Constitutional law
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A Shield Not a Sword?
In my post discussing Brent Rathgeber’s take on the Supreme Court’s recent decision striking down the prostitution-related provisions of the Criminal Code (Canada (Attorney General) v. Bedford, 2013 SCC 72), I mentioned that Mr. Rathgeber had an interesting theory of the proper role of courts and judicial review. I think it is worth discussing, but I do not… Continue reading
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Intelligent Life on Parliament Hill
In an interesting recent blog post, Brent Rathgeber, an independent MP, discusses the Supreme Court’s decision in Canada (Attorney General) v. Bedford, 2013 SCC 72, and Parliament’s eventual response to it. Mr. Rathgeber’s post deserves attention for a number of reasons. Beyond its immediate subject, which is of course interesting in itself, it is relevant to the debate about… Continue reading
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Friends Like These
In my comment on the Supreme Court’s decision striking down the Criminal Code’s provisions on prostitution, Canada (Attorney General) v. Bedford, 2013 SCC 72, I expressed concern about the Court’s reliance on “legislative facts” ― that is, the social context in which the impugned legislation operates ― to resolve the case, and especially its holding that a trial judge’s… Continue reading
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Le PQ et le Tea Party
Le mois dernier, Martin Patriquin avait fait grand bruit avec une chronique publiée dans le New York Times, où il affirmait qu’avec son projet de Charte de la honte, « en courtisant cet électorat blanc, populiste, rural, le Parti québécois, un parti de gauche, semble s’être aventuré sur en territoire du Tea Party » (ma… Continue reading
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Off Course
In my post on Canada (Attorney General) v. Bedford, 2013 SCC 72, the Supreme Court’s recent decision striking down the prostitution-related provisions of the Criminal Code, I said I would have some thoughts on what this decision means for the future of Charter-based judicial review in Canada. As Churchill said, it is a dangerous thing to make predictions, especially… Continue reading
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Down with Hypocrisy
As everybody already knows, on Friday the Supreme Court struck down the provisions of the Criminal Code regulating prostitution in Canada (Attorney General) v. Bedford, 2013 SCC 72. In this post, I will summarize its (rather brief) reasons for doing so, and comment on the substance of the decision. In a separate one, I will have some thoughts about… Continue reading
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Damn Your Party?
In my post last week assessing the merits of Bill C-559 (a.k.a. the “Reform Act“), I pointed out that it risked creating or embittering conflicts between the caucuses and members of political parties. In particular, I wrote that [i]t is at least conceivable that a leader would lose the support of the caucus while retaining… Continue reading
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The Discomforts of Religion
Religion gives law a lot of trouble. Most often, the difficult question is what to do about it ― what to do about prayer at municipa council meetings, what to do about religious believers asking for exemptions from general laws. But sometimes, the law must confront a more basic, and perhaps an even more difficult… Continue reading
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The Ways of Change
I wrote last week about Bill C-559, the “Reform Act,” which if enacted would transfer some power from party leaders to MPs and caucuses in the House of Commons. Yesterday, I addressed the question whether the changes it would operate would be good for our democracy, and concluded that this is very doubtful. In this… Continue reading
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Where to Stand
I wrote last week about Bill C-559, the proposed “Reform Act” that would, if enacted by Parliament, shift some power from party leaders to parliamentary caucuses and maybe individual MPs. It would do so by making it impossible for a leader to deny a candidate chosen by a local party association the ability to run… Continue reading
Double Aspect 