Constitutional
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January 05, 2024
Citizenship Act provisions violate equality, mobility rights under Charter: Ontario court
An Ontario judge has declared federal legislation which prohibits Canadian citizens born abroad from passing citizenship on to their children automatically if their children are also born abroad to be unconstitutional.
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January 03, 2024
B.C. concerned ruling ‘temporarily prevents province from regulating where hard drugs are used’
The chief justice of B.C.’s Supreme Court has put the brakes on provincial legislation which would restrict public consumption of illegal substances, saying allowing the law to come into force would cause “irreparable harm” to people who use drugs.
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January 02, 2024
Newfoundland and Labrador initiates accessibility plan
Newfoundland’s government has launched its first accessibility plan. The Newfoundland and Labrador Accessibility Plan spans Jan. 1, 2023 to Dec. 31, 2026, according to a recent news release.
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December 21, 2023
Yoga sessions for prisoners give new meaning to the term serving a stretch
The path to redemption may be found through a tightly held Downward Dog. Yoga instructor Cathy Manuel teaches prison inmates to stretch, hold poses and control their breathing – ways in which to calm themselves and find their own sense of “empowerment.” It is a striving to find inner peace — and, for some, to let go of anger. Manuel, a 52-year-old hailing from Moncton, N.B., is executive director of Freeing the Human Spirit, an organization promoting the physical, mental and spiritual well-being of inmates in Canada’s prison system.
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December 18, 2023
Uncivil behaviour on rise amongst lawyers: report
Lawyers’ poor treatment of each other has become worse post-pandemic, according to a report by the Toronto Lawyers’ Association. The study, based on a recent survey involving 332 respondents from both Toronto and throughout Ontario, found that there has been a decline in “civility and professionalism” in the legal profession ever since lockdowns, self-isolation and other public health measures came to an end.
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December 12, 2023
Fire order violated Charter, but reasonable due to balancing of rights and risk: B.C. judge
A B.C. judge has ruled Vancouver’s fire chief violated a woman’s Charter right to life, liberty and security of the person when she ordered a homeless encampment to be cleared, but also found the order was reasonable because the fire chief engaged in a proportionate balancing of rights and safety risks.
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December 08, 2023
Proportional representation a ‘fair system’ but not required by Constitution, Ontario judge says
An Ontario judge has batted back a constitutional challenge of Canada’s first-past-the-post electoral system, but the issue is not going away as a number of electoral reform organizations have pledged to continue to fight in court against a system they say is unfair to many Canadians.
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December 05, 2023
Inquiry into foreign interference with federal elections gives standing to 22 groups, individuals
Justice Marie-Josée Hogue, the Quebec Court of Appeal judge who heads the commission of inquiry into foreign interference in federal electoral processes and democratic institutions, has green-lit 22 groups and individuals to participate as parties or interveners in the public inquiry, disclosing she also expects to issue a decision soon on requests for funding for lawyers applied for by some of those who were granted standing.
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December 04, 2023
Sufficient evidentiary record ‘not a mere technicality,’ Appeal Court says in teacher testing case
Ontario’s top court has ruled that math proficiency tests (MPTs) which teacher candidates in the province are required to complete do not violate equality protections under the Charter, overturning a lower court decision which said the tests had an adverse impact on racialized candidates entering the teaching profession.
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November 29, 2023
Alberta government’s use of sovereignty law ‘a fair bit of sound and fury,’ law prof says
Alberta has for the first time invoked its controversial sovereignty legislation as it continues its fight with the federal government over draft electricity regulations, and legal experts say the effect of that move remains to be seen — but a legal battle over the constitutionality of the regulations could be on the horizon.