Law Times

Page 16 February 22, 2016 • Law Times www.lawtimesnews.com MANITOBA JUSTICE BREAKS NEW GROUND On Feb. 12, the Manitoba Provincial Court in Win- nipeg officially swore in the country's first self-identify- ing transgender judge. Kael McKenzie was sworn in after serving as a private law- yer and a crown attorney. He graduated from the University of Manitoba in 2006 and was called to the bar a year later. An active member of the province's legal and LGBTQ communities, he is also of Metis decent. Manitoba's Justice Minister Gord Mackintosh said during the ceremony that the appointment sends a strong message across the country, especially to youth, "that the world is for everyone." "It's historic. Any time the court can be more diverse, I think it strengthens the court, it makes it more legitimate, it gives greater au- thority," he added. In a press release announcing the appointment, McKenzie said: "Most moving was the outreach I received from parents of transgender children across the country. They acknowledged their fears for their children's futures and somehow my appointment elated their fears." HOLD ON TO YOUR HATS, IT'S FLIP YOUR WIG 2016 Later this week, The Action Group on Access to Justice of the Law Society of Upper Canada will be hosting its sec- ond annual Flip Your Wig for Justice fundraising and aware- ness event. ITAG calls on all legal professionals to don a colourful or wacky wig all day Feb. 25 and collect pledges to support the ef- forts. Funds raised that day will go to the Canadian Civil Lib- erties Association, Commu- nity Legal Education Ontario, METRAC – Action on Vio- lence, Ontario Justice Educa- tion Network, and Pro Bono Students Canada. A Flip Your Wig celebration will be held at the LSUC's upper and lower barristers' lounge at 130 Queen St. West from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. OBA ANNOUNCES NEW ACCOLADES The Ontario Bar Association has announced two new awards in tax and health law. The OBA Susan Hilary Davidson Memori- al Award for Excellence in Health Law has been established to rec- ognize outstanding achievements by OBA members practising in health law for Ontario. Accord- ing to a release announcing the new awards, it is named for the late Ms. Davidson in recognition of her excellence and dedication to the health law field. The OBA Award for Excellence in Taxa- tion Law was created to recognize the exceptional contributions or achievements of OBA mem- bers in this area of law. Both new awards will be presented in June. More criteria and nomination forms can be found on the OBA web site. ESSAY CONTESTS DEADLINE THIS WEEK The annual essay contests of the Canadian Bar Association are open. The deadline for sub- missions in administrative law, construction and infrastructure law, environmental, energy and resources law, intellectual prop- erty, and real property is Feb. 29. The CBA essay contests are for all Canadian law students. The best submissions will receive awards between $250 and $2,500 in cash. LAW TIMES POLL When it comes to grading the expense of a new mentoring pro- gram created by the LSUC, our readers are fairly evenly split. We asked our readers if they thought the program — being launched later this year at a cost of $250,000 to start, and forecasted to increase to just less than $500,000 in 2017 and up to $600,000 in 2018 — is a good investment. Only 54.5 per cent of the re- spondents said yes, this is a good investment, as mentoring and ca- reer coaching will yield large divi- dends for developing lawyers and the profession as a whole. That left 45.5 per cent who said no, the funding should be invested else- where and career coaching can be developed in other ways. LT u Bizarre Briefs By Viola James u The InsIde story Judge Kael McKenzie was officially sworn in as Canada's first self-identifying transgender judge. CANADIAN LAW LIST 2016 KEEPING PACE WITH THE CHANGING LEGAL COMMUNITY FOR OVER 130 YEARS • an up-to-date alphabetical listing • contact information • legal and government contact information ORDER YOUR COPY TODAY! Call 1.800.387.5164 or visit www.carswell.com Hardbound • Published February each year • L88804-765 • On subscription $169* • One time purchase $188* Multiple copy discounts available * Plus shipping/handling and applicable taxes Untitled-1 1 2016-02-18 9:35 AM EGYPT 'UNFRIENDS' FACEBOOK ADMINISTRATOR AFTER GAFFE CAIRO, Egypt — Egypt's top prosecutor has ordered the arrest of a Facebook page adminis- trator whose assertion on a popular television talk show that a third of married women in the conservative country are unfaithful caused a social media uproar. The public prosecutor issued an arrest war- rant on Tuesday for Taymour el-Sobky, accusing him of slandering Egyptian women and damag- ing their honour, according to a statement from his office. Sobky caused a furor after making his con- clusions on the talk show Mumkin, which means "it is possible." His remarks were aired in December on the privately owned CBC channel, but they did not generate controversy until a clip was posted on social media this week. The show was suspended for 15 days as a result. "Thirty per cent of Egyptian women are ready for immorality, they just can't find some- one to encourage them," said Sobky, whose Face- book page, "Diaries of a Suffering Husband," has more than one million followers. "These days, it is very normal for women to cheat on their husbands and seek it out . . . . Many women are involved in extramarital af- fairs while their husbands are abroad." Egypt is a conservative, predominantly Mus- lim country where sex outside of marriage is frowned upon. Sobky's comments included the suggestion that arranged marriages in traditional southern Egypt exacerbate the problem of infidelity be- cause women end up with men they don't know. One masked man from the region appeared in a video carried on YouTube with an assault rif le and issued a death threat against Sobky. Legal expert Tarek Ismail said that according to Egyptian law, Sobky could be jailed for up to three years if convicted. "Women cheat on their husbands, and their husbands know about it. They keep forgiving them until they give up and leave," Sobky said. CBC said Sobky's remarks were part of a long discussion and the host of Mumkin refuted them. KINKY NIGHT ENDS WITH POLICE HANDCUFFS FOR ARKANSAS MAN LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — An Arkansas couple's evening of "kinky" entertainment ended with one pair of handcuffs used for fun being re- placed by another used for real in an arrest. Dustin Taylor, 21, summoned police to his home in Fort Smith recently to remove a pair of handcuffs he told officers he and his wife had been using the previous night while "doing some kinky things," the official report stated. The couple had lost the key, Taylor explained. The responding patrolman removed the handcuffs and did a routine search of Taylor's name in a police database. When the computer reported an outstand- ing warrant for Taylor on criminal mischief, the handcuffs went back on. But this time, they belonged to the officer. Sergeant Daniel Grubbs, spokesman for the Fort Smith police, expressed a measure of sym- pathy for Taylor. "I sort of wish the guy had in- vested in an extra handcuff key," Grubbs said. ALLIGATOR MADE HIM DO IT ROYAL PALM BEACH, Fla. — A Florida fast food restaurant got a customer it wasn't expect- ing when a live alligator was tossed through a drive-thru window by a patron. Joshua James, 23, of Jupiter, Fla., had wanted to play a practical joke on a friend working at the Wendy's restaurant when he decided to hurl the three-foot-long reptile — which he found on the side of the road — at the building, his mom told local broadcaster WPTV. "It was a stupid prank," Linda James said. James faces charges of aggravated assault and unlawful possession and transportation of an alligator, WPTV said. The alligator was released back into the wild. LT

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