CCLA Welcomes UR Pride Decision Affirming Key Role of Courts in Protecting Charter Rights

TORONTO — The Canadian Civil Liberties Association welcomes today’s decision of the Saskatchewan Court of Appeal in Saskatchewan (Minister of Education) v. UR Pride Centre for Sexuality and Gender Diversity, 2025 SKCA 74, which confirms the ability of courts to determine whether legislation limits the rights and freedoms guaranteed by the Charte even when the government has invoked the notwithstanding clause.

In August 2023, the Saskatchewan Ministry of Education adopted a policy requiring parental consent before a student under 16 could be addressed by a new gender-related name, identity, or pronoun at school. The policy was temporarily blocked following a constitutional challenge initiated by UR Pride on the basis that the policy violated students’ section 7 right (life, liberty, security of the person) and section 15 right (equality). In response, the government of Saskatchewan invoked the notwithstanding clause to pass the policy into law (the Loi sur l'éducation), attempting to shield the law from being declared unconstitutional.

In a landmark decision, the Court of Appeal confirmed that courts retain jurisdiction when the notwithstanding clause is invoked to issue declarations about rights violations.

UR Pride’s constitutional challenge to the Loi sur l'éducation can move forward and add further arguments that this legislation violates section 12 of the Charte. While the merits of whether the Education Act’s pronoun and name provisions violate Charte rights will be determined at a later stage, the Court of Appeal’s decision ensures that this important question will be heard in full.

“This decision is a victory for democratic accountability and the rule of law,” said Aaden Pearson, Trans Rights Legal Fellow and Staff Lawyer at the Canadian Civil Liberties Association. “The Court has made it clear that the use of the notwithstanding clause does not immunize governments from judicial scrutiny. Canadians have the right to know when their rights are being limited so they can make informed decisions at the ballot box; courts play a fundamental role in making sure this happens. This does not weaken our democracy, it strengthens it.”

The Canadian Civil Liberties Association applauds this affirmation of continued protection of constitutional rights and stands in solidarity with trans and gender-diverse youth and the communities that support them.

L'ACLC est reconnaissante pour l'excellent pro bono representation from Leif Jensen and Dan LeBlanc of LeBlanc Jensen.