TORONTO LAWYER BECOMES TRUSTEE OF SABA NORTH AMERICA FOUNDATION The South Asian Bar Association North American Foundation has tapped a Toronto lawyer to serve as one of its trustees.
Rustam “Rusty” Juma, legal counsel to Deloitte LLP, has been appointed to serve as a trustee for the foundation, which funds legal education and research programs that benefit the South Asian community.
Juma says initiatives he hopes to pursue as a trustee include mentorship programs for SABA members and scholarships for law students in need.
He also is looking to pursue advocacy initiatives carried out by legal clinics on behalf of South Asians.
“Rusty is a leader in our bar and our profession,” said Ranjan Agarwal, the president of SABA Toronto.
“He will be a valuable asset to the SABA North America Foundation in their public interest work across North America.”
Juma is a former vice president of SABA Toronto and also served on the local organization’s board for four years before stepping down in August.
CHARITY CHARTER CHALLENGE McCarthy Tétrault LLP is representing an Ottawa charity on a Charter challenge to a section of the Income Tax Act.
Canada Without Poverty launched the challenge in the Ontario Superior Court, claiming s. 149.1 (6.2) of the act violates freedom of association. The charity says that under the section of the act, “initiatives taken to encourage interaction between people living in poverty with politicians and other decision-makers about strategies for the relief of poverty must be severely restricted.”
The charity has been under audit since the federal government started a program to scrutinize the supposed political activities of charities in 2012.
“CWP has found that the restrictions imposed by section 149.1 (6.2) are contrary to its charitable purpose and prevent it from pursuing the relief of poverty in a reasonable and effective manner,” the charity said in its notice of application.
The firm is taking on the case pro bono and declined to comment on the challenge.
MEDICO LEGAL SOCIETY DINNER The Medico Legal Society of Toronto is set to host a dinner with speakers talking about medico-legal issues.
The event, which will take place the evening of Sept. 28, will include a talk on Bill 132, Ontario’s new sexual violence and harassment legislation, given by Lisa Hamilton, of Bell Temple LLP. The dinner costs $180.80 for members and $226 for non-members.
LAW TIMES POLL Law Times recently reported that an Ottawa lawyer is arguing it should be easier to award costs against the Law Society of Upper Canada, in order to force the regulator to think harder about which cases it prosecutes.
More than 79 per cent said yes, the bar should be lowered and the LSUC is overzealous in the cases it chooses to prosecute.
Almost 21 per cent said no, the regulator is doing its job correctly and costs should only be awarded in extreme circumstances.
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