International Law

New York Court Declines to Recognize Israeli Divorce

Posted on May 22, 2008
On May 8, we reported on a Maryland court's refusal to affirm the legal validity of an Islamic Divorce or talaq obtained in Pakistan.Earlier this week, Law.com highlighted an analogous decision by a New York state court, rejecting an Israeli divorce or get:A New York state judge has declined to recognize an Israeli divorce judgment that was based on a "get," or decree of divorce, issued by a Brooklyn rabbi...

Quebec Assembly: Supreme Court of Canada Judges Must Be Fluent in French

Posted on May 22, 2008
The Montreal Gazette reports on a resolution adopted by the National Assembly, Quebec's provincial legislature, calling on the Prime Minister to ensure that any Judge appointed to Canada's Supreme Court be fluent in French:The National Assembly adopted a unanimous resolution yesterday affirming that the mastery of French is an essential prerequisite for the naming of judges to the Supreme Court of Canada...

Texas Appeal Court: No Legal Right to Remove Children of Polygamous Sect

Posted on May 22, 2008
A breaking news report from Associated Press:SAN ANGELO, Texas - A state appellate court has ruled that child welfare officials had no right to seize more than 400 children living at a polygamist sect's ranch. The Third Court of Appeals in Austin ruled that the grounds for removing the children were "legally and factually insufficient" under Texas law...

Damage not Reasonably Foreseeable: Supreme Court Dismisses Fly-in-the-Water Case

Posted on May 22, 2008
We wrote yesterday that the Supreme Court of Canada was to rule on tort of pure psychiatric injury in the "fly-in-the-water" case, which they have done today. Waddah Mustapha?s appeal has today been dismissed by Canada's highest court. The court found that Culligan owed Mr...

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Not Yet Sold On Obama

Posted on May 22, 2008
While the media's coronation of Barack Obama continues unabated, some rather credible Democratic Party leaders apparently remain determined to decide for themselves. They have by default become the true deciders. They are the undeclared Superdelegates...

'It Began With Cavities' - Utah Woman Loses Home Over $68.00 Dental Bill

Posted on May 22, 2008
ABC News reports on a Salt Lake City, Utah woman's unlikely quest to retain her home - twelve years after it was sold at a judicial auction for $1,550.00 to satisfy a $68.00 dental debt: Can you imagine losing your home over a $68 dental bill? That's what happened to one Utah woman...

Video: Clinton and Obama Victory Speeches

Posted on May 21, 2008
After another primary split Tuesday evening, here are the candidates' speeches:Hillary Clinton, following an enormous, 35 point Kentucky primary victory:..........Barack Obama, speaking in Iowa on the eve of a primary win in Oregon, claims the national pledged delegate majority:- Garry J...

Supreme Court to Rule on Tort of Pure Psychological Injury

Posted on May 21, 2008
The Supreme Court of Canada is expected to rule this week on an important and increasingly common tort claim, the tort of pure mental distress/ nervous shock.The facts giving rise to the case are that Waddah Mustapha, a Windsor, Ontario man, saw a dead fly in the fresh, unopened, replacement water bottle supplied by Culligan Canada, who regularly supplied bottled water at his home and salon...

Law Graduate Receives First Ever Certificate for Remote Sensing, Air and Space Law

Posted on May 20, 2008
In his upcoming convocation, law student Michael Dodge will receive the first ever Certificate for Remote Sensing, Air and Space Law from the University of Mississipi, School of Law. The certificate will provide him with a head start in embarking in a legal career specialized in the use of aerospace technologies...

Court Orders US Treasury Department to Accomodate the Visually Imparied

Posted on May 20, 2008
In 2002, The American Council of the Blind initiated a lawsuit against the U.S Treasury Department on the basis that American currency discriminates against the visually impaired who cannot differentiate between US bills because they are printed in the same size, shape and colour...

The Cat Did It!

