Canadian Lawyer

April 2021

The most widely read magazine for Canadian lawyers

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While Bildy and Shazadi Meighen are very different lawyers, they do share one trait. Both are working to highlight the effects of the pandemic that most Canadians choose to ignore. www.canadianlawyermag.com 1 EDITOR'S DESK UPFRONT www.canadianlawyermag.com EDITORIAL Editor-in-Chief Tim Wilbur Senior Editor Elizabeth Raymer Editor Zena Olijnyk Canada News Editor Aidan Macnab Production Editor Patricia Cancilla Writer Bernise Carolino CONTRIBUTORS Sarah Forte, Heather Suttie ART & PRODUCTION Art Director Marla Morelos Customer Success Manager Amie Suttie Production Co-ordinators Kat Guzman, Loiza Razon Global Production Manager Alicia Chin (on leave) SALES & BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT VP, Media and Client Strategy Dane Taylor Sr. Business Development Manager Steffanie Munroe Business Development Manager Lynda Fenton National Account Executive Abhiram Prabhu CORPORATE President Tim Duce Events and Conference Manager Chris Davis Chief Information Officer Colin Chan Human Resources Manager Julia Bookallil Global CEO Mike Shipley Global COO George Walmsley EDITORIAL INQUIRIES tim.wilbur@keymedia.com NAUK SUBSCRIPTIONS CO-ORDINATOR Donnabel Reyes tel: 647 374 4536 ext. 243 donnabel.reyes@keymedia.com ADVERTISING INQUIRIES legaladvertise@keymedia.com W hile the many negative impacts of the pandemic are obvious, including lives and livelihoods lost, others are not as visible. In this issue, we spoke with a few lawyers who are working to change that. In our cover story (p. 42), we look at how the pandemic has impacted our immi- gration system. While the economic impacts of closing our borders may be obvious, other long-term effects are less visible. Immigration lawyer Warda Shazadi Meighen says that, by closing its borders to refugees, Canada is not upholding its commitment under the United Nations Refugee Convention. With proper precautions for COVID-19, she says, Canada can continue to protect those vulnerable people. The invisibility of those refugees, who are still abroad but are hoping to flee to Canada for safety, makes it easy for Canadians to ignore the impact of closing our borders during the pandemic. Yet lawyers such as Shazadi Meighen continue to speak on refugees' behalf, hoping that Canada can safely bring them here as we did before the pandemic. In a completely different context, Lisa Bildy, the staff lawyer at the Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms, speaks about her advocacy work (p. 12). While her role in the StopSOP campaign to get benchers elected in Ontario who felt a required statement of principles on diversity and inclusion should be reversed will be controversial for some readers, she also spoke about her current work challenging pandemic lockdown requirements at the JCCF. This includes challenging restrictions for religious minorities such as rules against drive-in religious services that the JCCF successfully argued were overly onerous. "I am of the view . . . from a historical perspective, that the fabric of society is very delicate," Bildy says. "And if you are going to try and shut down a complex society, the way that has been done, and not expect there to be repercussions that are extremely damaging and extremely long-lasting, I think [it] is crazy." While Bildy and Shazadi Meighen are very different lawyers, they do share one trait. Both are working to highlight the effects of the pandemic that most Canadians choose to ignore. For that, they should be commended. Tim Wilbur, Editor-in-Chief Lawyers speaking for the ignored ISSUE 45.03 | APRIL 2021 Canadian Lawyer is published 10 times a year by Key Media Canada (Law) Ltd. KEY MEDIA and the KEY MEDIA logo are trademarks of Key Media IP Limited, and used under licence by Key Media Canada (Law) Ltd. CANADIAN LAWYER is a trademark of Key Media Canada (Law) Ltd. All rights reserved. Contents may not be reprinted without written permission. The opinions expressed in articles are not necessarily those of the publisher. Information presented is compiled from sources believed to be accurate, however, the publisher assumes no responsibility for errors or omissions. Canadian Lawyer disclaims any warranty as to the accuracy, completeness or currency of the contents of this publication and disclaims all liability in respect of the results of any action taken or not taken in reliance upon information in this publication. Publications Mail Agreement #41261516 ISSN 0703-2129 ©2021 GST/HST Registration #799898465RC-0001 RETURN UNDELIVERABLE CANADIAN ADDRESS TO: CIRCULATION DEPARTMENT 20 Duncan St., 3rd Floor, Toronto, ON, M5H 3G8 RETOURNER TOUTE CORRESPONDANCE NE POUVANT ÉTRE LIVREÉ AU CANADA AU SERVICE DES PUBLICATIONS 20 Duncan St., 3rd Floor, Toronto, ON, M5H 3G8 Key Media Canada (Law) Ltd 20 Duncan St., 3rd Floor Toronto, Ontario M5H 3G8 tel: +1 416 644 8740 www.keymedia.com

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