Beneath the Law

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

Send us Fan Mail [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2171686/fan_mail/new] 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 [https://ratethispodcast.com/beneaththelaw]   Contact Us Gardiner Roberts website [https://www.grllp.com/] | Gavin email [gjtighe@grllp.com] | Stephen email [sthiele@grllp.com]

Lied on Resume but Sued for Wrongful Dismissal Anyway

Send us Fan Mail [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2171686/fan_mail/new] 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 [https://ratethispodcast.com/beneaththelaw]   Contact Us Gardiner Roberts website [https://www.grllp.com/] | Gavin email [gjtighe@grllp.com] | Stephen email [sthiele@grllp.com]

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

Send us Fan Mail [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2171686/fan_mail/new] 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 [https://ratethispodcast.com/beneaththelaw]   Contact Us Gardiner Roberts website [https://www.grllp.com/] | Gavin email [gjtighe@grllp.com] | Stephen email [sthiele@grllp.com]

The Tumbler Ridge Tragedy: Is AI Above the Law?

Send us Fan Mail [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2171686/fan_mail/new] 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 [https://ratethispodcast.com/beneaththelaw] Contact Us Gardiner Roberts website [https://www.grllp.com/] | Gavin email [gjtighe@grllp.com] | Stephen email [sthiele@grllp.com]

Can Government Declare an Emergency to Silence Dissent?

Send us Fan Mail [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2171686/fan_mail/new] 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 [https://ratethispodcast.com/beneaththelaw] Contact Us Gardiner Roberts website [https://www.grllp.com/] | Gavin email [gjtighe@grllp.com] | Stephen email [sthiele@grllp.com]