Beneath the Law

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If “No One is Above the Law,” then everyone is beneath it. Beneath the Law is a frank discussion between two lawyers who have lived and breathed the legal system in Canada for over 30 years. Winner of a 2026 Mondaq Thought Leadership Award, this podcast hosts Stephen Thiele and Gavin Tighe of Gardiner Roberts, examine the arguments made in some highly contentious, and public cases, with a focus on the intersection between law and politics and where courtrooms become part of the political arena. In each episode Beneath the Law digs into interesting and current legal topics or legal battles and provides insight and commentary on the law and its application in our society.  Law is at its core the expression of the fundamental framework of any organized society – it is the fine print of the social contract. Courts play a fundamental role in any democracy, getting underneath the surface and beneath the law requires an understanding of not only what courts are doing but why.

  1. 4d ago

    Ahluwalia and the New Tort of Intimate Partner Violence

    Send us Fan Mail What happens when the law recognizes a form of abuse that leaves no visible bruises?  Gavin Tighe and Stephen Thiele examine a landmark Supreme Court of Canada decision that officially recognizes intimate partner violence as a new tort.  The discussion explores how coercive control, psychological domination, financial manipulation, and long-term patterns of abusive behaviour can now give rise to civil claims even when traditional torts like assault do not apply.  Gavin and Stephen unpack the facts of the case, the legal test established by the Court, and the broader implications for family law, women's rights, cultural traditions, and the evolution of the common law.  They also debate whether courts should create new causes of action, whether damages adequately reflect the seriousness of the harm, and how an already strained justice system will manage the likely increase in litigation.  This episode offers a thorough look at how the law adapts to better understand and address modern forms of harm within intimate relationships. Listen For: 2:59 Can Someone Commit Intimate Partner Violence Without Ever Being Physically Violent? 6:58 How Does This New Tort Challenge Traditional Cultural and Family Roles? 13:14 Why Did Canada's Supreme Court Create a Brand New Tort? 15:00 What Must Someone Prove to Win an Intimate Partner Violence Lawsuit? 25:02 Will This Landmark Decision Create More Pressure on Canada's Courts?   Leave a rating/review for this podcast with one click   Contact Us Gardiner Roberts website | Gavin email | Stephen email

    27 min

  2. Jun 9

    Google Got Summoned: Digital Privacy and Political Speech in Canada

    Send us Fan Mail What happens when governments start chasing anonymous online critics?   Gavin Tighe and Stephen Thiele dive into the controversial use of administrative subpoenas by the US Department of Homeland Security to identify anonymous social media users critical of the Trump administration.  The discussion explores the tension between freedom of speech, anonymity, national security, and government overreach, while drawing parallels between American constitutional history and modern online discourse.  From pseudonyms used during the American Revolution to today’s debates over surveillance, online threats, Norwich orders, and political polarization, the hosts unpack the legal and ethical questions surrounding free expression in the digital age.  The episode also examines how social media companies like Google navigate their responsibilities between protecting privacy and cooperating with law enforcement, while warning about the dangers of turning internet platforms into tools of political surveillance.   Listen For: 05:26 What exactly did the Department of Homeland Security demand from Google? 08:18 Why does the right to anonymous speech have deep constitutional roots? 21:25 How does a Norwich order differ from an administrative government summons? 24:29 When does using a government institution cross the line into political weaponization? 25:53 What responsibility do social media platforms have when harmful content appears online?   Leave a rating/review for this podcast with one click   Contact Us Gardiner Roberts website | Gavin email | Stephen email

