Abuse of Older Women – Presentation to the House of Commons Standing Committee on the Status of Women
On October 25, 2011, National Director Krista James made a presentation to the House of Commons Standing Committee on the Status of Women, as part of the committee’s study into abuse of older women in Canada. Below is Krista’s 10-minute presentation. The CCEL also provided the committee with a 16-page brief. Click here to download a copy.
Abuse of...
New two-year project to consider reforms to judge-made rules governing when a person is determined to have the mental capacity to carry out a transaction or enter into a relationship
Mental disability, illness, or impairment does not, in and of itself, leave a person incapable under the law to carry out transactions, enter into relationships, or manage his or her affairs. The law is concerned with the degree of a person's mental disability, illness, or impairment. If it exceeds in a degree a legal threshold then that person will be considered incapable in the...
Ministry of Finance launches second phase of Society Act review consultation
The Ministry of Finance has issued a discussion paper (PDF) with specific proposals for reform of British Columbia's framework legislation for not-for-profit corporations, the Society Act. The...
Vancouver, 16 March 2012 — The British Columbia Law Institute is beginning phase one of a project on strata-property law.
“Strata properties are an important and dynamic part of British Columbia’s real-estate sector,” noted BCLI executive director Jim Emmerton. “With this project, the BCLI intends to begin a process to ensure that the next generation of the Strata Property Act keeps abreast of developments in the field.”
The goal of phase one is to identify, through research and consultation with a select group of strata-property experts, a...
Today the British Columbia Law Institute published its response to the Ministry of Finance’s discussion paper (2011) on reform of the Society Act, in the form of a Supplementary Report on Proposals for a New Society Act. This report is a supplement to the BCLI’s 2008 Report on Proposals for a New Society Act.
The supplementary report sets out the areas of agreement between the BCLI’s 2008 report and the ministry’s proposals in the form of a chart and discusses a series of alternative approaches to selected issues that the ministry should consider pursuing.
The...
Vancouver, 20 September 2012 —The British Columbia Law Institute has published a study paper on discrimination based on the ground of “family status” under the BC Human Rights Code.
BC’s human rights law lists a number of protected grounds, including race, colour, ancestry, place of origin, religion, marital status, physical or mental disability, sex, sexual orientation and age. Family status is one of the most recently added protected grounds.
The BCLI study paper is the first comprehensive Canadian publication on the meaning and scope...
Vancouver — 5 October 2012 The British Columbia Law Institute (BCLI) has begun a new project on franchise legislation for British Columbia. The project will examine whether there is a need for franchise legislation in British Columbia and, if so, what features it should have.
There is typically an inequality in bargaining power between franchisees and franchisors in negotiating complex legal agreements, with franchisees at a significant disadvantage in terms of disclosure of information and control of business decisions. “Unlike some other...
Vancouver, 28 November 2012 – The British Columbia Law Institute (BCLI) and the Canadian Centre for Elder Law (CCEL) have jointly issued the Consultation Paper on Assisted Living in British Columbia, which contains recommendations on reform of the legal and regulatory framework for assisted living in B.C. BCLI/CCEL is seeking public input on its contents.
Assisted living is a form of rental housing where meals, light housekeeping, and certain personal care services are provided to residents in addition to accommodation. It is intended for...
Vancouver, 30 November 2012—Today, the British Columbia Law Institute has published its Report on Strata Property Law: Phase One, bringing Phase One of its Strata Property Law Project to a close. The report’s major conclusion is that the time is now ripe to begin planning for the next generation of British Columbia’s strata-property legislation through a phase-two law-reform project.
“In carrying out Phase One of the Strata Property Law Project we had an opportunity to consult with some of the leading lights in the strata-property field...
The BC Branch of the Canadian Bar Association (CBA) urges the quick implementation of several BCLI reports in An Agenda for Justice, released on February 5, 2013. The CBA describes An Agenda for Justice as a “Platform Document” outlining short-term and long-term actions to increase the effectiveness of BC’s justice system and improve BC laws, which it is asking all candidates in the forthcoming election to support.
Among the steps that the...
