Constitutional
-
March 26, 2024
Manitoba reaches settlement in principle with kids in care
Staring down the barrel of three class action lawsuits, Manitoba has agreed in principle to pay more than half a billion dollars to children in provincial care.
-
March 22, 2024
SCC denies leave in Alberta religious accommodation case
The long fight over religious accommodation at a Calgary-area private school has come to an end after the Supreme Court of Canada refused to hear an appeal of human rights tribunal decision that said the school unlawfully discriminated against two Muslim students by denying them a place to pray.
-
March 20, 2024
Cherished Mulroney memory | Bruce Baker
In the past few weeks, many tributes have been paid to former prime minister Brian Mulroney. As a lifelong New Democrat, one might think that I have little or no time for him. Nothing could be further from the truth. Brian Mulroney came from an era in Canadian politics that was far more civil in its nature compared to today's mass polarization to the right and left, with no room to build consensus or listen to or respect others' opinions on matters of public policy.
-
March 15, 2024
B.C. judge strikes proceedings against two organizations in medical residency challenge
Two non-profit organizations who had been part of a Charter challenge of B.C.’s system of putting international medical school graduates into a different stream for residency positions than domestic graduates are no longer part of the proceedings, after a provincial Supreme Court judge granted an application to strike the proceedings against them.
-
March 14, 2024
FCA upholds refusal to certify class action against Ottawa alleging discriminatory immigration fees
The Federal Court of Appeal has upheld the non-certification and striking out of claims of a proposed class action which contends that certain application fees for Canadian citizenship and permanent residence are analogous to a discriminatory “head tax” on those not born in Canada, in violation of the Charter’s s. 15(1) equality rights guarantee.
-
March 13, 2024
B.C. strengthens information-sharing protections in child welfare legislation after court decision
The B.C. government has introduced a bill to safeguard personal privacy in its child welfare legislation, a move which comes nearly a year after the province’s top court struck down part of it as unconstitutional.
-
March 08, 2024
Feds helping N.S. legal aid in access to justice for racialized inmates
Ottawa has been giving Nova Scotia legal aid hundreds of thousands in the name of better access to justice for racialized inmates in the province.
-
March 07, 2024
Modernizing national security laws could also clarify threshold to invoke Emergencies Act: LeBlanc
Ottawa is considering reforming the threshold for invoking the federal Emergencies Act, as part of a broader “more holistic review of national security legislation,” with the Liberal government committed to introducing amendments to “modernize” the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) Act, the Security of Information Act, and the Criminal Code “in the coming months,” says Public Safety Minister Dominic LeBlanc.
-
March 06, 2024
B.C. Court of Appeal upholds murder aquittal, citing ‘egregious’ police behaviour
B.C.’s top court has upheld the acquittal of a man accused of second-degree murder due to the “egregious” way the police ignored Charter protections against unreasonable search or seizure.
-
March 06, 2024
B.C. ‘disappointed’ by decision on appeal of injunction pausing public drug use law: minister
B.C.’s top court has batted back the province’s attempts to appeal an injunction that put implementation of a law governing public drug use on hold, citing the fact that proceedings would be moot by the time the injunction came up for a hearing.