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Expert evidence is an integral part of the Canadian justice system, however its use comes with inherent risks. Improperly utilized, expert evidence can lead to serious injustices, such as wrongful convictions. This has been a recurring problem throughout Canadian legal history, and on which is often only identified after injustice has occurred. This study examines all reported Criminal decisions and admissibility rulings from the Provincial Court of Manitoba and compares success rates in cases without expert evidence to those where expert evidence was led to determine how the presence of expert evidence influences outcomes. It is argued that the presence of a significant positive gap between success rates with expert evidence and the base rates may be an indicator that safeguards against dubious expert evidence are ineffective. This study ultimately finds that such a positive gap does appear where the Crown leads expert evidence. The results for the defense are less clear. It is argued that this pattern is concerning, that further investigation into this needs to be done, and that existing safeguards need to be strengthened.

In what some might consider to be a ground-breaking decision, the Supreme Court of Canada (SCC), in the case of R v Barton, took judicial notice of the fact that myths, stereotypes and discriminatory practices which operate against sexually assaulted women within the Canadian criminal justice system become compounded when the woman in question is Indigenous and more so, when the Indigenous woman is a sex worker. Given the circumstances of the case, several feminist organisations filed factums on appeal as interveners prior to the SCC’s decision. This thesis aims to explore the intersectional arguments of the feminist interveners vis-a-vis their influence on the decision in Barton, as well as possible impact(s) the reasoning of the SCC could have within the justice system, going forward. In achieving this aim, I engage the methodology of doctrinal research. I also interview some lawyers who acted as counsel for intervening organisations at the SCC and experienced the dynamics of the case from a close vantage point. The theoretical approach adopted is Indigenous feminism, given the intersectional nature of the Barton dynamics. The conclusions drawn and recommendations made following the results of the research are crucial in critical assessments of the Barton decision, for lawyers, sexual assault complainants, and the criminal justice system. Most importantly, they are crucial for Indigenous women, who have for too long, had to deal with multiple layers of discrimination within the Canadian society and the criminal justice system as a consequence of the intersection between their race and their gender.

Changepoint models are increasingly used to represent changes in the rate of warming in surface temperature records. On the opposite hand, a large body of literature has suggested long‐memory processes to characterize long‐term behavior in surface temperatures. While these two model representations provide different insights into the underlying mechanisms, they share similar spectrum properties that create “ambiguity” and challenge distinguishing between the two classes of models. This study aims to compare the two representations to explain temporal changes and variability in surface temperatures. To address this question, we extend a recently developed time‐varying spectral procedure and assess its accuracy through a synthetic series mimicking observed global monthly surface temperatures. We vary the length of the synthetic series to determine the number of observations needed to be able to accurately distinguish between changepoints and long‐memory models. We apply the approach to two gridded surface temperature data sets. Our findings unveil regions in the oceans where long‐memory is prevalent. These results imply that the presence of long‐memory in monthly sea surface temperatures may impact the significance of trends, and special attention should be given to the choice of model representing memory (short versus long) when assessing long‐term changes.

Changepoint models are increasingly used to represent changes in the rate of warming in surface temperature records. On the opposite hand, a large body of literature has suggested long‐memory processes to characterize long‐term behavior in surface temperatures. While these two model representations provide different insights into the underlying mechanisms, they share similar spectrum properties that create “ambiguity” and challenge distinguishing between the two classes of models. This study aims to compare the two representations to explain temporal changes and variability in surface temperatures. To address this question, we extend a recently developed time‐varying spectral procedure and assess its accuracy through a synthetic series mimicking observed global monthly surface temperatures. We vary the length of the synthetic series to determine the number of observations needed to be able to accurately distinguish between changepoints and long‐memory models. We apply the approach to two gridded surface temperature data sets. Our findings unveil regions in the oceans where long‐memory is prevalent. These results imply that the presence of long‐memory in monthly sea surface temperatures may impact the significance of trends, and special attention should be given to the choice of model representing memory (short versus long) when assessing long‐term changes.

The right to effective counsel is a right guaranteed under the American Constitution and sections 7 and 11(d) of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. A US Supreme Court decided a case called Strickland v Washington in 1980, establishing a two prong approach to ineffective defence counsel claims. The two prongs focused on the Performance and Prejudice Components. Notwithstanding the flaws of this approach, it was adopted into Canadian Jurisprudence by the Canadian Supreme Court in R v B (GD) in 2000, without commentary or analysis. This thesis submits that the Strickland test is too restrictive and unfairly requires a proof of prejudice to the rights of the accused. Included herein is an empirical study that examines the Canadian case law since 2000, the date B (GD) resulted in the adoption of the American test. This study reveals that the argument of ineffective counsel is seldom made: 316 cases in over 13,000 criminal appeals with success in only 50 cases. This translates into an average of less than 3 successful appeals per year for all of Canada. It is submitted that the low success rate has had a chilling effect on counsels’ ability to argue that an appeal has merit and has limited the number of times an appeal alleging ineffective counsel is made. This thesis submits a new approach, one based on Canada’s Constitution and, in particular, the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. The presumption of competence would be abolished and no particular deference would be afforded to counsel’s decisions. This test would still require the appellate to prove, to a balance of probabilities, that counsel’s conduct or errors, considered cumulatively, failed to pass the threshold of professional conduct. After that onus is discharged, the court must consider whether counsel’s conduct or errors led to the accused having an unfair trial. If that is the decision of the court, then a new trial should be ordered. In this way, ubi jus, ibi remedium – where there is a right there must be a