Law Times

Page 4 NEWS O.J. Simpson prosecutor defends DNA evidence Comments follow Binnie's remarks about wrongful convictions BY YAMRI TADDESE Law Times O ne of the prosecutors involved in the O.J. Simpson case is defending DNA evidence in the wake of former Supreme Court justice Ian Binnie's recent comments about the reliability of it. At a conference organized by the Canadian Institute for the Administration of Justice this month, Binnie said Canada should follow Australia's lead in deeming DNA proof to be conclusive only in the presence of other corroborative evidence. "DNA has taken on this magic and there are so many wrongful convictions that have not only been exposed by DNA but which have been inflicted by DNA," said Binnie during a discussion panel on the evidence revolution in Canada covered by Law Times on Oct. 14. Binnie referred to a case in Australia involving a man convicted "based on DNA and there was nothing else." In that case, Binnie said it turned out there was find," he adds. a mix-up with DNA at the Relying on DNA evihospital. dence has "a pretty good He also said Canada record," says Harmon, who should follow Australia's was one of the prosecutors lead and introduce a proinvolved in the Simpson vision that deems DNA trial and served as a former proof insufficient to prove senior deputy district attorguilt on its own. Binnie said ney at the Alameda County human errors such as misdistrict attorney's office. matched DNA could easily Ian Binnie The credibility of DNA result in false evidence. But Rockne Harmon, a California evidence "is pretty remarkable," says cold-case consultant and DNA special- Harmon, noting the margin of error is ist, says he was sad to see the remarks. small to a point where it's negligible. "The airline industry can't make the He suggests there are hardly any cases in which DNA evidence has led to a same statement like that." If people have concerns about wrongwrongful conviction. "There are probably one or two. But ful convictions, it's better to look at creatafter 25 years of trials, are we going to ing a legislatively mandated mechanism change our whole evidentiary rules for to allow for post-conviction DNA testone or two cases? That's really the case," ing, according to Harmon. "In the United States, we have innocence projects all over he says. "If a former Canadian justice has the country that afford everybody an opto reach out across the ocean to find portunity to pursue what's been legisla[a case where DNA led to a wrongful tively created," he says, noting Canada still LT conviction], it must be really hard to lacks such a system. October 21, 2013 Law Times • 'Where is the iPhone of law?' professor asks BY YAMRI TADDESE Law Times T he next great invention in the legal industry would have to be the "iPhone of law," according to a University of Southern California law and economics professor. "I keep thinking, where is the iPhone of law?" said professor Gillian Hadfield, who recently visited the University of Toronto Faculty of Law as a guest lecturer for the David B. Goodman lecture program. "Which is to say the iPhone has really complex stuff that it is capable of doing," she continued. In a world that gets more complex by the day, reimagining the legal profession involves innovations that cross the boundaries of states, law firms, and lawmaking, according to Hadfield. Hadfield told law students and professors that the more complex the world becomes, the legal industry has responded with even more complicated laws. "The problem is the solution is giving us more of the same," she said, noting that complex laws make justice systems even more expensive, slower, and less aligned with needs. A move towards simpler and more effective systems will involve thinking outside lawmaking and looking beyond the boundaries of law firms, she said. Although she didn't endorse them, Hadfield talked about possibilities such as the outsourcing of adjudication and the privatization of regulatory regimes. "We do see examples of this," she said. English judges adjudicate matters at the Dubai International Financial Centre and Britain has revamped its regulatory regime to allow for alternative business structures, she said. There are also changes in how law firms are working, said Hadfield. "We're constantly now jumpWEBCAST OPTION AVAILABLE FOR COURSES! ing the boundaries of the firm in our production systems," she said. She talked about what she THE 5th ANNUAL PROCUREMENT CONDUCTING EFFECTIVE INFORMATION PRIVACY AND called the "de-verticalization" of & FINANCING OF PUBLIC WORKPLACE INVESTIGATIONS: DATA PROTECTION: TECHNOLOGY, production within law firms that INFRASTRUCTURE WHEN IGNORANCE ISN'T BLISS SECURITY AND CORPORATE results in a network approach December 10, 2013, Toronto, Ontario PROJECTS FORUM ACCOUNTABILITY IN TODAY'S where much of the activity takes December 2, 2013, Toronto, Ontario MARKETPLACE CORPORATE GOVERNANCE November 14, 2013, Montréal, Québec place elsewhere. THE 6th ANNUAL ADVERTISING 2013: MEETING SHAREHOLDER December 9, 2013, Toronto, Ontario "These networks of supply AND MARKETING LAW FORUM EXPECTATIONS chains are truly global," Hadfield December 10, 2013, Toronto, Ontario December 3, 2013, Toronto, Ontario THE LIFE CYCLE OF noted. December 5, 2013, Calgary, Alberta PHARMACEUTICALS: ADDING ABORIGINAL LAW: CONSULTATION A new law profession will VALUE AT EACH STAGE DEALING WITH THE LEASE: LEGAL AND OTHER EMERGING ISSUES need new business models, outDecember 2, 2013, Toronto, Ontario October 28, 2013, Calgary, Alberta PRINCIPLES & LITIGATION PERILS! December 5, 2013, Montréal, Québec side capital, and non-lawyers at November 21, 2013, Toronto, Ontario November 5, 2013, Toronto, Ontario the table, according to Hadfield. NEW DEVELOPMENTS IN ANTI-BRIBERY AND CORRUPTION DOING BUSINESS IN CANADA'S OIL "What does this mean for the ENTERTAINMENT LAW IN COMPLIANCE: COPING WITH & GAS AND LNG SECTORS* profession? I think it means we CANADA: SUCCEEDING IN December 10, Houston, Texas THE ONSLAUGHT need to think about giving up exTHE BRAVE NEW WORLD* December 9, 2013, Calgary, Alberta clusivity," she added, noting legal December 3, 2013, Los Angeles, California EMERGING TRENDS AND BEST December 12, 2013, Toronto, Ontario professionals other than lawyers PRACTICES IN INFORMATION PATENTS: PRACTICAL CLOUD COMPUTING: have a significant role to play. TECHNOLOGY SOURCING STRATEGIES FOR PROTECTING November 28, 2013, Toronto, Ontario A PRACTICAL APPROACH In that way, she thinks YOUR TECHNOLOGY December 10, 2013, Calgary, Alberta November 26, 2013, Calgary, Alberta Ontario is taking the lead by November 12, 2013, Toronto, Ontario November 28, 2013, Toronto, Ontario regulating lawyers as well as November 18, 2013, Calgary, Alberta paralegals. "I find the word non-lawyer a bit of an insult," she said. "We don't have nonFor more information or to register for these seminars, please visit www.lexpert.ca/events *webcast option not available doctors; we have multiple types of medical professionals." LT LEXPERT® LEGAL EDUCATION SEMINARS FALL 2013 SCHEDULE Lexpert_LT_Sep23_13.indd 1 www.lawtimesnews.com 13-09-17 6:30 PM

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