Bruce B Ryder

🚨Windsor Law is hiring! 🚨
@windsorlaw.bsky.social is looking for 4 asst/assoc profs who bring social justice & critical perspectives to our core curriculum, esp environmental law, torts, constitutional, family, evidence, int'l trade & Indigenous law. Deadline: Sep 24
www.uwindsor.ca/faculty/recr...

We are delighted to share the news that the second edition of The Canadian Constitutional Law Open Access Casebook (co-edited by Richard Moon, Howard Kislowicz, and Asha Kaushal) is now available on CanLII! #constitutionallaw #legalcommentary zurl.co/1159f

Opinion | The Border Is Invading America

The Border Is Invading America www.nytimes.com/2025/08/29/o...

Police in Ontario Increasingly Obstruct Harm Reduction Service Delivery Police surveillance and interference block life-saving care as the province becomes more hostile to harm reduction, our study shows.

Police interference w/ harm reduction services is a growing crisis. Surveilling services, arresting clients & other abuses cause service avoidance, violate peoples right to healthcare & highlights urgent need for binding non-interference policies. @filtermag.bsky.social @hivlegalnetwork.bsky.social

Judge halts deportation of non-binary American in ruling after Trump’s gender edicts Advocates have been calling on Ottawa to provide a safe haven for gender-diverse U.S. residents

The Federal Court clearly sees the risk of persecution in the Trump era. When will @mark-carney.bsky.social’s government do the right thing & scrap our #STCA with the US?

Opinion | I’m a Genocide Scholar. I Know It When I See It. A scholar of genocide comes to a painful conclusion about Israel’s actions in Gaza.

“My inescapable conclusion has become that Israel is committing genocide against the Palestinian people,” writes Omer Bartov, a professor of Holocaust and genocide studies at Brown University. “I have been teaching classes on genocide for a quarter of a century. I can recognize one when I see one.”

1/ We're hiring two (2) Staff Lawyers! The Staff Lawyer (Public Legal Education) will primarily work to enhance public understanding of the litigation efforts of Egale Canada as well as other key legal issues for 2SLGBTQI communities in Canada.

Prime Minister Carney must take decisive action to end genocide in Gaza — Alex Neve: Moving Rights Along We write because of the catastrophic human rights and humanitarian crisis in Gaza, now into its twentieth month, which is broadly understood by international law experts and leading human rights organ...

I'm one of the 412 lawyers, academics, human rights advocates and other experts who have signed an open letter to PM Carney demanding that Canada do everything in its power to stop the genocide in Gaza and support efforts to bring those responsible to account www.alexneve.ca/blog/prime-m...

Congrats to shortlisted authors & presses!
Margaret Boittin ‪@cambridgeup.bsky.social‬‬
Elaine Craig @mcgillqueensup.bsky.social
A Iavarone-Turcotte @pulaval.bsky.social
@james-kelly.bsky.social @mcgillqueensup.bsky.social
@jcyliew.bsky.social @fernpub.bsky.social
MJ Mossman @wlupress.bsky.social

Ontario Bar Association says province’s proposal to change how it picks judges could ‘politicize’ the process Lawyers’ group says proposal risks affecting judicial independence, in wake of Ford ‘rant’ about judges

These Ford government proposals to give itself even more control over how it appoints lower-court judges are being debated in the shadow of Premier's recent comments that judicial independence is a "joke." #ONpoli
www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/artic...

Ontario Bar Association says province’s proposal to change how it picks judges could politicize the process Lawyers’ group says proposal risks affecting judicial independence, in wake of Ford ‘rant’ about judges

The Ford government continues its efforts to undermine the integrity of the process for appointing judges to the ONCJ. The rule of law requires judicial independence and is best served by a merit-based appointment process insulated from political interference. www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/artic...

I'm pleased to announce that the Canadian Law and Society Association's prize committee has decided on its shortlist of books for the W. Wesley Pue Book Prize. The winner will be announced at the conference to be held at the U of Saskatchewan College of Law, 11-13 June 2025. @bbryder.bsky.social

Ontario Premier Doug Ford calls for U.S.-style elected judges Ford calls judicial independence a ‘joke,’ suggests Ontario should take over responsibility for the Criminal Code

Ontario's Premier – calling judicial independence “a joke” – says he supports U.S.-style elected judges and that many on the bench are “bleeding hearts” afflicted by “ideology,” who allow too many accused criminals out on bail: www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/artic...

I hope the PM will consider forming a national unity Cabinet with members from outside the Liberal party. Seems especially important to improve representation from AB & SK. Perhaps invite Heather McPherson (NDP Edmonton Strathcona) and several Senators from AB & SK to join Cabinet?

Opinion | A Road Map of Trump’s Lawless Presidency (Gift Article) A diverse group of legal scholars flash red warning lights about the future of America.

www.nytimes.com/2025/04/28/o...

In just 100 days, the Trump administration has inflicted enormous damage to human rights in the United States and around the world.

To mark the first 100 days of President Trump's second term, Human Rights Watch has cataloged 100 of the administration’s human rights harms 🧵⤵️

Number of Jailed Writers Increases Worldwide  - PEN America The number of writers jailed around the world has increased for the sixth year in a row according to the 2024 Freedom to Write Index.