    29 min

  3. May 26

    When Judges Become Social Engineers

    Send us Fan Mail When judges become social engineers, democracy starts to wobble. Gavin and Stephen examine the Waterloo homeless encampment decision as a major example of courts moving beyond traditional Charter review and into the realm of public policy design.  What began as a dispute over a municipal bylaw and a public parking lot becomes, in their view, a much larger warning about judicially engineered social outcomes, the constitutionalization of housing policy, the weakening of elected municipal authority, and the possibility that governments may increasingly respond with tools like the notwithstanding clause. Listen For: 00:00 Is housing now a protected Charter right in Canada? 7:15 Why did Waterloo lose the ability to clear a homeless encampment? 13:11 Could this decision create new constitutional rights around housing and income? 19:27 Are courts replacing elected governments in homelessness policy? 30:41 Could the notwithstanding clause become the next battleground?   Leave a rating/review for this podcast with one click   Contact Us Gardiner Roberts website | Gavin email | Stephen email

    37 min

  4. May 19

    The Fake Case Crisis: How AI is Shaking Trust in the Courts

    Send us Fan Mail The robot wrote the brief, but the lawyer pays the price. AI can draft a legal brief in seconds, but it can also torch a lawyer’s reputation just as fast.  Gavin and Stephen take on the legal profession’s uneasy embrace of generative AI and the very real fallout from fake cases, invented quotations, and AI-drafted arguments making their way into court filings.  What starts as a conversation about efficiency quickly becomes a warning about ethics, reputation, and responsibility. AI may be the newest tool in the legal toolbox, but every citation, authority, and argument filed with the court still belongs to the lawyer whose name is on the document. Use it carelessly, and the consequences can be brutal: wasted court time, harmed clients, personal cost awards, and a credibility hit that may never fully go away. Listen For: 05:07 Why Are Courts Seeing So Many AI-Hallucinated Cases? 10:25 How Risky Are Fake Quotes from Real Cases? 17:00 Who Pays When Lawyers File Unchecked AI Briefs? 21:18 Why Judges Can’t be the Last Line of Defence 23:28 Can Fake AI Cases Undo an Entire Arbitral Award? 25:54 How Can Lawyers Use AI Without Abdicating Judgment?   Leave a rating/review for this podcast with one click   Contact Us Gardiner Roberts website | Gavin email | Stephen email

    31 min

  5. May 5

    Lied on Resume but Sued for Wrongful Dismissal Anyway

    Send us Fan Mail One fake MBA. One real lawsuit. One unforgettable lesson.  In this episode Gavin and Stephen dig into the Alberta employment case Tutor v. Accurate Screen Limited, where a senior business-development employee allegedly misrepresented his academic credentials, was fired for cause, found another job within months, and still sued for wrongful dismissal.   They unpack why honesty is central to the employment relationship, how courts analyze just-cause terminations, why résumé fraud can destroy trust from the start, and why suing after being caught may be the boldest move of all. Along the way, they connect the case to broader employment-law principles, the difficulty of proving cause, the power imbalance courts recognize between employers and employees, and the growing challenge of fake credentials in an AI-driven world. Listen For: 00:00 What happens when someone with a fake MBA sues for wrongful dismissal? 2:42 Why did this Alberta résumé-fraud case become so surprising? 7:16 Can lying about academic credentials justify termination for cause? 13:16 How do burdens of proof work in employment-law dismissal cases? 23:24 Does an employer have a duty to verify a candidate’s résumé? Leave a rating/review for this podcast with one click   Contact Us Gardiner Roberts website | Gavin email | Stephen email

    31 min

  6. Mar 31

    Absolute Privilege or Absolute Overreach: The Sex Tape That Broke Litigation Immunity

    Send us Fan Mail A hidden camera, a secret recording, and a courtroom showdown.  Stephen Thiele and Gavin Tighe unpack a shocking case where a surreptitious sex tape made its way into a family law proceeding, raising serious legal and ethical questions.  What begins as an acrimonious separation quickly escalates into a debate about privacy, voyeurism, and the limits of legal protection under the doctrine of absolute privilege.  They explore whether lawyers can be held accountable for distributing deeply personal and arguably irrelevant material in court, and how the justice system balances open litigation with protecting individuals from harm.  With sharp insights and candid commentary, this “spicy” episode dives into the intersection of family law, professional conduct, and privacy rights, leaving listeners questioning where legal immunity should end. Listen For: 1:47 What is the doctrine of absolute privilege and how does it protect conduct in legal proceedings? 7:36 Why did the first instance judge refuse to strike the claim against the lawyers? 10:36 What makes this case so remarkable in terms of how the lawyers handled the evidence? 16:52 Can opposing lawyers ever owe a duty of care to the other side in a lawsuit? 19:48 Should personal cost awards against lawyers be the remedy when advocacy crosses the ethical line?   Leave a rating/review for this podcast with one click   Contact Us Gardiner Roberts website | Gavin email | Stephen email

