Judicial Power And Canadian Democracy

The controversy raises challenging questions about the role of a powerful judiciary in a democracy. In Judicial Power and Canadian Democracy, a series of essays commissioned by the Institute for Research on Public Policy, some of Canada's foremost commentators - academics, politicians, and Supreme Court judges themselves - take up the debate. Some tangle over the pivotal question: should judges have the decisive say on issues involving entrenched rights that have profound implication for the policy preferences of elected bodies? Others examine related issues, including Supreme Court appointment procedures, interest group litigation, the historical roots of the notwithstanding clause, and the state of public opinion on Canada's courts. Those interested in the power of the judicial branch will find much in this collection to stimulate fresh thinking on issues that are likely to remain on the public agenda for years to come. Contributors include Joseph F. Fletcher (Toronto), Janet Hiebert (Queen's), Gregory Hein (Toronto), Peter W. Hogg (York), Paul Howe, Rainer Knopff (Calgary), Sébastien Lebel-Grenier (Sherbrooke), Howard Leeson (Regina), Kate Malleson (London School of Economics), E. Preston Manning (Reform Party of Canada), Hon. Beverley McLachlin (Supreme Court of Canada), F.L. Morton (Calgary), Pierre Patenaude (Sherbrooke), Peter Russell, Allison A. Thornton (Blake, Cassels and Graydon), Frederick Vaughan (emeritus, Guelph), Lorraine Eisenstat Weinrib (Toronto), Hon. Bertha Wilson (emeritus, Supreme Court of Canada), and Jacob Ziegel (Toronto).

Explores the relationship between the legitimacy, the efficacy, and the decision-making of national and transnational constitutional courts.

This book examines the paradox at the heart of the relationship between judicial power and liberal constitutionalism in Canada, the use of judicial power to review and nullify or modify policies enacted by democratically accountable decision-makers. In this new edition, Manfredi refines his original argument and brings the content completely up to date.

Since the first edition of this popular text was published in 1984, the Charter of Rights and Freedoms has transformed the role of the courts in Canadian politics. Newly revised and updated, Law, Politics, and the Judicial Process in Canada, 4th Edition provides an introduction to the issues raised by the changing political role of Canadian judges. It includes over 40 new readings, including two all-new chapters on the Harper Conservatives and Aboriginal Law. Addressing current controversies, including the Canadian Judicial Council's investigations into Justice Robin Camp and Lori Douglas and the Trudeau Government's re-introduction of the Court Challenges Program, this book strives for competing perspectives, with many readings juxtaposed to foster debate. Taking a critical approach to the Charter of Rights and Freedoms and the growth of judicial power, editors F.L. Morton and Dave Snow provide an even-handed examination of current and ongoing issues. Law, Politics, and the Judicial Process in Canada, 4th Edition is the leading source for students interested in the Charter of Rights and Freedoms and the growth of judicial power in Canada.

FROM DEMOCRACY TOJUDICIAL DICTATORSHIP IN CANADA:THE UNTOLD STORY OF THE CHARTER OF RIGHTSCanada has been profoundly changed since our Constitution, including the Charter of Rights, came to be patriated in 1982. This took place without any national referendum or public support.The 1982 Patriation caused the transfer of power from the elected federal Parliament and provincial Legislatures which are accountable to the public, to nonelected, unaccountable judges sitting on the Supreme Court of Canada. The judiciary now make, without public input or accountability, fundamental decisions affecting our daily lives.From Democracy to Judicial Dictatorship in Canada reveals how this dramatic change came about. Based on documentary evidence, the authors disclose how Prime Minister Pierre Elliott Trudeau: An ardent socialist, became a member of the Liberal Party of Canada solely to use it as a platform to change Canada's Constitution according to his directions.Had no respect for the elected Members of Parliament, and preferred that elitist appointed judges make fundamental decisions, using the Charter as their tool to reshape Canadian values and society. Engaged in obnoxious behaviour deliberately misleading the public about the purpose and effect of his proposed Charter of Rights.Canadian judges have used the Charter to expand their role and influence, contrary to the clear intent of the drafters of the Charter. Time and again, judges have thrown aside judicial restraint, abandoned legal merit and precedent as the basis of their decisions, and instead have applied their own political ideology in reaching their decisions. They have now become the most powerful individuals in Canadian history.These startling events are examined through a critique of a number of Supreme Court of Canada and lower court cases, and the apparent mentality of the judges who believe that they are personally qualified to decide "what is best for Canadians."This book provides the reader with a three part assessment of our current state of constitutional crisis. The first part is a survey of the politics that went into the 1982 patriation of Canada's Constitution. The second, the loss of Parliamentary sovereignty and the rise of judicial activism. In the third part, the authors make the case that reform is not only necessary but possible. Both the courts and Parliament must actively seek to re-balance their respective roles based on principles of responsible government and electoral accountability, to ensure that Canada, once again, becomes strong and free, rooted in the consent of the governed.

The introduction of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms in 1982 was accompanied by much fanfare and public debate. This book does not celebrate the Charter; rather it offers a critique by distinguished scholars of law and political science of its effect on democracy, judicial power, and the place of Quebec and Aboriginal peoples twenty-five years later. By employing diverse methodological approaches, contributors shift the focus of debate from the Charter’s appropriateness to its impact – for better or worse – on political institutions, public policy, and conceptions of citizenship in the Canadian federation.

"Since the first edition of this popular text was published in 1984, the Charter of Rights and Freedoms has transformed the role of the courts in Canadian politics. Newly revised and updated, Law, Politics, and the Judicial Process in Canada, 4th Edition provides an introduction to the issues raised by the changing political role of Canadian judges. It includes over 40 new readings, including two all-new chapters on the Harper Conservatives and Aboriginal Law. Addressing current controversies, including the Canadian Judicial Council's investigations into Justice Robin Camp and Lori Douglas and the Trudeau Government's re-introduction of the Court Challenges Program, this book strives for competing perspectives, with many readings juxtaposed to foster debate. Taking a critical approach to the Charter of Rights and Freedoms and the growth of judicial power, editors F.L. Morton and Dave Snow provide an even-handed examination of current and ongoing issues. Law, Politics, and the Judicial Process in Canada, 4th Edition is the leading source for students interested in the Charter of Rights and Freedoms and the growth of judicial power in Canada."--