More than just a neutral summary of cases and legislation, The
Practitioner’s Criminal Code 2008 is filled with Alan Gold’s
insight on Canadian criminal law and procedure, noteworthy comments about
interesting cases, and a clearer indication of contentious issues and possible
arguments.
Features:
- Analysis, not just annotations – A brief recitation
of the ratio of a case is helpful, but practitioners need to have more in the
courtroom. They need to understand the significance of a case within the
multiple contexts of the section, of related provisions and of related cases.
That often means providing much more than a collection of abstracts – it
means providing a thoughtful body of informed analysis.
- Synthesis, not just summaries – Statutory
interpretation isn’t built on digests, it’s constructed on a body of
judicial thought. Judges don’t make criminal rulings in a vacuum –
their rulings reflect a synthesis of the relevant principles of law. Criminal
lawyers arguing in front of those judges don’t need a bare laundry list of
50 loosely connected cases, but they do need an understanding of how those
cases fit together.
- Case commentaries, not just case law – As one of
Canada’s most accomplished criminal lawyers, Alan D. Gold has something
worthwhile to say about interpreting and applying the Criminal Code. The result
is real, value-added commentary on the cases, not a mechanical and generic
abstract of the words of the judgment.
- The point of the cases, not just the cases on point
– It’s one thing to include a case as relevant, it’s quite
another to explain how it is relevant, and indicate why it’s important for
the practitioner to know about it. The Practitioner’s Criminal Code
goes beyond a description of the cases on point to help criminal lawyers
understand the point of the cases.
- “Cases of Note” rather than “Cases of
Not” – Today’s criminal lawyers are too sophisticated to be
overly impressed with marketing hype about the absolute number of cases in an
annotated Code. That’s because they know that over time, provisions are
amended, rulings are modified and cases become obsolete or marginalized, but
the twin forces of inertia and expediency often allow these cases to accumulate
and needlessly bloat a Code. Not so with The Practitioner’s Criminal
Code, which is designed to ensure that practitioners have access to all the
cases of note, uncluttered by the cases of “not” – not useful,
not applicable, not indicative of the state of the law.
The Practitioner’s Criminal Code 2008 contains:
- Preface
- Table of Contents
- Key to Annotations
- Criminal Code Concordance
- Table of Cases
- Glossary of Terms
- Criminal Code Amendments
- Criminal Code (Annotated)
- Constitution Act 1982 - Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms
(Annotated)
- Controlled Drugs and Substances Act (Annotated)
- Youth Criminal Justice Act (Annotated)
- Canada Evidence Act (Annotated)
- DNA Identification Act
- Firearms Act
- Extradition Act
- Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters Act
- Interpretation Act
- Index
New in this edition:
- Practice Notes on Recent Key Decisions from:
- The Supreme Court of Canada including:
- R. v. Trochym [2007] S.C.J. No. 6 (post-hypnosis
testimony and similar fact evidence);
- R. v. Beaudry [2007] S.C.J. No. 5 (obstruction of
justice by police officer showing favouritism);
- R. v. Khelawon [2006] S.C.J. No. 57 (principled
exception to hearsay rule modified);
- R. v. Larche [2006] S.C.J. No. 56 (taking other
uncharged facts into consideration on sentencing);
- R. v. Angelillo [2006] S.C.J. No. 55 (taking other
charged events into consideration on sentencing);
- R. v. Déry [2006] S.C.J. No. 53 (whether there
is such an offence as attempted conspiracy);
- R. v. Krieger [2006] S.C.J. No. 47 (whether a trial
judge can ever direct a jury to convict);
- R. v. Shoker [2006] S.C.J. No. 44 (propriety of
probation condition for drug testing);
- R. v. Boulanger [2006] S.C.J. No. 32 (elements of the
offence of breach of trust by a public officer)
- R. v. B.W.P. &
- R. v. B.V.N. [2006] S.C.J. No. 27 (whether deterrence,
specific or general, has any role in sentencing young offenders).
- Provincial Courts of Appeal relating to:
- Charter issues
- The Mental Health Review Boards and their powers
- Issues of substantive law
- Issues of procedural and evidentiary law
- References to hundreds of recent cases
- Recent Amendments to the Criminal Code and related legislation
include:
- S.C. 2006, c. 14 (making street racing a criminal offence)
- S.C. 2007, c. 9 (exempting persons from the application of
s. 347 in respect of agreements for small short-term loans)
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