    23 min

  7. Mar 17

    The Tumbler Ridge Tragedy: Is AI Above the Law?

    Send us Fan Mail What happens when a technology designed to serve humanity becomes complicit in its destruction?  This episode confronts one of the most unsettling legal frontiers of our time: the intersection of artificial intelligence, tort liability, and the duty to warn.  Gavin Tighe and Stephen Thiele examine the horrific mass shooting in Tumbler Ridge, British Columbia where a shooter who had repeatedly told ChatGPT of their violent intentions killed eight people, including five children, and ask whether the company bears legal responsibility for its silence.  Drawing on foundational principles of Canadian law, including reasonably foreseeable harm and duty of care, Gavin and Stephen explore whether AI platforms must be held to the same standards as the human professionals they increasingly seek to replace.  From unauthorized practice of law to the collapse of solicitor-client privilege, this episode is essential listening for anyone navigating the brave new legal world of artificial intelligence. Listen For: 3:30 What duty of care did ChatGPT owe the victims of the Tumbler Ridge shooting? 5:39 How does AI's role as a virtual therapist create professional legal obligations? 9:09 Why does basic tort law apply when a company has knowledge of foreseeable harm? 11:22 What does the Westray Mines case reveal about corporate liability for inaction? 17:04 How does using ChatGPT destroy solicitor-client privilege in Canadian litigation?   Leave a rating/review for this podcast with one click Contact Us Gardiner Roberts website | Gavin email | Stephen email

    27 min

  8. Mar 3

    Can Government Declare an Emergency to Silence Dissent?

    Send us Fan Mail What happens when a government turns its most powerful emergency legislation against its own citizens for honking horns?  This episode examines one of the most consequential constitutional rulings in recent Canadian legal history: the Federal Court of Appeal's decision finding that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's invocation of the Emergencies Act against the 2022 Freedom Convoy protest was unlawful.  Gavin Tighe and Stephen Thiele dissect the court's rigorous analysis of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, specifically the Section 2 protections for political speech and Section 8 protections against unreasonable search and seizure, and ask the harder question: when government wields extraordinary power and achieves its objectives, does a court ruling after the fact actually matter?  Listen For: 2:17 What qualifies as a true national emergency in Canada? 5:43 Why was the Emergencies Act invoked during the Freedom Convoy protests?9:31 Why did the Federal Court rule the Emergencies Act was used improperly? 17:31 Can the government freeze your bank account for supporting a protest? 22:46 Should extreme government powers ever be used to stop civil disobedience?   Leave a rating/review for this podcast with one click Contact Us Gardiner Roberts website | Gavin email | Stephen email

    32 min
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About

If “No One is Above the Law,” then everyone is beneath it. Beneath the Law is a frank discussion between two lawyers who have lived and breathed the legal system in Canada for over 30 years. Winner of a 2026 Mondaq Thought Leadership Award, this podcast hosts Stephen Thiele and Gavin Tighe of Gardiner Roberts, examine the arguments made in some highly contentious, and public cases, with a focus on the intersection between law and politics and where courtrooms become part of the political arena. In each episode Beneath the Law digs into interesting and current legal topics or legal battles and provides insight and commentary on the law and its application in our society.  Law is at its core the expression of the fundamental framework of any organized society – it is the fine print of the social contract. Courts play a fundamental role in any democracy, getting underneath the surface and beneath the law requires an understanding of not only what courts are doing but why.

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