Case information
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34848
Michael John Cairney v. Her Majesty the Queen
(Alberta) (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) |
|---|---|---|
| 2013-10-28 | Appeal closed | |
| 2013-10-28 | Formal judgment sent to the registrar of the court of appeal and all parties | |
| 2013-10-28 | Judgment on appeal and notice of deposit of judgment sent to all parties | |
| 2013-10-25 |
Judgment on the appeal rendered, CJ F Abe Ro Cro Mo Wa, The appeal from the judgment of the Court of Appeal of Alberta (Edmonton), Number 0903-0212-A, 2011 ABCA 272, dated October 5, 2011, heard on April 26, 2013, is dismissed and the order for a new trial is affirmed. Fish and Abella JJ. are dissenting. Dismissed |
|
| 2013-05-14 | Transcript received, (71 pages) | |
| 2013-04-26 | Judgment reserved OR rendered with reasons to follow | |
| 2013-04-26 |
Hearing of the appeal, 2013-04-26, CJ F Abe Ro Cro Mo Wa Judgment reserved |
|
| 2013-04-26 | Acknowledgement and consent for video taping of proceedings, All parties consented. | |
| 2013-04-26 | Respondent's condensed book, (Book Form), filed in the court room | Her Majesty the Queen |
| 2013-04-26 | Appellant's condensed book, (Book Form), filed in the court room | Michael John Cairney |
| 2013-04-22 | Correspondence received from, Request for 2 reserved seats | Her Majesty the Queen |
| 2013-04-15 | Appeal perfected for hearing | |
| 2013-04-12 | Notice of appearance, Dino Bottos and Dane Bullerwell will appearing and Mr. Bottos will make oral presentation | Michael John Cairney |
| 2013-04-11 | Notice of appearance, Susan D. Hughson, Q.C. and Keith Joyce will be appearing and Ms. Hughson will make oral presentation | Her Majesty the Queen |
| 2013-04-09 | Respondent's book of authorities, (Book Form), Completed on: 2013-04-09 | Her Majesty the Queen |
| 2013-04-09 | Respondent's record, (Book Form), Completed on: 2013-04-12 | Her Majesty the Queen |
| 2013-04-09 | Respondent's factum, (Book Form), Completed on: 2013-04-09 | Her Majesty the Queen |
| 2013-03-18 | Supplemental document, Supplementary record (2 volumes), Completed on: 2013-03-18 | Michael John Cairney |
| 2013-03-18 | Supplemental document, Supplementary book of authorities, Completed on: 2013-03-18 | Michael John Cairney |
| 2013-03-11 | Notice of hearing sent to parties | |
| 2013-03-07 |
Appeal hearing scheduled, 2013-04-26 Judgment reserved |
|
| 2013-02-22 | Appellant's book of authorities, (3 volumes), Completed on: 2013-02-22 | Michael John Cairney |
| 2013-02-22 | Appellant's record, (3 volumes), Completed on: 2013-02-22 | Michael John Cairney |
| 2013-02-22 | Appellant's factum, Completed on: 2013-02-22 | Michael John Cairney |
| 2012-11-26 | Letter advising the parties of tentative hearing date and filing deadlines (Leave granted) | |
| 2012-11-21 | Notice of appeal, Completed on: 2012-11-21 | Michael John Cairney |
| 2012-10-26 | Copy of formal judgment sent to Registrar of the Court of Appeal and all parties | |
| 2012-10-26 | Judgment on leave sent to the parties | |
| 2012-10-25 |
Judgment of the Court on the application for leave to appeal, The motion for an extension of time to serve and file the application for leave to appeal is granted. The application for leave to appeal from the judgment of the Court of Appeal of Alberta (Edmonton), Number 0903-0212-A, 2011 ABCA 272, dated October 5, 2011, is granted without costs. It is not necessary to deal with the motion to expedite the application for leave to appeal. Granted, without costs |
|
| 2012-10-25 | Decision on motion to expedite the application for leave to appeal, (see judgment above) | |
| 2012-10-25 |
Decision on motion to extend time to file and /or serve the leave application Granted |
|
| 2012-07-31 | Response to the motion to expedite the application for leave to appeal, (Letter Form), from Susan D. Hughson, Q.C. dated July 31/12 (sent to the Court July 31/12), Completed on: 2012-07-31 | Her Majesty the Queen |
| 2012-07-30 | All materials on application for leave submitted to the Judges, De F Ka | |
