About this episode

The episode explores the complexities of judicial impartiality and bias in the Canadian legal system.

Not On Record REWIND | Can a Judge Truly Be Impartial? Sponsored by EasyDNS Move your domain or web hosting to EasyDNS and support Not On Record: https://easydns.com/NotOnRecord Use promo code: notonrecord In this Not On Record REWIND, criminal defence lawyer Joseph Neuberger and Diana Davison dig into a fascinating Canadian court decision asking a deceptively simple question: can a judge ever truly be impartial? Using R. v. Fraser, 2023 NSSC 45, they examine a Crown appeal of an acquittal based on alleged judicial bias, reasonable apprehension of bias, judicial impartiality, recusal motions, and public confidence in the justice system. The discussion breaks down how Canadian courts assess whether a judge crossed the line, why proving actual bias is so difficult, and how courtroom case management can sometimes look alarming to outsiders while still falling short of legal bias. The episode also explores the difference between actual bias and reasonable apprehension of bias, the presumption of judicial impartiality, why appellate courts give deference to trial judges, and how courtroom demeanour, witness credibility, and live evidence can never be fully captured by a transcript…

People in this episode

Host: Diana Davison

Guest: Joseph Neuberger

Topics covered

• judicial impartiality
• judicial bias
• Crown appeal
• courtroom case management
• reasonable apprehension of bias
• public confidence in justice system

Keywords

• judicial bias
• impartiality
• Crown appeal
• courtroom
• judicial philosophy
• battered woman syndrome

Sponsors

EasyDNS

Mentioned in this episode

Books & works: R. v. Fraser, 2023 NSSC 45, R. v. Lavallee

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