Runnymede Radio

Quelle est l'influence des prises de position théoriques dites « woke » dans le milieu universitaire canadien? Le Professeur Stéphane Sérafin discute de deux incidences particulières pour expliquer pourquoi ces prises de position sont ancrées dans les universités canadiennes, et particulièrement dans les facultés de droit.

What is the proper pace of development of the common law? Today's encore episode from Law & Freedom 2025 features Christoph Pike (McCarthy Tétrault), Prof. Stéphane Sérafin (University of Ottawa Faculty of Law), Alexi Wood (St. Lawrence Barristers), Asher Honickman (Jordan Honickman Barristers), and Prof. Malcolm Lavoie (University of Alberta Faculty of Law). Watch the full video on our Member Area. The full recording contains 1 hour and 05 minutes of Professionalism Content (Law Society of Ontario).

Ted Morton, an Executive Fellow at the School of Public Policy and Professor Emeritus in Political Science at the University of Calgary, dives into the politicization of Canadian courts. He discusses the impact of U.S. judicial activism on Canadian perceptions and explores the evolving constitutional paradigms over fifty years. Morton highlights the tension between judicial power and societal values, critiques unaccountable governance, and addresses the influence of judicial review on provincial rights and rights advocacy groups.

How does the Supreme Court of Canada decide which cases it hears? Paul-Erik Veel, adjunct professor at the University of Toronto, shares a fascinating quantitative analysis on the Court's decision-making, exploring everything from case selection and output to judicial agreement. Watch this full session on Runnymede's Member Area: https://runnymedesociety.ca/en/account/.

Lia Milousis, a lawyer with the Acacia Group and leader of the Ottawa lawyers' chapter, dives into crucial topics around freedom of expression and its limitations. She examines whether administrative bodies can restrict speech based on predicted harm, discussing cases involving student expulsions and rejected political ads. Milousis highlights the delicate balance between personal beliefs, academic integrity, and community welfare, while advocating for open dialogue and the representation of diverse viewpoints in legal contexts.

Explore why property rights are notably absent from Canada's Charter of Rights and Freedoms. The discussion uncovers historical and political factors that led to this exclusion. Discover the implications for human rights and housing policies. There's also a thought-provoking conversation about potential constitutional amendments to safeguard property rights, igniting debate on legal reform and its impact on society.

Did the Law Society of Ontario's proposed Statement of Principles (SOP) present a threat to free speech? Today's encore episode features Lisa Bildy, a Bencher and lawyer specializing in freedom of expression cases, who spoke with our UWO student chapter about her experience standing up to the Law Society.

Is the Alberta Sovereignty Act a mechanism to provide a "shadow court" that challenges federal laws? Martin Olszynski, Professor of law at the University of Calgary and member of the federal Minister of Environment and Climate Change Canada's advisory council on impact assessment, discusses the constitutionality of the Alberta Sovereignty Act.

How did Carter v Canada change the Canadian legal landscape? Today's encore episode of Runnymede Radio is from a discussion hosted by McGill's Runnymede chapter with Professors Yuan Yi Zhu, of Leiden University, and Stéphane Sérafin, of the University of Ottawa Faculty of Law. This episode features Jacob McConville, president of the Runnymede Society's chapter at McGill University, as guest host.

If law, including constitutional law, is downstream from politics, what are the implications for federalism in Canada? Barry Cooper, Professor of Political Science at the University of Calgary, joins Runnymede Radio to discuss the Free Alberta Strategy and its cornerstone, the Alberta Sovereignty Act, including the notion that this Act was drawn up as "unconstitutional on purpose". For further reading, take a look at "Geoffrey Sigalet and Jesse Hartery: The critics were wrong about Danielle Smith’s Alberta Sovereignty Act."