Before being born again, Bill Whatcott had it rough: by 14 he was living on the streets, selling himself to older men to survive, sniffing glue to get by. His religious rebirth transformed him into an outspoken member of the Christian Truth Activists. The religious teachings he chooses to preach in this new life do [...]

In April, the Supreme Court of Canada (SCC) handed down its latest pronouncement on the relationship between the Charter’s guarantee to freedom of association and the collective bargaining process in Ontario (AG) v. Fraser (Fraser). In Fraser, a majority of the Court determined that Ontario’s Agricultural Employees’ Protection Act (AEPA) is consistent with the Charter’s s. 2(d) guarantee [...]

In April, the Supreme Court of Canada (SCC) handed down its latest pronouncement on the relationship between the Charter’s guarantee to freedom of association and the collective bargaining process in Ontario (AG) v. Fraser (Fraser). In Fraser, a majority of the Court determined that Ontario’s Agricultural Employees’ Protection Act (AEPA) is consistent with the Charter’s s. 2(d) guarantee [...]

On July 21, 2011, the Supreme Court of Canada handed down its decision in Alberta v. Cunningham. Our senior contributing editor Joseph Marcus discussed the case earlier this week. Given the significance of this case, and its contribution to the section 15(2) jurisprudence, guest contributor Marina Chernenko provides some additional analysis about the decision’s implications. [...]

In April the Supreme Court of Canada (SCC) handed down its latest pronouncement on the relationship between the Charter’s guarantee to freedom of association and the collective bargaining process in Ontario (AG) v Fraser (Fraser). In Fraser, a majority of the Court determined that Ontario’s Agricultural Employees’ Protection Act (AEPA) is consistent with the Charter’s s. 2(d) guarantee [...]

Earlier this summer, Chief Justice McLachlin, for a unanimous Supreme Court of Canada, rejected a constitutional equality claim brought by a group of claimants from the Peavine Métis Settlement in Alberta. The decision offers a particularly powerful demonstration of how ss. 15(1) and 15(2) of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms work together to [...]

It is, in all likelihood, a coincidence that the anniversary of Halpern v. Canada (2002) comes on the heels of Toronto’s annual gay pride festival, but the timing is impeccable. On July 12, 2002, Justice LaForme, for a unanimous Ontario Superior Court of Justice, released a landmark decision that would pave the way towards gay [...]

Justice Elaine Adair, for the Supreme Court of British Columbia in Pratten v. British Columbia (Attorney General), 2011 BCSC 656, has struck down provincial legislation that protects sperm donor anonymity. More specifically, it was held that certain provisions of B.C.’s Adoption Act and Adoption Regulation unjustifiably violated section 15 of the Canadian Charter of Rights [...]

Those who have seen Louis Theroux’s BBC documentary, The Most Hated Family in America, and wondered whether Westboro Baptist Church was inevitably headed for a lawsuit, were vindicated when Albert Snyder finally brought the infamous Phelps family to court after they protested at the funeral of his son.  Marine Lance Corporal Matthew Snyder was killed [...]

Advocates for a national securities regulator in Canada will be disappointed with the Alberta Court of Appeal’s decision in favour of the provincial opponents in the Reference re Securities Act (Canada), 2011 ABCA 77.  The Court of Appeal found that the federal government does not have the constitutional authority to regulate securities under the proposed Securities [...]