After weeks of negotiations, US President Joe Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy have announced an “agreement in principle” to raise the nation’s debt ceiling and avoid a potentially catastrophic default.The agreement includes spending cuts demanded by Republicans, but it is short of the reductions in the sweeping legislation passed by the Republican-led House last month. To reduce spending, as Republicans had insisted, the package includes a two-year budget deal that would hold spending flat for 2024 and impose limits for 2025. That’s in exchange for raising the debt limit for two years, until after the next election.Earlier this evening, Speaker McCarthy and I reached a budget agreement in principle.…
Category: Law News
Manitoba lawyers will be required to take an Indigenous culture course
Manitoba lawyers will soon have to take mandatory training on Indigenous rights and history as part of a new requirement from the Law Society of Manitoba. The one-time, mandatory training is a new requirement from the Law Society of Manitoba, which regulates the legal profession in the province, to ensure all lawyers in Manitoba have a common knowledge base on Indigenous issues, said Alissa Schacter, equity officer and policy counsel for the Law Society of Manitoba. The law society believes having this education is a matter of competence, she said. “Lawyers need to have this understanding of the place that we live, its history and the people who lived here prior to European contact in order to be able to assist their clients and represent them effectively,” she said.…
Uganda’s President Museveni approves tough new anti-gay law
Uganda’s government has resisted pressure to drop the legislationUganda’s progress in tackling HIV is in “grave jeopardy” after the president approved tough new anti-homosexuality legislation, the UN and US have warned. An increasing number of people are being discouraged from seeking vital health services for fear of attacks and punishment, they added. President Yoweri Museveni signed the Anti-Homosexuality Bill into law after parliament watered it down. It is still among the harshest anti-LGBTQ laws in the world. Homosexual acts are already illegal in Uganda but now anyone convicted faces life imprisonment. The legislation imposes the death penalty for so-called aggravated cases, which includes having gay sex with someone below the age of 18 or where someone is infected with a life-long illness including HIV.…
Are Canada’s competition laws outdated? Some say it’s time for change
Whether checking in at the airport or checking out at the grocery store, it seems everywhere you turn these days, you find frustrated consumers. Many complain about high prices or limited choices across sectors — and blame the lack of competition. But now, the federal government is looking to update Canada’s competition laws — possibly the most significant review in decades. Everything seems to be on the table, from tiny tweaks to a major overhaul. Commissioner of Competition Matthew Boswell is one of those pushing for reforms. “I think it’s fair to say, unfortunately, that the Competition Act is lagging behind our international peers,” said Boswell.…