Northern Courts Education Seminar

Overview

This joint seminar of the Supreme Court of Yukon, the Supreme Court of the Northwest  Territories and the Nunavut Court of Justice covered a variety of topics relevant to the work of the  courts and incorporated education in substantive law, judicial skills and the social context specific to  judging in the northern territories. 

Objectives

The objectives of the seminar were to enhance participants’ awareness of key jurisprudential  developments in criminal and family law matters, specifically issues related to sexual offences; to  develop practical skills in judgment writing with a focus on writing judgments efficiently and clearly; and  to better understand the social context of judging in the northern territories, specifically with respect to  indigenous communities in the north. 

Summary

Led by experienced judges and leading academics, this seminar used a combination of  lectures, discussions and an off-site visit as means for judges to increase knowledge in substantive  criminal and family law matters, to enhance judgment writing skills, and to explore and learn more  about the social context of northern indigenous communities. Participants were provided with an in depth overview of recent developments in Canadian law on sexual offences, including the law related to  third party records applications and records in the possession of the accused; other sessions examined  the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction and the challenges associated  with electronic evidence in court, and social media evidence in particular. Judges were provided guidance about crafting concise, sufficient, and accessible reasons, and a multi-disciplinary panel guided  participants through the multiple normative orders of the Canadian legal landscape, with specific  reference to Indigenous legal orders in the northern territories. The seminar concluded with a visit to a  local wellness camp for a session led by local Indigenous elders.