Dans ce commentaire, j’inscris la décision de 2014 de la Cour suprême du Canada dans Bhasin c. Hrynew sur la bonne foi dans le droit des contrats dans le contexte général de la réflexion en common law sur le rôle des tribunaux. Correctement compris, Bhasin ne représente pas une rupture radicale avec le passé. Au […] Read more

“When the facts change, I change my opinion,” John Maynard Keynes once tartly replied to a questioner concerned that the economist had altered his position on a matter of public importance, before adding, witheringly: “What do you do, sir?” How to deal with changed circumstances is the central topic of this paper. When the facts […] Read more

Formation de base en common law axée sur trois thèmes principaux : un survol historique de l’évolution de la common law; une description des méthodes de raisonnement et argumentation les plus présentes dans la tradition de la common law; et une analyse des concepts fondamentaux de la common law. Les objectifs sont de donner aux étudiants […] Read more

In the common law tradition, courts are at the apex of the interpretive hierarchy. Traditionally, their role has been to answer legal questions authoritatively. A deferential approach to judicial review requires judges, however, to be satisfied by an answer that is merely reasonable, even on questions of law. This requires common law judges to pull […] Read more

In a remarkable decision yesterday, the Supreme Court of Canada struck down British Columbia’s regime of court fees as unconstitutional: Trial Lawyers Association of British Columbia v. British Columbia (Attorney General), 2014 SCC 59. A litigant was faced with a $3,600 bill for scheduling a 10-day trial. She could not pay the court fees — […] Read more

I have been known to complain about courts and administrators supplementing the administrative record after a decision has been made. In a case last year, a Canadian appellate court deferred to an interpretation of law offered in an affidavit. I was reminded at the Public Law Conference that the use of affidavits to bolster the […] Read more

Philip Hamburger‘s Is Administrative Law Unlawful? has been getting much attention in the blogosphere recently. Hamburger guest-blogged at the Volokh Conspiracy — and his series of posts laid out his position, an emphatic “Yes”, with admirable clarity — and his detractors (Adrian Vermeule, here and here) and supporters (Gary Lawson, Michael Ramsey) are now hammering […] Read more

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