CCLA will intervene before the Supreme Court of Canada in the case of Her Majesty the Queen v. F.A. et al., on March 18th, 2010. Lawyers Anil Kapoor and Lindsay Daviau will represent CCLA in arguing Charter issues in this case which is currently subject to a publication ban.
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The Canadian Civil Liberties Association is undertaking a research project on the status of immigrant in Canadian society. Immigration status – whether it be citizenship, permanent resident status, visitor status, temporary workers status, “no status” – plays an important role in how rights, benefits and obligations are allocated. Rules regarding voting rights, access to social services, employment and property ownership often make distinctions on the basis of immigration status. What are the consequences of such distinctions? Are they appropriate? The CCLA is planning to release a discussion paper on these issues during the summer, followed by a conference late September (see the Call for Papers). Read more… The CCLA believes that the Canadian public has a constitutionally-protected right to receive information about the nature and the workings of our justice system. Lower Quebec Court decisions, however, found that the Charter’s guarantees of freedom of the press and freedom of expression did not apply in courthouses. This exclusion would frustrate freedom of expression, freedom of the press, the promotion of open courts, and ultimately democracy and justice itself. On March 16, 2010, CCLA will appear before the Supreme Court to argue that these decisions should be overturned. Read more… The federal government has released a discussion paper that proposes the following amendments to the Criminal Code :
The CCLA will be participating in this consultation and submit a brief to the government. It will seek to ensure that Charter rights to counsel are not unduly undermined and that no additional coercive powers are granted to law enforcement unless the necessity for such additional powers has been demonstrated and proper accountability imeasures have been implemented. In particular, the CCLA is concerned about the possibility of abuses that exist with the additional powers to randomly stop any driver, even without any suspicion of wrongdoing, to submit to a breath test. On Monday March 8th the Canadian Civil Liberties Association sent a letter to all Toronto District School Board (TDSB) trustees and senior officials inviting the TDSB to reconsider its ban on all potential “Israeli Apartheid Week” (IAW) activities. The CCLA urged TDSB to repeal this blanket ban in light of its impact on students’ and teachers’ freedom of expression and freedom of association rights. Schools and the school board should not limit the activities and causes that students can support, champion or engage with. Any restrictions on expression must be fully justified and carefully tailored. A blanket ban such as that imposed by the TDSB Director of Education cannot meet this standard. Such a response also hampers teachers, who may choose to use controversial subjects their students are already engaged with as ‘teachable’ moments to foster critical thinking, debate and awareness. Barring exceptional circumstances, the appropriate response to controversial student initiatives is not banning and silencing a given discourse, but questioning, discussing and teaching. To read CCLA’s letter to the TDSB click here. |
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