In 2007, the Supreme Court of Canada seemed to suggest that the utility of interjurisdictional immunity had been nearly exhausted. Justices Binnie and LeBel, in Canadian Western Bank v The Queen in Right of Alberta, [2007] 2 SCR 3 made reference to the doctrine’s asymmetrical application, propensity to create legal vacuums, and general superfluity. These [...]

Editor’s Note: This is the first of a two-post series on the proposed Canadian Securities Act. The federal government recently referred the proposed legislation to the SCC.  The first post focuses on the constitutionality of the proposed legislation, while the second post will compare the merits of federal and provincial regulation, and discuss the effect [...]

(Editor’s Note: The author, Richard Butler, is a constitutional lawyer with the B.C. Ministry of Attorney General. The views expressed are those of the author, and not his employer.) Introduction A profound change of thinking on constitutional design is evident in the Supreme Court’s recent jurisprudence –  a change made manifest in the Court’s evolving approach [...]

Mighty oaks from little acorns grow. In the early days of Confederation, the constitutional seedling needed protection from winds and rains (centripetal forces drawing Canadian attention back across the seas or immediately to the south) which might have stunted or bent its growth. Next, the sapling needed protection from provincial governments with many of the [...]

Health care undertakings by a province are potentially immune from criminal law. That is the conclusion reached by a 2-1 majority in PHS Community Services Society v. Canada (Attorney General), 2010 BCCA 15 [PHS]. The case concerned Insite, a Vancouver clinic which provides a safe place for addicts to use drugs, and the applicability of [...]