Writing
Published Articles
Articles by Ryan Handlarski in the Canadian legal press.
Canada's Wonderlands: Can a Convicted Sex Offender Subject to a Section 161(1)(a) Order Legally Enter an Amusement Park?
SSRN
Statutory interpretation of the term “public park” in the context of Section 161(1)(a) of the Criminal Code, and whether an amusement park or public exhibition can be classified as a “public park” within the meaning of that section.
Zoom trials are here to stay, and that is a good thing
Canadian Lawyer
If I say the words “Zoom court,” it is bound to evoke controversy among many of my colleagues. Both Crown and defence are not ready to let go of the old way of doing things.
A mindset of scarcity
Canadian Lawyer
Providing newly minted lawyers with a universal basic income would help their entrepreneurial spirits flourish, argues Ryan Handlarski
Young lawyers are exploited, not mentally ill
Canadian Lawyer
There is a lot of talk in the legal profession about a mental health crisis. Many people are trying to raise awareness about this issue and address it by getting people to talk openly about it.
Law is not a tournament
Law Times
My favourite metaphor that I have ever heard to describe the law student experience from before law school to landing a job at a firm is from Peter Thiel, founder of eBay and one of the first investors in Facebook, famous for giving Mark Zuckerberg a cheque for US$500,000 and, according to legend, saying (in somewhat different words), “Don’t mess it up.”
The presumption of innocence is a civilizational construct
Canadian Lawyer
It is my contention that the presumption of innocence is not merely a legal construct, as Michael Spratt argues in his article The presumption of innocence is for the court of law, not for protecting the reputations of the powerful, but a way of thinking about the competing values when an allegation of wrongdoing is made. What should we do as a society about this most human of problems?
Staying out of debt is more important than the school you attend
Canadian Lawyer
Should Canadians, with limited means, be willing to hand over huge sums of money to attend certain law schools in Canada?
Licence to kill: Why addiction treatment system doesn’t work
The Lawyer's Daily
I remember the first time I took my Class G road driving test. At that point, I had been driving without incident for approximately three years with my G2 licence.
Law is a marathon, not a sprint
Law Times
Law students often hear the same piece of advice: Article at a Bay Street firm and work there for a year or two or three.
Why I support Ryerson's Law School
Canadian Lawyer
A law school at Ryerson will not add to the competitiveness of the process and, therefore, the only reasonable position is to support its creation.
Choice to be a sex worker driven by poverty, overregulation of trades
The Lawyer's Daily
Ever since the Supreme Court decision in Bedford v. Canada [2013] 3 SCR 1101, 2013 SCC 72, where the bizarre half-measure laws in the Criminal Code around sex work were struck down
Shorten timelines and improve perverse system
Law Times
On a recent occasion, I listened to a family lawyer colleague talk about the circumstances of a case where the parties seemed to be really intransigent.
Why cocaine is expensive: Time for a real war on drugs
The Lawyer's Daily
Why is the price of cocaine so damn high? Cocaine looks just like sugar, but I can walk into any Starbucks and get a gram of sugar for free.
Time for graduated licensing for lawyers
Law Times
Graduated licensing for drivers in Ontario started in 1994. At the time it was introduced, it was touted that the policy was going to save tens of millions of dollars in accident prevention and lives. The policy is very easy to understand and so intuitively and obviously correct that it really requires no justification.
Roadside saliva testing and marijuana
The Lawyer's Daily
As the Trudeau-led Liberal government intends to pass legislation to legalize marijuana, there has been a great deal of commentary indicating that we can therefore accept that impaired driving from the...
Speaker's Corner: The roots of the articling crisis
Law Times
Since the Great Recession of 2007-2009, there has been a lot of media commentary blaming the sometimes-bleak economic prospects of young lawyers on law schools. In this coverage, you’ll also hear complaints about the lack of utility of a law degree, the high tuition for the law school and the debt it creates, as well as the competitiveness of the job market for lawyers upon graduation.