Law Times

Page 16 January 18, 2016 • Law Times www.lawtimesnews.com OSGOODE LANDS LEGAL GIANT Heavy-hitting retired Supreme Court of Canada judge Mar- shall Rothstein has joined Osgoode Hall Law School at York University as a distin- guished visiting pro- fessor. Lorne Sossin, dean of the law school, announced Jan. 7 that Rothstein has accepted the appointment on a one-year term. Although retired from the Supreme Court bench in August 2015, a position he held since 2006, Winnipeg-born Rothstein has been serving as associate counsel at Hunter Litigation Cham- bers in Vancouver, where his primary focus has been as an arbitrator in commercial and public law matters. "It is exciting for me to be returning to Osgoode, which I have had the pleasure of visiting many times over the years," Rothstein said in a statement announcing his appointment. I look forward to visiting Osgoode, engaging with the students and imparting what insight I can. I'm sure that the experience will enrich my understanding of law and legal education." Rothstein, called to the Manitoba bar in 1966, has had a long and distinguished career that began with the former Thorvaldson Egg- ertson Saunders Mauro and the later merged Aikins MacAulay & Thorvaldson LLP firm, where he served as partner from 1972 to 1992. As visiting professor, he will be involved in a broad range of academic activities centred around the school's Intellectual Property Law and Technology program and in the areas of tax and administrative law. u Bizarre Briefs By Viola James u The InsIde story Marshall Rothstein © 2015 Stewart. All rights reserved. We put legal professionals front and centre and we put our efforts into keeping real estate transactions where they belong – in your office. Learn more about our level of support, call (888) 667-5151 or visit stewart.ca. Ally Untitled-2 1 2015-09-30 4:01 PM LFO GRANT BOLSTERS FREE LEGAL HELP TO RESETTLE REFUGEES With the Government of Can- ada reaching its goal to resettle the first wave of 10,000 Syrian refugees last week, there's signifi- cant financial help from the Law Foundation of Ontario to en- sure the process goes smoother for those who have arrived and those still making their way. The LFO announced last week that it has granted $90,000 to the partnership of Lifeline Syria and the Refugee Sponsorship Support Program to provide free legal work for those refugees settling in the Toronto area. Na- tionally, more than 1,000 lawyers and supervised law students have volunteered with the sponsor- ship support program to provide the pro bono services. GOWLINGS GROWS AND SANTINI MERGES Laf leur Henderson LLP has an- nounced the admission of 17 new partners to its Canadian offices. Four will join the Toronto-based offices in the areas of financial services, marketing and regula- tory affairs, intellectual property, and tax law. The firm announced the appointments come in ad- vance of its impending combi- nation with Wragge Lawrence Graham & Co, a leading UK- based firm, to create Gowling WLG later this year. Meanwhile, the Ottawa-based firms of Ham- ilton Appotive LLP and Kelly Santini LLP announced that, as of Jan. 1, the two firms have merged. Both formed about 40 years ago; the integrated firm continues under the moniker of Kelly Santini LLP. LAW TIMES POLL When it comes to the question of equal pay for seemingly equal work, there's an equal point of view from our readers. Last week's poll asked participants if they agree with the Case Man- agement Masters Remuneration Commission findings that mas- ters are underpaid and should receive the same pay and benefits as their provincial court peers. It was a dead heat with 50 per cent saying yes, the masters' pay is in- adequate for their level of author- ity and responsibility. The other half say nay, their duties and responsibilities do not compare and neither should their com- pensation. LT WANTED MAN SENDS POLICE MUG-SHOT REPLACEMENT LIMA, Ohio — What's a guy to do when he can't stand the police mug shot that's circulat- ing on social media? If you're Donald "Chip" Pugh of Ohio, you send a selfie for investigators to use instead. The Lima Police Department posted two photographs of Donald "Chip" Pugh, 45, after a warrant was issued for his arrest when he failed to appear in court on a misdemeanour drunk- driving charge. Pugh was so dissatisfied with the mug shots that police put on their Facebook page, he post- ed a "better photo" of himself in a car wearing shades. "He has not turned himself in," Lt. Andy Green, spokesman for the police department, said last week. "We had some communication with him earlier but nothing recently," Green said. "Here is a better photo that one is terrible," Pugh wrote when he sent in a selfie with sun- glasses. Police responded quickly on Facebook. "This photo was sent to us by Mr. Pugh himself. We thank him for being helpful, but now we would appreciate it if he would come speak to us at the LPD about his charges," the post reads. Green said the department, located 22 kilo- metres southwest of Toledo, frequently uses Face- book to post photos in cases where the suspect is wanted in connection with serious felonies. "We have never had this happen before," Green said. Pugh is a person of interest in several other cases including an arson and vandalism, Green said. The Facebook post in less than a week has 2,522 likes and 3,473 shares. Green said he has read all of the more than 1,000 Facebook comments looking for information on Pugh's whereabouts. "We've got conf licting reports but we do have some ideas where he is," Green said. MONKEY CANNOT HAVE RIGHTS TO SELFIE, JUDGE RULES SAN FRANCISCO — Monkeying around with a camera has taken an unanticipated legal twist for one rare crested macaque. The monkey that took a now internationally famous selfie cannot own the copyright to the photograph because he is not human, a U.S. judge ruled in a suit brought by animal rights group PETA on behalf of the monkey. People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals brought the case in September on behalf of the seven-year-old monkey, Naruto, against British photographer David Slater, who self-published the photo in a wildlife book. Naruto, who resides on a reserve in Indone- sia, took the image and several others in 2011 using a camera left unattended by Slater, the suit said. PETA argued he should be declared owner of the photos and receive damages for copyright infringement that would be used for habitat preservation. While the U.S. Congress and the president have the power to extend legal protections to animals as well as humans, "there is no indica- tion that they did so in the Copyright Act," U.S. District Judge William Orrick said at a January hearing in federal court in San Francisco, ac- cording to a court transcript. But Orrick said he would give PETA an op- portunity to amend the lawsuit before he dis- misses it outright. PETA general counsel Jeff Kerr told Reuters on Thursday that the group is reviewing its legal options. "Although we are disappointed, we are cel- ebrating the fact that this is a historic case," he said. "For the first time we are arguing that an animal can own property, rather than merely being a piece of property himself." Slater's lawyer, Andrew Dhuey, said that even if PETA can now amend its lawsuit, Or- rick will likely rule in his client's favour. "My tuxedo cats could have won this case," he said. "It's not a complicated situation. All that really matters is that the plaintiff is a mon- key." LT "Jeez! This app says we'll all get 15 years! Maybe we better wear bunny masks, use water pistols, and steal only half the cash."

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