Articles 2020

A welcome message from the Chair and Vice-Chair of the CCLHR section, providing an overview of the section's anticipated activities for the upcoming year.

Ontario’s midwives have won another round of litigation, in a pay equity saga stretching back almost a decade. Late last month, the Divisional Court rejected the province’s Judicial Review application of two decisions of the Human Rights Tribunal (“Tribunal”). This article summarizes the Divisional Court's decision.

Section 33.1 of the Criminal Code states a person is guilty of a violent offence, even if they were so intoxicated that they did not know what they were doing, so long as that intoxication was self-induced. This month, the Ontario Court of Appeal declared the provision of no force or effect, declaring s. 33.1 unconstitutional for violating sections 7 and 11(d) of the Charter. This note summarizes this important decision.

On April 22, 2020 as part of the OBA’s Priority PD program the Constitutional, Civil Liberties and Human Rights law section joined with the Elder Law section to address key issues related to emergency measures for older adults, people with disabilities, and the lawyers who represent them. This article provides an overview of that program.

In UAlberta Pro-Life v. Governors of the University of Alberta, the Alberta Court of Appeal held that a university's regulation of free expression on campus is a form of governmental action subject to Charter scrutiny. The decision sets a new precedent on the application of the Charter to university activities, applies the Doré test on a correctness standard of review, and considers the recent Vavilov decision of the Supreme Court of Canada. This article reviews this noteworthy decision.

On February 4, 2020, the OBA Health Law Section collaborated with the Constitutional, Civil Liberties and Human Rights Law Section in hosting “Key Constitutional and Human Rights in Health Law & Practice” at the OBA Institute. This article recaps some of the highlights of the event.

Can a corporation challenge a mandatory minimum fine on the basis that it infringes s. 12 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms? This is the question the Supreme Court of Canada will address in Attorney General of Quebec, et al. v. 9147-0732 Québec Inc., which was argued before the Supreme Court in January 2020 and is currently under reserve.

On November 25, 2019, the CCLHR section and the Young Lawyers’ section held a joint program on appearing before federal administrative tribunals on human rights, employment, and labour issues. The panel featured two adjudicators and two lawyers, who offered information and advice on issues such as the correct forum for litigating disputes, the speed of dispute resolution before the various tribunals, and practice tips for counsel. This article summarizes the program.

A summary of the Charter Conference on October 3, 2019.