Law Times

Law Times • June 4, 2018 Page 13 www.lawtimesnews.com torically presented an additional hurdle for applicants with HIV who are otherwise deemed suit- able for permanent residence, due to the cost of medication. Section 38(1)(c) of the act makes foreign nationals in- admissible to Canada if their health condition "might reason- ably be expected to cause exces- sive demand on health or social services." "When I first started practis- ing in the early '90s, there was very little I could do for people with HIV who wanted to qualify in the economic categories," Bat- tista says. Until the Supreme Court of Canada's landmark 2005 deci- sion in Hilewitz v. Canada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration), he says, jurispru- dence offered very little scope for lawyers to argue that the eco- nomic impact of a person's HIV- positive status could be borne by sources other than government, such as the individual's family or a private medical insurance plan. "That's when we were able to start offering alternatives to people affected by HIV," Battista says. More recently, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Cana- da tripled the threshold at which treatments are considered to im- pose an excessive demand to al- most $19,000 from the old level of $6,500 per year, after hear- ing from critics who labelled the provision discriminatory to people with disabilities. The federal government has also left open the possibility it will repeal the section altogether at some point in the future in line with a recommendation from the House of Commons' Standing Committee on Citi- zenship and Immigration in late 2017. Battista says the changes are "very positive," but he says he still harbours hope the govern- ment will follow through on the recommendation and repeal the provision, which he says may not even be achieving its aim of sav- ing taxpayers money. "My quarrel with this provi- sion was always that it fails to account for the contribution a skilled immigrant will make to the country and whether that outweighs the potential cost of the health condition," he says. "Even after tripling the thresh- old, unfortunately, Canada is still known around the world as a country that refuses people en- try based on their health, which is a stain on our reputation as a fair society." LT perspective, but from a practi- cal point of view, I think it's also helpful for them to have some- one who can relate to the reali- ties of production having been there producing programs our- selves," Pascoe says. One of the way Pascoe stays plugged into the city's thriving entertainment industry is via Artists' Legal Services Ottawa. He sits on the board of the volunteer group connecting lo- cal creative types to legal infor- mation and resources, which recently celebrated its fifth an- niversary. "We're heavily invested in the success of our clients and of art- ists generally," he adds. Though their interests are skewed toward intellectual prop- erty issues, ALSO co-founder and president Lyndra Griffith says artists and content produc- ers share many of the legal needs of clients in less glamorous in- dustries. "That could be agreement drafting, employment issues or conf lict resolution," she says. "I've definitely noticed that art- ists are becoming more aware of their rights and wanting to pro- tect them. I'm not sure whether it's to do with social media or the digital age, but people are defi- nitely taking these things more seriously. Continued from page 11 Continued from page 12 Organization recently celebrated fifth anniversary "We put on panels through- out the year in several areas around town, and they're usual- ly standing room only," Griffith adds. Inspired by those develop- ments, ALSO marked its five- year landmark with a confer- ence focused on the theme of artists' rights, including sessions on tax issues and succession planning, as well as a number of workshops streamed by genre of art. "We had some great feed- back," Griffith says. "The next steps for us are to try and im- prove the connections between everyone and be an even better resource for artists." LT Door left open on repealing section of act Medico/Legal Your case is too important. You deserve the right EXPERT WITNESS. Unparalleled expertise from our award-winning national team of experts CONNECTMLX.COM EXPERTS@CONNECTMLX.COM TOLL FREE: 855-278-9273 ✔ More than 2,000 medical malpractice, personal injury and class action cases. ✔ More than 300 lawyer clients assisted. ✔ Direct access to hundreds of specialists from all areas of healthcare expertise. ✔ A top provider of cost of care reports for your most catastrophically injured clients. Since 2001, we've become a leader in Expert Witness Services in Canada. ntitled-4 1 2017-10-24 2:41 PM FOCUS Michael Battista says people with HIV can be 'ostracized and can even be subject to violence.' In-class and online programs recognized by Law Societies Executive Education to Navigate the Canadian Legal Landscape Visit Lexpert.ca to find out more The 2018 Lexpert Zenith Awards celebrate mid-career excellence in the legal profession. You can support these achievements while networking with winners and leading members of the legal profession at an elegant cocktail reception and dinner gala in Toronto. Keynote Speaker: Professor Lorne Sossin, Osgoode Hall Law School Date: June 19, 2018 Location: Arcadian Court, Toronto 6 p.m. Cocktail Reception 7 p.m. Gala Dinner and Awards Presentation Business attire Contact us at 416-649-8841 or MediaSolutions.Sales@thomsonreuters.com Lexpert.ca/zenith Bronze Sponsor Bronze Sponsor Bronze Sponsor Cocktail Sponsor HOSTED IN PARTNERSHIP WITH Celebrating Mid-Career Excellence THE E B O L G AND MAIL Untitled-3 1 2018-05-31 4:41 PM

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