Field report: Criminal and Environmental law in Ecuador: A Compatible Mix?

Gabriella Utreras Sandoval By Gabriella Utreras Sandoval, BCL/LLB candidate. Blog de Colegio de Jurisprudencia, Universidad San Francisco de Quito, January 2017

About a year ago, I was writing my exchange application and outlining the many reasons why my home institution, McGill University, should allow me to complete my final semester of law at the Universidad San Francisco de Quito.

My number one academic argument was that there would be no better place to observe environmental law in action than in Ecuador where in 2008 it became the first country in the world to recognize Nature as a subject of rights. After four months abroad, I can say that my time here has been every bit as worth it as I expected. Keep reading…

Opinion: The place for proportional representation is Canada’s Senate

senate-circular-200x200By Ghaith Hannibal El-Mohtar, BCL/LLB candidate. The Montreal Gazette, January 8, 2017

Will Justin Trudeau keep his promise to make the 2015 election the last one held under the first-past-the-post (FPTP) system? Doubts continue to be raised.

The Liberals were intent on ending this ancient voting method, but once it became apparent that a leading alternative — proportional representation (PR) — would forever end their status as natural governing party of Canada, they started backpedalling. Democratic Institutions Minister Maryam Monsef wasted no time rejecting the electoral reform committee‘s 350-page report calling for a referendum on a form of proportional representation, and now appears to be orchestrating a do-over. Keep reading…

Trinity Western University and the erosion of religious freedom

triniwest-circular-200x200By Brian Bird, DCL candidate. Policy Options Politiques, January 9, 2017

A Supreme Court decision against the Trinity law school would be a dilution of the freedom of religion and association in Canada and could imperil the Christian university.

The recent decision by British Columbia’s highest court to protect the right of Trinity Western University to operate a law school was the last of the provincial judicial rulings in this legal dispute. A decision by the Supreme Court of Canada, however, may prove to be Trinity’s ultimate undoing — and that would be a shame. Keep reading…

Student papers on intellectual property

cipp-logoVarious authors

Periodically, McGill’s Centre for Intellectual Property Policy shares outstanding essays written by undergraduate students taking the Faculty’s Intellectual Property course.

The subjects of these great reads vary widely, covering such themes as publicity rights, revenge porn, software patents, and who holds the rights to a famous selfie taken by a macaque (Naruto v. Slater). Start reading…