Case information
Conduct a refined search of the Supreme Court of Canada database to obtain details on the status of a matter before the Court.
40651
William George v. His Majesty the King
(British Columbia) (Criminal) (By Leave)
Docket
Judgments on applications for leave to appeal are rendered by the Court, but are not necessarily unanimous.
| Date | Proceeding | Filed By (if applicable) |
|---|---|---|
| 2023-09-21 | Close file on Leave | |
| 2023-09-21 | Copy of formal judgment sent to Registrar of the Court of Appeal and all parties | |
| 2023-09-21 | Judgment on leave sent to the parties | |
| 2023-09-21 | Judgment on leave sent to the parties | |
| 2023-09-21 |
Judgment of the Court on the application for leave to appeal, The application for leave to appeal from the judgment of the Court of Appeal for British Columbia (Vancouver), Number CA48278, 2023 BCCA 115, dated March 15, 2023, is dismissed. Dismissed |
|
| 2023-08-08 | All materials on application for leave submitted to the Judges, for consideration by the Court | |
| 2023-06-26 | Applicant's reply to respondent's argument, (Book Form), Completed on: 2023-06-26, (Printed version filed on 2023-06-26) | William George |
| 2023-06-14 | Certificate (on limitations to public access), 23A | His Majesty the King |
| 2023-06-14 | Respondent's response on the application for leave to appeal, (Book Form), Completed on: 2023-06-14, (Printed version filed on 2023-06-14) | His Majesty the King |
| 2023-05-18 | Certificate (on limitations to public access), 23A | William George |
| 2023-05-16 | Notice of change of solicitor | William George |
| 2023-05-16 | Letter acknowledging receipt of an incomplete application for leave to appeal | |
| 2023-05-15 |
Application for leave to appeal, (Book Form), - 23A (rec'd 2023-05-18) - Cover page (rec'd 2023-05-18) - Signed CA judgment (rec'd 2023-05-18), Completed on: 2023-05-18, (Printed version filed on 2023-05-15) |
William George |
| 2023-03-22 | Letter acknowledging receipt of a notice of application for leave to appeal, FILE OPENED 2023-03-22 | |
| 2023-03-21 | Notice of application for leave to appeal, Completed on: 2023-05-18 | William George |
Parties
Please note that in the case of closed files, the “Status” column reflects the status of the parties at the time of the proceedings. For more information about the proceedings and about the dates when the file was open, please consult the docket of the case in question.
Main parties
| Name | Role | Status |
|---|---|---|
| George, William | Applicant | Active |
v.
| Name | Role | Status |
|---|---|---|
| His Majesty the King | Respondent | Active |
Counsel
Party: George, William
Counsel
Toronto, Ontario
M4K 2Z8
Telephone: (604) 366-0991
Email: michael.luba@mail.mcgill.ca
Party: His Majesty the King
Counsel
B.C. Prosecution Service
3rd Floor, 940 Blanshard Street
Victoria, British Columbia
V8W 3E6
Telephone: (250) 387-0284
FAX: (250) 387-4262
Email: lesley.ruzicka@gov.bc.ca
Agent
2600 - 160 Elgin Street
Ottawa, Ontario
K1P 1C3
Telephone: (613) 786-0211
FAX: (613) 563-9869
Email: matthew.estabrooks@gowlingwlg.com
Summary
Keywords
Criminal law — Sentencing — Indigenous offenders — How information in a Gladue report should influence an Indigenous offender’s moral blameworthiness under the proportionality principle at sentencing — Whether the sentencing judge and the Court of Appeal erred in finding accused’s moral blameworthiness was equal to that of non-Ingigenous offenders convicted of same offence — Whether an obligation to consider a conditional sentence order or to give particular attention to circumstances of Indigenous offenders creates a positive duty to consider a conditional sentence in all cases where jail is a possible sentence — Whether the sentencing judge and the Court of Appeal erred in failing to consider a conditional sentence order?
Summary
Case summaries are prepared by the Office of the Registrar of the Supreme Court of Canada (Law Branch). Please note that summaries are not provided to the Judges of the Court. They are placed on the Court file and website for information purposes only.
Mr. George, a member of the Tsleil-Waututh Nation, and other protestors blockaded a facility owned by Trans Mountain Pipeline ULC. Mr. George played a leadership role. He knew that the protest contravened a court ordered injunction against obstructing, impeding and interfering with the operations of Trans Mountain Pipeline ULC at various locations. Mr. George was convicted of contempt of court and was sentenced to 28 days imprisonment. The Court of Appeal dismissed an appeal from the sentence.
Lower court rulings
Supreme Court of British Columbia
2021 BCSC 2658, S183541
Conviction for contempt of court
Supreme Court of British Columbia
2022 BCSC 791, S183541
Sentence to 28 days incarceration
Court of Appeal for British Columbia (Vancouver)
2023 BCCA 115, CA48278
Appeal from sentence dismissed
Memorandums of argument on application for leave to appeal
The memorandums of argument on an application for leave to appeal will be posted here 30 days after leave to appeal has been granted unless they contain personal information, information that is subject to a publication ban, or any other information that is not part of the public record. You may also obtain copies of the memorandum by filing out the Request for Court records form or by contacting the Court’s Records Centre either by email at records-dossiers@scc-csc.ca or by telephone at 613‑996‑7933 or at 1‑888‑551‑1185.
If you have questions about a memorandum of argument or want to use a memorandum of argument, please contact the author of the memorandum of argument directly. Their name appears at the end of the memorandum of argument. The contact information for counsel is found in the “Counsel” tab of this page.
Downloadable PDFs
Not available
Related links
Factums on appeal
The factums of the appellant, the respondent and the intervener will be posted here at least 2 weeks before the hearing unless they contain personal information, information that is subject to a publication ban, or any other information that is not part of the public record. You may also obtain copies of factums by filling out the Request for Court records form or by contacting the Court’s Records Centre either by email at records-dossiers@scc-csc.ca or by telephone at 613‑996‑7933 or at 1‑888‑551‑1185.
If you have questions about a factum or want permission to use a factum, please contact the author of the factum directly. Their contact information appears on the first page of each factum.
Downloadable PDFs
Not available