This case was largely won by Anita Szigeti Advocates’ 2nd year Associate Maya Kotob.
Maya had represented the client at the hearing level and argued the case in the Court of Appeal.
The Judgment is important for a host of reasons, most particularly in revisiting how the Review Board should go about determining whether a conditional discharge disposition may be safely imposed.
I commend the whole case to the reader, including in particular paragraph 17 where the Court reflects on how the Board treated some evidence on behalf of the NCR accused person at the centre of the controversy.
Here are the links to the PDF and HTML versions of the case on the Court of Appeal’s Website:
• Called to the Bar (1992)
• U of T Law grad (1990)
• Sole practitioner (33 years)
• Partner in small law firm (Hiltz Szigeti) 2002 - 2013
• Mom to two astonishing kids, Scarlett (20+) and Sebastian (20-)
• (Founding) Chair of Mental Health Legal Committee for ten years (1997 to 2007)
* Founding President of Law and Mental Disorder Association - LAMDA since 2017
* Founder and Secretary to Women in Canadian Criminal Defence - WiCCD - since 2022
• Counsel to clients with serious mental health issues before administrative tribunals and on appeals
• Former Chair, current member of LAO’s mental health law advisory committee
• Educator, lecturer, widely published author (including 5 text books on consent and capacity law, Canadian civil mental health law, the criminal law of mental disorder, a law school casebook and a massive Anthology on all things mental health and the law)
• Thirty+ years’ experience as counsel to almost exclusively legally aided clients
• Frequently appointed amicus curiae
• Fearless advocate
• Not entirely humourless
anitaszigeti 