Skip to main content

Charter of Rights and Freedoms

  • Image: "Stop school closure OLB" by Backbone Campaign is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0
As Mothers’ day 2021 approached, schools closed in Alberta and Ontario and parts of Manitoba. At the time of writing, Alberta’s schools had reopened, but schools in Ontario and parts of Manitoba remained closed. B.C. schools closed briefly in March, 2020,...

Read More

  • Image: "poked and prodded baby - _MG_4085" by sean dreilinger is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0
Today a troubling story out of my home province of Saskatchewan.   If statements coming out of that province are true, this problem exists in other provinces too. A woman who is an Indian citizen, referred to as “Jo”, traveled to Canada...

Read More

  • Image: "File:COVID-19 deaths per 100,000 population.png" by Traut is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0
Some Canadian provinces, including B.C., are implementing travel restrictions amid fears of covid-19. The federal government's mandatory testing and hotel quarantining for travelers entering Canada is currently being challenged in the courts.  In January, 2021, after seeking legal advice, B.C. premier John Horgan...

Read More

  • Image: "DSC09478" by dgrinbergs is licensed under CC BY-NC 2.0
She has been called Canada’s Erin Brockovich.  Erin Brockovich, of course, was the single mother whose crusade for justice was depicted in the movie bearing her name, staring Julia Roberts. Ms. Brockovich was a law clerk. Without formal legal training, she put...

Read More

  • Image: "New innovative learning spaces improve Okanagan Mission Secondary school" by BC Gov Photos is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0
I have previously written about section 23 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms (the Charter). Section 23 enshrines in our constitution the right of children of Canadian citizens to study French. Depending on the circumstances, this may be by...

Read More

  • Image: "Study" by Tim Swinson | http://timswinson.com is licensed under CC BY-NC 2.0
Clearly, some members of society are being left behind amid responses to  corona virus. Women, the disabled and the impoverished are particularly affected. Between March and June, schools in B.C. and Alberta abruptly closed. Alberta’s government is closing middle and high schools again...

Read More

  • Image: "File:A skeletal doctor testifies at court. Lithograph by L. Crusi Wellcome V0042242ER.jpg" is licensed under CC BY 4.0
In Cambie Surgeries Corporation v British Columbia (Attorney General), the court expressed concerns about the impartiality and independence of certain experts. The plaintiffs sought to have certain provisions of the Medicare Protection Act declared unconstitutional. Patients, they said, should not be...

Read More

  • Image: "Pension Plan - retired couple on a stack of coins" by verchmarco is licensed under CC BY 2.0
In Fraser v. Canada (Attorney General), the Supreme Court of Canada recently held that the RCMP violated the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms (the Charter) for women who job shared. This case involved indirect, or adverse effect, discrimination. This occurs...

Read More

  • Image: "Never Give In !" by Neil. Moralee is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0
In 2002, the provincial government amended the Workers’ Compensation Act. The amendments made it more difficult for injured workers to receive compensation for their workplace injuries. Earlier this year, B.C.’s Workers Compensation Act was amended. Significantly, a legislative provision which had attempted...

Read More

  • Image: "hornby st" by Beach650 is licensed under CC BY-NC 2.0
Lately, there is a dichotomy within B.C.’s justice system. As a result of concerns over COVID-19, B.C. courts have largely shut down, allowing only “urgent and essential matters” to proceed. This is a topic unto itself. Though efforts are certainly being made...

Read More