w w w . C A N A D I A N L a w y e r m a g . c o m F e b r u A r y 2 0 1 5 33
T
T
here is nothing quite like the silent beauty
of snowflakes falling gently to the ground.
Until, that is, carloads of snow begin to
crash down. It's a common enough sight
in the Great White North, and male Nova
Scotians should pack a shovel in their
briefcases or knapsacks during the winter,
because Mother Nature's annually ordained
dumps of the cold white stuff leads to
some serious responsibilities, according to
s. 34 of the provincial Public Highways Act.
"All physically fit male persons between the ages of sixteen
and sixty . . . are required to work with their shovels on the
highways during the winter whenever the highways become
impassable from snow." A failure to comply can result in a
maximum penalty of $10, or 10 days imprisonment should
the fine be ignored.
Lawyer Robert Miedema, at Boyne Clarke in Halifax,
recalls many snowy winters but he has never seen an army
of men of all shapes and sizes with tiny shovels, freeing the
byways of accumulated snow.
The statute is a pick for one of the goofiest Canadian laws
still on the books. Canadian Lawyer surveyed practitioners
across the country about the dumbest laws in existence —
some merely vexing, some upsetting, some ridiculous, and
some simply sublime. The responses vary from the silly to
the serious.
As for Miedema, his choice of profession denotes a public
worst!
laws
worst! worst! worst! worst! worst! worst! worst! worst! worst! worst! worst! worst!
T
T
T
are
the
These
By
Eleanor
Brown
Matt
Daley
The
books
are
full
of
badly
written,
nonsensical,
and
outdated
laws.
