Legal Research and Writing - Reference Tools

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The Canadian Legal Research and Writing Guide, 2018 CanLIIDocs 161
Biblioth?¨que de droit Michel-Bastarache: Legal Research Guides
Bora Laskin Law Library: Research Guides
Law Society of Ontario: Practice Area Resources
Lederman Law Library (Queena€?s): Legal Research Guides
Osgoode Hall Law School Library (York University)
Ted Tjaden, a€?Researching Canadian Lawa€? (updated by Kim Nayyer) (Globalex)

10) Law Reform Commission Reports [top]

Most common law jurisdictions have law reform commissions which are typically government sponsored to examine laws and make recommendations for changes in the law. Although law reform commissions had their "heyday" in Canada in the 1970's, some are still active and even the older reports are useful for historical research:

	CA:		Law Commission of Canada (archived)
	CA:		Uniform Law Conference of Canada
	CA:		CBA Law Reform Subcommittee
	BC:		BC Law Institute: Law Reform Database
	AB:		Alberta Law Reform Institute
	SK:		Law Reform Commission of Saskatchewan
	MB:		Manitoba Law Reform Commission
	ON:		Law Commission of Ontario (current)
	ON:		Law Reform Commission of Ontario (archived via Open Library)
	NS:		Law Reform Commission of Nova Scotia
	NB:		Law Reform: New Brunswick

A useful database of law reform commission reports is available online from the BC Law Institute in their Law Reform Database (where individual reports in the database are available online, links are provided to those reports).

For links to law reform agencies in other jurisdictions, see the list of links here from the the Paul Martin Law Library at the University of Windsor.

For an excellent overview of law reform agencies, see:

Gavin Murphy, "Law Reform Agencies" (Department of Justice, 2004)
(Catalogue No J2-247/2004E-PDF) (PDF: EN) (126 pages)

WH Hurlburt, "Law Reform Commissions in the United Kingdom, Australia and Canada" (Edmonton: Juriliber, 1986) (publisher's listing here)

In addition, the following is a selected list of academic journal articles discussing the role of law reform in Canada:

Alexander Geddes, " How to Change Laws Without Changing the Law: Problems with the Presumption of Substantive Change for Plain Language Reforms" (2020) 51 Ottawa L. Rev. 109.

Bill Charles, "The Story of Law Reform in Nova Scotia: A Perilous Enterprise" (Fall 2017) 40 Dalhousie L.J. 339.

Martin Friedland, "Reflections on Criminal Justice Reform in Canada" (Aug. 2017) 64 Crim. L.Q. 274.

Roderick MacDonald, "Law Reform for Dummies (3rd edition)" (Spring 2014) 51 Osgoode Hall L.J. 859.

Michael Kirby, "Forty Years of the Alberta Law Reform Institute: Past, Present, Future" (2009) 46 Alta L Rev 831.

Roderick Macdonald, "A Lamentation for Law Reform" (2009) 46 Sup Ct L. Rev (2d) 447.

Roderick Macdonald, "Jamais deux sans trois ... Once Reform, Twice Commission, Thrice Law" (2007) 22 Can JL & Society 117 (available here on HeinOnline by subscription).

Roderick Macdonald & Hoi Kong, "Patchwork Law Reform: Your Idea is Good in Practice, but it Won't Work in Theory" (2006) 44 Osgoode Hall LJ 11.

Andrew Burrows, "Some Reflections on Law Reform in England and Canada" (2004) 39 Can Bus LJ 320 (available here on HeinOnline by subscription).

Roderick Macdonald, "Law Reform and its Agencies" (2000) 79 Can Bar Rev 99.

Peter North, "Law Reform: Problems and Pitfalls" (1999) 33 UBC L Rev 37 (available here on HeinOnline by subscription)

WH Hurlburt, "The Origins and Nature of Law Reform Commissions in the Canadian Provinces: a Reply to 'Recommissioning Law Reform' by Professor RA Macdonald" (1997) 35 Alta L Rev 880.

Roderick Macdonald, "Recommissioning Law Reform" (1997) 35 Alta L Rev 831.

Louise-Philippe Pigeon, "The Necessity of Law Reform" (1947) 25 Can Bar Rev 955.