GUILTY or NOT? / Glossary
Canadian legal glossary
Circumstantial evidence
Evidence from which a fact is inferred rather than directly observed. A conviction on it requires that guilt be the only reasonable inference on the whole of the evidence.
Cases that turn on it
The 3 real Canadian cases in the library whose brief uses this term. Read the facts, then decide — the verdict stays in the game.
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The Backpack on the Ground
2026
R v McGuinness — Possession of a loaded prohibited firearm (s. 95(1)) · Provincial Court of British Columbia
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The Letters From Inside
2024
R v Cubitt — Unauthorized possession (s. 91(1)), possession knowing it unauthorized (s. 92(1)), transferring a firearm (s. 99(2)), possession while prohibited (s. 117.01(1)) · Court of Appeal for Ontario
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Is It Real?
2026
R v Al-Gburi — Possession of a loaded prohibited or restricted firearm (s. 95(2)), possession knowing it unauthorized (s. 92(3)), possession while prohibited (s. 117.01(3)) · Court of Appeal for Ontario
Related category: Evidence & Identification
Circumstantial cases, eyewitness identification, surveillance video, fingerprints and intercepts — when the question is not what the law says but whether the Crown has proved who, and what. The newest Evidence & Identification cases in the library:
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The Trunk on the Highway
2025
R v Ramdeo — Possession of an imitation firearm for a purpose dangerous to the public peace (s. 88(1)) · Court of Appeal for Ontario
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Canada Day at the Lake
2026
R v Gallagher — Pointing a firearm (s. 87(1)), discharging a firearm (s. 244.2), aggravated assault (s. 268(2)) · Court of Appeal for British Columbia
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The Liquor in the Trailers
2006
R v Déry — Attempting to conspire to commit theft, and attempting to conspire to possess stolen property (ss. 24, 465) · Supreme Court of Canada (Quebec)
All 13 Evidence & Identification cases →
See also: Procedure
← careless storage · conditional discharge → · All 51 terms
A new real Canadian case every day. Read the brief, weigh the Crown against the defence, commit to a verdict, then see what the court decided — and why.