Posted on May 20, 2008
For all those who accept "pet excuses" with a grain of salt....bbcnews.com reports:Albanians may have found a new villain to blame for the frequent power cuts that have been blighting their lives.The country's main electricity company says a cat chasing a mouse caused a 72-hour blackout in parts of the capital, Tirana...

$8 Million Court Victory for Eccentric Collector of Antiques and Fine Art

Posted on May 17, 2008
Editors' note: We are pleased to have Alvin Starkman join us as a guest contributor to Wise Law Blog. We've previously written about Mr. Starkman, and shall thus assume he requires no further introduction. Suffice to say, we're looking forward to his continued commentaries...

Gay Marriage Ban Overturned By California Supreme Court

Posted on May 15, 2008
MSNBC reports on a landmark ruling this morning by California's Supreme Court, declaring the state's ban on same sex marriage unconstitutional: SAN FRANCISCO - The California Supreme Court has overturned a ban on gay marriage, paving the way for California to become the second state where gay and lesbian residents can marry...

British Judges to Shed Wigs in October 2008

Posted on May 13, 2008
It isn't exactly a fashion update, but this Times Online report highlights yet another aspect of the modernization of Britain's judicial system:For 300 years the wig and gown have symbolised the authority of the court. All that will change in October, when judges in civil and family cases will ditch their horsehair wigs and instead be dressed by a designer whose trademark is ?funky British clothes for aspiring funky British girls?...

"Queen" Judge Faces Nevada Judicial Discipline Commission

Posted on May 10, 2008
It is entirely coincidental that we have featured an unusually high volume of bizarre, even eyebrow-raising stories about American judges of late. I assure our readers that our respect for the Bench is sincere and certainly well-justified. Still, how could one not be taken aback by this news of an elected Las Vegas District Court Judge, now facing misconduct charges before Nevada's judicial discipline commission, as reported at CNN?:Elizabeth Halverson is a judge...

Market Value of Mom's Services: $126,593 US

Posted on May 10, 2008
$126,593 US per annum. That is the market value of a stay-at-home mom's services for the work performed in a typical household, according to a May 9th CBC report.Check out the personalized "calculation wizard" at Salary.com. (Stay at home Dads can use it too)...

Governor Wants Back into Governor's Mansion

Posted on May 10, 2008
In the midst of filing for divorce, Republican Governor Jim Gibbons of the State of Nevada left the Governor?s mansion to reside in his previous estate in Reno, leaving his wife in possession of the home.The Governor, whose mansion is maintained by the taxpayers, is now in Court in an attempt to have his wife evicted from the home so that he may return to it...

Unpleased Spouse Posts Grievances on Hood of Car

Posted on May 10, 2008
Garry Wise has previously commented on the airing of one?s dirty laundry through divorce blogs and you tube and now, a different forum has emerged.Fed up with her husband for not paying spousal support in accordance with a Court Order, a South African woman plastered a poster on the top of the hood of her car, which outlined her grievances with her soon to be ex- husband...

Pants Suit Judge Returns to Court

Posted on May 09, 2008
Judge Roy Pearson is heading back to Court.This time, he is suing the District of Columbia. He is seeking reinstatement in his lost, D.C. judicial position and damages of $1 million. The former judge was not reappointed to the bench, in part over his fabled $54 million lawsuit last year against a dry cleaner who lost the Judge's pants...

Loafing on a Friday Afternoon (In the US Courts)

Posted on May 09, 2008
I have once again had a good laugh from the secrets revealed by this blog's stats. When I noted a visitor from the uscourts.gov domain, I was, of course, immediately curious as to which of the many brilliant, academic posts written by yours truly had attracted attention from so lofty a domain...

Retiring Judge: Oops, I Forgot

Posted on May 09, 2008
One the eve of a presumably well-earned retirement, a St. Louis, Missouri judge had a rather embarrassing surprise. While cleaning out her office, she made the startling discovery of a trial brief, collecting dust. She had forgotten to deliver her ruling in the case, heard six years prior...

