The Accessible Canada Act and similar legislation in four provinces address systemic barriers of accessibility.According to Statistics Canada (2017), 22% of Canadians over the age of 15 live with at least one disability that limits their everyday activities. Federal and provincial human … [Read more...]
Disabilities, Accommodation and Mask Rules: Human Rights Commission weighs in
The British Columbia Human Rights Tribunal released a screening decision about a customer's complaint of having to wear a mask in a store.Recently, the British Columbia Human Rights Tribunal declined to accept a complaint in a case called The Customer v The Store, 2021 BCHRT 39 (The Customer). … [Read more...]
Advancing the Human Rights to Water and Sanitation under International Law: Human rights vs. investor rights
While international mechanisms are increasingly recognizing the human rights to water and sanitation, states must take action too.Concerns about the human rights to water and sanitation (HRWS) under international law have gained increasing attention in recent years. In Canada, ongoing water … [Read more...]
Stateless but Not Powerless
A novel of Kurdish resistance and the quandary of human rights in our timeThe most compelling new novel I read in 2020 is Daughters of Smoke and Fire from debut Kurdish-Canadian novelist Ava Homa. This dynamic advocacy piece for Kurds and women’s rights in the Middle East was also the inaugural … [Read more...]
SCC Rules on Intellectual Disabilities and Equality
A recent Supreme Court of Canada (SCC) case, R v Slatter, 2020 SCC 36, provided a strong statement about the treatment of evidence provided by witnesses who have intellectual or developmental disabilities.Thomas Slatter was convicted at trial of sexually assaulting an intellectually disabled … [Read more...]
Transgender Inmates in Canada
How do federal, provincial and territorial laws or policies protect transgender inmates?Individuals may identify with a gender that goes along with their sex given at birth, they may identify with a gender that is different from their sex given at birth, or they may identify with a non-traditional … [Read more...]
When Can the Right to Freedom of Expression be Curtailed?
Section 2 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms protects our freedom of expression, but this freedom is not absolute.The right to express our opinions is a crucial element of a democracy. Freedom of expression is a basic characteristic of personal development. It gives us the right to … [Read more...]
New & Updated Resources at CPLEA – Vol. 43-1
LawNow has created a Department called New Resources at CPLEA, which is now a permanent addition to each issue. Each post will highlight what's new, updated/revised or popular at CPLEA. All resources are free and available for download. We hope that this will raise awareness of the many resources … [Read more...]
The Significance of the Charter in Canadian Legal History
The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms is a bill of rights - a statement of rights and freedoms that was added to the Constitution in 1982.Looking Back2017 not only marks 150 years since the British North America Act, 1867 (better known today as the Constitution Act, 1867), came into being, … [Read more...]
Celebrating Anniversaries: A Year after CHRT’s Ruling on Discriminatory Funding of Welfare Services for First Nations Children
January 26, 2017 marked the first-year anniversary of the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal’s (“The Tribunal”) landmark decision regarding the issue of funding for child welfare services provided to First Nations children on reserve and in the Yukon. The complaint was filed in 2008 by the First Nations … [Read more...]
