issued by the now-closed video store and signed by a magistrate in 2002. Instead of arresting Meyers at the scene, he was permitted to come to the station later in the day where he was served the warrant and taken in handcuffs to the Cabarrus County Magis- trates Office. He will appear in court on April 27 to face the misdemeanor charge of failure to return hired property. The star of the movie on the long-lost VHS tape, comedian Tom Green, tweeted, "I just saw this and am struggling to believe it is real." POLICE HOAX FAIR OR FOUL? GRANITE SHOALS, Texas — We've all been taken in by a Facebook hoax. In most cases, it's highly unlikely to result in your arrest. For a 29-year-old woman in Texas, however, her mis- take put her behind bars. A police department northwest of Austin posted a Facebook hoax on its page, KARE re- ports. It stated: "Breaking News: Area Meth and Heroin Supply Possibly Contaminated With Ebola. Meth and Heroin recently brought in to Central Texas as well as the ingredients used to make it could be contaminated with the life threatening disease Ebola. If you have recently purchased meth or heroin in Central Texas, please take it to the local police or sheriff de- partment so it can be screened with a special device. DO NOT use it until it has been prop- erly checked for possible Ebola contamination!" A few days later, the woman brought drugs to the station to have it tested. She was arrested and charged with posses- sion of a controlled substance. LT WHEN LIFE GETS LEGAL FindLaw.ca Legal. Life Matters. Visit @FindLawCanada FindLawCanada Untitled-1 1 2016-03-31 11:32 AM

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