Assignment 1: Legal Memo

Michael will be discussing the first assignment for the course in the February 5th class. It consists of a two page legal memorandum on the following case:

Canada (Information Commissioner) v. Canada (Canadian Transportation Accident Investigation and Safety Board), NAV Canada and Canada (Attorney General) 2006 FCA 157 (Court files: A-165-05, A-304-05), May 1, 2006.

The administrative details are as follows:

• Due Date: February 12th.
• Submission: electronically (emailed to one of us), or handed in to Michael. 
• Format: 2 pages, 12 point Times font, 1.5 spacing.

I'm sure that some of you have done a memorandum in the past. For those who haven't, there are some pointers here and here. Remember to keep in mind the following:

• Clearly identify the legal issues in the case.
• Recount only those facts that are necessary for understanding the issue.
• Review your work for brevity and accuracy. Picture yourself as a client receiving the memo.
• The page limit is a ceiling. You may find you need less space. If so, that's a good thing.

Michael will discuss legal memos in class on the 5th, spending the rest of the time on privacy and data protection.