Robert Solomon
Academic Degrees:
LLB (Osgoode Hall) 1970, LLM (Yale) 1972, called to the Bar of Ontario in 1975.
| Email: | rsolomon@uwo.ca |
| Phone: | 519-661-3603 |
| Office: | LB 105 |
Professor Solomon has been engaged in research and teaching on alcohol and drug policy, and tort, criminal and health law for more than 45 years. He received the University of Western Ontario Prize for Teaching Excellence in 1981, the Ontario Faculty Association Award in Teaching Excellence in 1986 and numerous other Western University teaching honours since then. He was promoted to the rank of Distinguished University Professor in 2013.
Professor Solomon has authored or co-authored approximately 100 articles and book chapters, and more than 175 government reports and other studies. He served on the Board of Directors of the Ontario Addiction Research Foundation, and was a founding member of the Canadian Drug Reform Foundation. He has appeared frequently as an expert witness before various Parliamentary Committees, briefed the Prime Minister and other senior federal Parliamentarians, and served as a consultant to numerous government agencies and research and health care organizations.
Since 1998, Professor Solomon has served as the National Director of Legal Policy for Mothers against Drunk Driving Canada. The International Council on Alcohol, Drugs and Traffic Safety selected Professor Solomon to be the recipient of the 2007 Widmark Award, which is the highest honour that the Council confers on individuals for making an outstanding, sustained and meritorious contribution to the advancement of traffic safety research. In 2010, the Kaiser Foundation named Professor Solomon as the recipient of its 2010 National Award for Excellence in Public Policy, which recognizes individuals who have a record of outstanding achievement in reducing alcohol and drug harm through effective public policy. In 2012, Professor Solomon was awarded The Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal, which is based on dedicated service to one’s peers, community and Canada.
Research Highlights
Books:
Solomon, M. McInnis, S. Pitel & E. Chamberlain, Cases and Materials on the Law of Torts, 11th ed. (Toronto: The Carswell Company Limited, 2023).
(With E. Chamberlain, M. McInnes and S. Pitel), Cases and Materials on the Law of Torts, 10th ed. (Toronto: The Carswell Company Limited, 2019).
Recent selected articles and published research studies:
Robert Solomon & Eric Dumschat, “Mandatory Alcohol Screening in Canada: The Courts, the Police and Next Steps in Maximizing Traffic Safety” (2024) 27(3) Canadian Criminal Law Review 273.
Solomon & E. Dumschat, “Ready, Fire, Aim: Canada’s Legal Response to Alcohol-Related Crash Deaths and Injuries” in Proceedings of the 23rd International Conference on Alcohol, Drugs and Traffic Safety (Amsterdam: The International Council on Alcohol, Drugs and Traffic Safety, 2022), online: <https://drive.google.com/file/d/1kPTr5UVOIgxsKFENMQNgSOYswulheo7C/view>.
Solomon, A. McAleer & M. Kondo, “Two Steps Forward, One Step Back: A Review of Canada’s Impaired Driving-Related, Blood-Testing Legislation” (2023) 71 Criminal Law Quarterly 247-301.
(With E. Chamberlain & A. Kus), “Drug-Impaired Driving in Canada: Moving Beyond American Enforcement Models” (2013), 60(2) Criminal Law Quarterly 238.
(With E. Chamberlain), “Canada’s New Drug-Impaired Driving Law: The Need to Consider Other Approaches,” (2014), 15 Traffic Injury Prevention 685.
(With D. Perkins-Leitman), “Canadian Sentencing Law and Impaired Driving,” [May, 2014] Les Cahiers de PV 2.
(With M. Clarizio), “The Highs and Lows of Medical Marijuana Access in Canada” (2015), 62 Criminal Law Quarterly 536.
(With E. Dumshat), “Passive Alcohol Sensors: A Second Best Impaired-Driving Counter-measure” (2016), 20(2) Canadian Criminal Law Review 229.
(With E. Chamberlain), “The Road to Traffic Safety: Mandatory Breath Screening and Bill C-46” (2018) 23 Canadian Criminal Law Review 1.
(With E. Chamberlain & M. Vandenberghe), “Canada’s New Cannabis-Related Driving Legislation: The Elusive Quest for an Effective Deterrent” (2018) 23 Canadian Criminal Law Review 265.
(With T. Stockwell et al., Strategies to Reduce Alcohol-Related Harms and Costs in Canada: A Review of Provincial and Territorial Policies. (Victoria, BC: Canadian Institute for Substance Use Research, University of Victoria, 2019).
(With A. Wettlaufer et al., Assessment of Federal Alcohol Policy Implementation in Canada (Victoria, BC: Canadian Institute for Substance Use Research, University of Victoria, 2019).
