Constitutional law
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Interpretation and the Value of Law II
This post is written by Leonid Sirota and Mark Mancini. We read with interest Stéphane Sérafin, Kerry Sun, and Xavier Foccroulle Ménard’s reply to our earlier post on legal interpretation. In a nutshell, we argued that those who interpret legal texts such as constitutions or statutes should apply established legal techniques without regard for the… Continue reading
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Putting Stare Decisis Together Again
Originalists and living constitutionalists alike have good Rule of Law reasons for being wary of appeals to reinvigorate stare decisis Continue reading
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Still Wrong, Just a Little Less So
The Québec Court of Appeal errs in thinking the Charter prevents the imposition of, in effect, life imprisonment without parole Continue reading
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An Oddity in Strom
In October, the Saskatchewan Court of Appeal released its much-anticipated decision in Strom. Strom raised a number of important issues: “ “at the intersection between professional regulation, Ms. Strom’s private life, and the s.2(b) Charter guarantee of freedom of expression in the age of social media.” Strom was a registered nurse. Her grandfather tragically… Continue reading
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Constitutional Law Ruins Everything. A (sort of) response to Mancini’s “Neutrality in Legal Interpretation.”
This post is by Andrew Bernstein. No! I am not an academic nor was meant to be.Am a mere practitioner, one that will doTo settle a dispute, argue an appeal or twoWhen advising clients, the law’s my tool.Deferential, if it helps me sway the courtArgumentative, and (aspirationally) meticulous.Case-building is my professional sportTrying my hand at… Continue reading
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Declarations of Unconstitutionality as Judgments In Rem: A Response to Professor Daly
This post is written by Marc-Antoine Gervais, and a larger paper on the subject will appear in the McGill Law Journal (vol. 66). Canada’s model of judicial review of legislation is unusual. On the one hand, it is “diffuse” in that all courts of law (and many administrative tribunals) may decide constitutional questions. On the… Continue reading
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Textualism for Hedgehogs
Why substantive canons belong in textualist interpretation, and what this tells us about neutral interpretive principles Continue reading
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Neutrality in Legal Interpretation
Nowadays, it is unfashionable to say that legal rules, particularly rules of interpretation, should be “neutral.” Quite the opposite: now it is more fashionable to say that results in cases depend on the “politics” of a court on a particular day. Against this modern trend, not so long ago, it was Herbert Wechsler in his… Continue reading
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Still Keeping It Complicated
The Supreme Court tries to bring more rigour to constitutional interpretation and takes a step towards textualism, but won’t admit it Continue reading
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You Read It Here First
The Supreme Court holds that the Charter does not protect corporations against cruel and unusual punishment Continue reading
Double Aspect 