The Alberta Law Review has published Cameron Ward’s case comment on the Supreme Court of Canada’s decision concerning Vancouver’s safe injection site.  The comment on Canada (A.G.) v. PHS Community Services Society, 2011 SCC 44 can be found at page 195 of Alta. Law Rev. Vol. 50, No. 1.

Cameron Ward, Theo Meiners, April, 2012

The ski world lost a legend recently.  Theo Meiner’s memorial tribute was held last weekend in Jackson Hole, Wyoming.

……

From POWDER, September 28, 2012:

A man known for being in control while moving through some of Mother Nature’s most uncontrolled environments, Theo Meiners exuded a passion for life and stoke for skiing that made him known the world over. In a sad twist, the 59-year-old owner and operator of Alaska Rendezvous Heli-Guides fell to his death Friday of last week in the controlled confines of a convention center while in Anchorage, Alaska, for the International Snow Science Workshop.

When news hit the digital waves, members of the storied Jackson Hole Air Force immediately coalesced to honor Meiners, a longtime Air Forcer. “Guys I haven’t talked to in years called me up and told me, ‘Air Forcer down,’” said Micah Black, an old friend of Meiners from their days working as janitors at the Tsaina Lodge on Alaska’s Thompson Pass outside Valdez.

During the early-to-mid ’90s, Meiners contributed to the cowboy culture that formed the backbone of Alaska heli skiing led by Doug Coombs and Dean Cummings amongst others. He lived in the bathroom of the Tsaina while Black called a snowcave home. Those glory days atop Thompson Pass for Meiners consisted of scrubbing down the Tsaina bathroom before scoring a seat for afternoon heli bumps. He and the trailblazing group logged countless first descents in the Chugach, writing the map to the region. And Meiners was instrumental in it all. “He was always stoked,” says Black, “with a spaghetti head and meatball eyes. We lived the life together and Theo always talked about ‘technique, technique.’” Meiners eventually became the logistics manager at Valdez Heli-Guides, working for Doug and Emily Coombs from 1996 to 2000.

But Meiners influence wasn’t just felt in Alaska. He brought the skills and wisdom he learned in the Chugach back home to the Tetons while working as a patroller at Jackson’s Snow King Resort and an alpine guide for Jackson Hole Mountain Resort. “He was a mentor to me,” says former JHMR alpine guide Eric Henderson. “He was a silent giant, as you really had to prove yourself to him. But once you did, he was open to sharing all his knowledge, which was a lot. He always had my back no matter the circumstances. He just had it.” While in Jackson, Meiners continued working for the Coombs as one of their Steep Skiing Camps guides. His extensive experience analyzing snowpacks and working with clients allowed him to travel the world as a guide and patrol instructor. Eventually, Meiners was appointed National Ski Patrol Regional Avalanche Advisor for the Northern Intermountain Division.

Ultimately, his skier’s soul led him to purchase 27 acres on Thompson Pass to launch Alaska Rendezvous Heli-Guides. With the help of his daughter, Alexandra, and son, Aidan, and fellow Jackson Hole Air Forcer and longtime Coombs guide Dave Miller, he shared his ceaseless stoke with others seeking to experience the Alaska heli-ski dream.

“He loved to ski,” says Black. “He kept going. He got his place up there [Alaska Rendezvous]. But he wasn’t a hater or ever on a high horse or anything like that. He’d always say, ‘Let’s bring it home today.’ It was real, man. People came from all over the world to ski with him.”

…..

Our thoughts are with Ali, Aiden and all of Theo’s family and friends.

On Friday, November 2, 2012, British Columbia courts posted two interesting decisions.  In Carter et al. v. Attorney General of Canada et al., the judge awarded special costs to the legal team that successfully challenged the constitutionality of the prohibition against physician-assisted death.  If the lower court’s decision is upheld on appeal, federal and provincial taxpayers will pick up a legal tab estimated to exceed one million dollars (so far).

The same day, the Court of Appeal released the latest decision in a legal saga that began when a male lawyer collided with a female articling student at a firm gathering at a nightclub in 2001.  Poole v. Lombard General Insurance Company of Canada may be the last word in the litigation arising from the pratfall, which resulted in a judgment of just short of $6 million in favour of the student.  The various court decisions in this long running battle of insurance companies may not be legally significant, but they make very interesting reading.  Here’s the first paragraph of the latest:

“On the evening of April 5, 2001, the Vancouver law firm of Alexander Holburn Beaudin & Lang (“AHBL”) treated its associates and students to a dinner at a Vancouver restaurant, Rodney’s Oyster House. After the dinner, some of those attending decided to go to a nearby nightclub known as “Bar None”. There, events took a very unfortunate turn. The appellant Mr. Poole, a senior associate, became intoxicated and while dancing with an articling student, Ms. Danicek, fell backwards onto her. She fell to the floor and suffered a “mild traumatic brain injury” which has had a profound effect on her life. Her damages from this accident were assessed by the trial judge, Mr. Justice Kelleher, at $5,913,783. 54 and were found to be the result solely of Mr. Poole’s negligence. (See Supreme Court Docket S042714; reasons indexed as 2010 BCSC 1111.) No appeal has been taken from these findings.”

We have learned from media reports that the Missing Women Commission of Inquiry has requested and received a further extension for the delivery of its final report.  The Minister of Justice’s October 25th media release is set out below:

…..

Missing Women Commission of Inquiry deadline extended

VICTORIA – Government has granted a one-month extension to allow the Missing Women Commission of Inquiry adequate time to complete the final report.

The extension, from Oct. 31, 2012 to Nov. 30, 2012, follows a written request by commissioner Wally Oppal for additional time to finalize his report, which draws on a large amount of material including evidence from 94 days of public hearings, written submissions, evidence from public policy forums, and input from community engagement forums throughout the province.

The work of all public inquiries in B.C., including the steps leading to the release of the report, is guided by the terms of the Public Inquiry Act. The act requires government to review the report to ensure it complies with the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act.

The public release date of the report will be determined in consultation with the commission, taking into consideration the information and privacy review and the time needed to print the report.

The commission was established in September 2010, to report on investigations into missing and murdered women in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside between January 1997 and February 2002.

To date, government has invested $8.6 million to support the work of the commission.

On June 6, 2012, formal hearings at the Missing Women Commission of Inquiry concluded, nearly eight months since they commenced on October 11, 2011. In total, the Commission held 92 days of hearings in which 75 witnesses were called to testify.

Our firm represents the families of 26 murdered and missing women, most of whom were victims of convicted serial killer Robert Pickton. Unfortunately, from our clients’ perspectives, the Commission did not complete its important work. Many questions remain about how Robert Pickton was permitted by authorities to continue his crimes for so long. Our clients are disappointed that the Commission appeared unwilling to probe many factual areas in which our clients had long sought answers.

We have summarized these concerns in our closing written submissions, which were delivered to Commissioner Oppal on June 25, 2012. A copy of our submissions is available here.

Commissioner Oppal has until October 31, 2012 to submit his final report to the Attorney General.