Leafs Press Conference: Paul Maurice Fired

Posted on May 08, 2008
Cliff Fletcher's press conference yesterday, announcing the firing of Paul Maurice as Toronto Maple Leafs head coach:- Garry J. Wise, Toronto Visit our Toronto Law Firm website: www.wiselaw.net EMPLOYMENT LAW ? CIVIL LITIGATION ? WILLS AND ESTATES ? FAMILY LAW & DIVORCEORIGINALLY POSTED AT WISE LAW BLOG ? SUBSCRIBE TO WISE LAW BLOG

Speaking of Scary Preachers and Politics...

Posted on May 08, 2008
Take a closer look at Pastor John Hagee, a vocal supporter of John McCain for President:Maybe he was just mad that nobody invited him to the parade.(h/t: Dave Johnson)- Garry J. Wise, Toronto Visit our Toronto Law Firm website: www.wiselaw.net EMPLOYMENT LAW ? CIVIL LITIGATION ? WILLS AND ESTATES ? FAMILY LAW & DIVORCEORIGINALLY POSTED AT WISE LAW BLOG ? SUBSCRIBE TO WISE LAW BLOG

Argos, Leafs and the Ontario Racing Commission

Posted on May 08, 2008
The Ontario horse racing world is watching closely as a public tiff escalates between former Toronto Maple Leaf defenceman, Rod Seiling, now Chairman of the Ontario Racing Commission, and lawyer Gerry Sternberg, a proud Toronto Argonaut alumnus.The Globe and Mail reports: A panel of six commissioners ruled this week that Sternberg could no longer work as a lawyer before the commission - which regulates horse racing in the province - until he made an "unqualified apology" for an outburst against chairman Rod Seiling during a March hearing...

Warring Couple Barred from St. Catharines Family Court

Posted on May 08, 2008
The Globe and Mail reports on a very unusual decision handed down by Mr. Justice Joseph Quinn, barring both spouses in an apparently long and never-ending family law battle from further resort to the Court.In holding that neither couple could bring on further proceedings without leave of the Court, Justice Quinn stated:The parties have gorged on court resources as if the legal system were their private banquet table...

Michigan Supreme Court: No Health Benefits for Same Sex Partners

Posted on May 08, 2008
According to an Associated Press report, Michigan's Supreme Court that ruled the State's same-sex marriage ban prohibits the State's universities and colleges from providing health care benefits to the same-sex partners of campus employees:The ban, a constitutional amendment approved in November 2004, says the union between a man and woman is the only agreement recognized as a marriage "or similar union for any purpose...

Maryland Court Denies U.S. Legal Validity of Islamic Divorce

Posted on May 08, 2008
From the Baltimore Sun:Saying "I divorce thee" three times, as men in Muslim countries have been able to do for centuries when leaving their wives, is not enough if you're a resident of Maryland, the state's highest court ruled yesterday.Yesterday, the Court of Appeals rejected a Pakistani man's argument that his invocation of the Islamic talaq, under which a marriage is dissolved simply by the husband's say-so, allowed him to part with his wife of more than 20 years and deny her a share of his $2 million estate...

Christian Heritage Party Asks Canada's Governor General To Overturn Supreme Court of Canada Refusal

Posted on May 08, 2008
The Christian Heritage Party, undaunted by the Supreme Court of Canada's refusal of leave to appeal an Ontario Court of Appeal decision upholding Canada's election funding laws, has now asked Canada's Governor-General, Michaelle Jean, to intervene to instruct the Supreme Court to hear their appeal...

The Clinton Pony Was DOA

Posted on May 07, 2008
Well, after all the slinging from the right and the Reverend Wright, the media hacks and the Hillarites, Obama pushed the turbo engines and came out looking awfully electable after last night's key primary races in North Carolina and Indiana. Like Ohio, which Hillary won only by losing more than half her initial 20 point lead, Mrs...

Paul Maurice Is No More

Posted on May 07, 2008
Accoring to reports, the Toronto Maple Leafs have terminated coach Paul Maurice. CBC News now confirms the firing:...Maurice, 41, was told early Wednesday morning he had been relieved of his duties with one year and a club option remaining on his contract...

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