NEW: The number of writers jailed around the world has increased for the sixth year in a row. Our latest #FreedomToWrite Index recorded at least 375 writers jailed for their work in 40 countries during 2024. Read more: pen.org/press-releas...

Trump’s expulsions are jaw-droppingly cruel. But they’re part of an American tradition | Steven Hahn Since colonial times, self-designated ‘communities’ have used expulsions to address supposed threats. It helps to explain how easy it has been for Trump to win support

Trump’s expulsions are jaw-droppingly cruel. But they’re part of an American tradition | Steven Hahn

Harvard Sues Trump Administration Over Threats to Cut Funding (Gift Article) Harvard’s lawsuit comes after the administration sought to force the university to comply with a list of demands by cutting billions in federal funding the school receives.

www.nytimes.com/2025/04/21/u...

“The Govt has not — & cannot — identify any rational connection between antisemitism & the medical, scientific, technological, & other research it has frozen that aims to save American lives, foster American success, preserve security, & maintain our position as a global leader in innovation.”

Opinion: Separating rhetoric from reality in the Conservative crime platform Pierre Poilievre’s tough-on-crime proposals are performative at best, and will cause greater difficulty for the prison system at worst

Here I argue the provocative claim that there is some misleading content in the Conservative crime platform.

www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/arti...

The Constitutional Case Against Trump’s Trade War A new lawsuit challenges Trump’s tariffs as a blatantly illegal usurpation of legislative power.

"Our economy works best when trade is subject to the rule of law, not the whims of one man. Courts can bolster that vital principle by striking down Trump’s egregious tariff power grab."

@IlyaSomin.bsky.social discusses the lawsuits challenging President Trump's IEEPA tariffs.

Careers - HRLSC Find out about new career opportunities at the HRLSC.

The Human Rights Legal Support Centre is seeking candidates for its full time Executive Director position. They are taking applications until May 9th, 2025 at 5pm.

More details available on the Centre's website here:

hrlsc.on.ca/about-us/car...

Judge seeks more clarity on facts in supervised consumption site legal challenge | CBC News The Ontario judge overseeing the legal challenge of the province's ban on supervised consumption sites that are within 200 metres of schools and daycares says he's concerned he does not have all the f...

Justice Callaghan was understandably annoyed. "I think I'm entitled to a set of facts that's accurate," he said. www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...

Lawyers for the Ontario government stated in court that the objective of the Community Care and Recovery Act was not to shut down supervised consumption sites, but simply to relocate them. Did counsel mislead the court by not sharing what it knew about the government's true policy objectives?

Update to this - the incoming president of the Advocates' Society, Sheree Conlon, has now resigned, citing her disagreement with how this was handled: www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...

We write to you as law professors from across Canada to express our profound disappointment in your decision to cancel a planned keynote address by Tareq Hadhad at your end-of-term dinner, ostensibly as a result of Mr. Hadhad's social media commentary which referred to the Israeli action in Gaza as a genocide. We feel no need to reiterate Mr. Hadhad’s impressive story as a refugee, entrepreneur, and general Canadian success story, as presumably these are the reasons you had planned to invite him in the first place. Likewise, there is no need to litigate the horrific human cost of the ongoing violence, as well as the volume of analysis, including from leading authorities on international law, that has concluded that the situation is appropriately described as genocide. However, we feel the need to write because we are deeply disturbed by the implications of this decision for your organization, and for the broader role of the legal community as a bulwark of democracy, human rights, and freedom of expression. In the context of a rising global tide of authoritarianism, we have watched in horror as powerful democratic institutions in the United States, including major law firms and universities, have buckled to government demands that they align their speech and conduct with the whims of the President. In the majority of cases, those demands specifically targeted speech which was critical of Israel or otherwise supportive of Palestinian human rights. This trend has been consistent with a broader rise in anti-Palestinian racism, and efforts to remove Palestinian perspectives from the public discourse. Put simply, the willingness to defend pro-Palestinian expression has become the canary in the coalmine for an organization’s ability to effectively foster diverse perspectives, and ultimately, to act as a meaningful force for democratic values. It is disturbing to see that, faced with this test, the Advocates' Society has profoundly failed, and decided that the path of lea…

Today I, along with over 40 law professors from across the country, sent an open letter to @advocates-soc.bsky.social urging them to reconsider their decision to cancel a planned keynote talk by Tareq Hadhad, a Syrian-Canadian who is widely known as the founder of @peacebychocolate.bsky.social.

Opinion | What I Learned About Trump’s Second Term by Reading His First 100 Executive Orders (Gift Article) Even with Republican congressional majorities, Trump favors the flourish of the order over the hassle of lawmaking.

www.nytimes.com/2025/04/01/o...

The Trump administration’s roundup of students who protested Israel’s bombardment of Gaza marks an astonishing, radical break with what one might justifiably think of as the central American idea. I wrote about it for @theguardian.com. www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

Since our administration would not fight the Trump administration in court, the faculty had to assume the responsibility of doing so to protect academic freedom.

www.reuters.com/world/us/col...