| 2012-07-30 | Submission of motion to expedite the application for leave to appeal, De F Ka | |
| 2012-07-30 | Submission of motion to extend time to file and/ or serve the leave application, De F Ka | |
| 2012-07-30 | Motion to expedite the application for leave to appeal, and for an order that the decision be issued no later than October 5/12 (bookform) (3 add. copies rec'd July 31/12), Completed on: 2012-07-30 | Michael John Cairney |
| 2012-07-10 | Applicant's reply to respondent's argument, Completed on: 2012-07-10 | Michael John Cairney |
| 2012-06-28 | Response to the motion to extend the time to file and / or serve the leave application, Completed on: 2012-06-28 | Her Majesty the Queen |
| 2012-06-28 | Book of authorities | Her Majesty the Queen |
| 2012-06-28 | Respondent's response on the application for leave to appeal, Completed on: 2012-06-28 | Her Majesty the Queen |
| 2012-05-30 | Letter acknowledging receipt of a complete application for leave to appeal | |
| 2012-05-29 | Motion to extend the time to file and or serve the application for leave to appeal, Included in the application, Completed on: 2012-05-29 | Michael John Cairney |
| 2012-05-29 | Book of authorities | Michael John Cairney |
| 2012-05-29 | Application for leave to appeal, Motion to ext. time included in the application, Completed on: 2012-05-29 | Michael John Cairney |
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Cairney, Michael John | Appellant | Active |
v.
| Name | Role | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Her Majesty the Queen | Respondent | Active |
Counsel
Party: Cairney, Michael John
Counsel
10039 - 117th Street
Edmonton, Alberta
T5K 1W7
Telephone: (780) 421-7001
FAX: (780) 421-7031
Email: dbottos@depoebottos.ca
Agent
500 - 30 Metcalfe Street
Ottawa, Ontario
K1P 5L4
Telephone: (613) 235-5327 Ext: 2451
FAX: (613) 235-3041
Email: fionacampbell@sgmlaw.com
Party: Her Majesty the Queen
Counsel
Appeals and Prosecution Policy Branch
3rd floor, 9833 - 109 Street
Edmonton, Alberta
T5K 2E8
Telephone: (780) 422-5402
FAX: (780) 422-1106
Email: sue.hughson@gov.ab.ca
Agent
2600 - 160 Elgin St
P.O. Box 466, Stn "D"
Ottawa, Ontario
K1P 1C3
Telephone: (613) 233-1781
FAX: (613) 788-3433
Email: henry.brown@gowlings.com
Summary
Keywords
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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.
Criminal law - Defences - Provocation - Whether there was an air of reality to the defence of provocation.
Michael John Cairney shot and killed his long-time friend Stephan Ferguson. Ferguson was the long time common-law spouse of Cairney’s cousin, Francis Rosenthal. Cairney was temporarily residing with Ferguson and Rosenthal, and overheard Ferguson threatening Rosenthal. Cairney retrieved a shotgun from a nearby closet and decided to scare Ferguson to teach him a lesson. He proceeded to lecture Ferguson about abuse. Ferguson left the room after saying to Cairney “you don’t have the guts to shoot me.” Cairney asked him to come back so they could finish their talk. Ferguson insulted Cairney and said that he would do with his spouse whatever he wanted, and he then left the apartment. Upset that Ferguson was “laughing him off,” Cairney followed him out of the apartment. Shortly thereafter, Cairney shot Ferguson in the apartment stairwell.
The defence of provocation was left with the jury. Cairney was acquitted of second degree murder and convicted of manslaughter. The Crown appealed the acquittal, arguing among other things, that there was no air of reality to the defence of provocation. The Court of Appeal agreed, allowed the appeal and ordered a new trial.
Lower court rulings
Court of Queen’s Bench of Alberta
070245998Q1, 2009 ABQB 123
Applicant acquitted of second degree murder and convicted of manslaughter
Court of Appeal of Alberta (Edmonton)
0903-0212-A, 2011 ABCA 272
Crown appeal allowed; new trial ordered
Memorandums of argument on application for leave to appeal
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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.
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