Constitutional
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August 21, 2024
15 years on, court restores Indian status of mother and daughter who died waiting for recognition
The Indian status of a mother and daughter, both of whom passed away before a court could decide their appeal, has been affirmed 15 years after they were removed from the Indian Register without notice.
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August 21, 2024
Claims process now open for $1.9B federal boarding homes settlement
Indigenous survivors of federal boarding homes can now submit claims to receive compensation for the harm they suffered while they were in such homes, under a $1.9 billion settlement agreement approved by the Federal Court.
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August 19, 2024
Government approach to homelessness needs to be balanced, put human rights at forefront: experts
Municipal politicians across Ontario are calling on the province to help deal with what they characterize as the “humanitarian crisis” of homelessness, but legal experts are saying that the prevailing “law and order” approach to deal with issues like tent cities needs to shift to one where peoples’ civil rights are put at the forefront.
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August 19, 2024
Manitoba brings back GPS monitoring for those on bail
Manitoba has brought back a GPS monitoring system for those out on bail — but a group advocating for the province’s large First Nations population says the move shows a misplacement of priorities.
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August 16, 2024
Ontario ruling ‘makes it clear the border is not a Charter-free zone’: civil liberties association
Ontario’s top court has struck down a federal law that allowed border service officers to look at people’s digital devices, saying it violated the Charter’s protections against unreasonable search.
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August 13, 2024
Alberta creates new scholarship in public law
Alberta’s government has introduced a new scholarship to honour outstanding public law students.
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August 13, 2024
CONSTITUTIONAL ISSUES — Legal rights — Procedural rights — Trial within a reasonable time — Calculation of delay
Appeal by Tran from conviction for sexual assault following a judge-alone trial. Tran’s grounds of appeal all related to the dismissal of his pretrial s. 11(b) Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms (Charter) application for a stay of proceedings for unreasonable delay. The trial judge (judge) determined that the total time of 18 months and 19 days from charge to trial did not exceed the 18-month ceiling set out in Jordan case law, after subtracting 41 days for defence delay.
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August 12, 2024
New human rights chief ‘steps down’ following law firm probe of his history & hiring
Federal Justice Minister and Attorney General Arif Virani has accepted Birju Dattani stepping down as the chief federal human rights watchdog, following a report from an independent law firm that the recently hired head of the Canadian Human Rights Commission (CHRC), among other things, failed to disclose during the hiring process his sometime-use of an alternative name “Mujahid Dattani” on Twitter (now known as X) and in other public fora.
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August 12, 2024
Six First Nations file application challenging Ontario’s Mining Act as unconstitutional
Six First Nations have launched a court challenge against Ontario's Mining Act regime, charging that the province's free-entry mining system has been “flooded with newly registered mining claims” on lands that they govern, infringing on their treaty rights and Charter equality rights.
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August 09, 2024
‘Important to remember’ purpose of Ontario anti-SLAPP law is to weed out abusive proceedings: court
Ontario's highest court has sided with an anti-abortion group in its conflict with an activist who allegedly disrupted its operations, saying a legal challenge the organization brought against her does not constitute a strategic lawsuit against public participation (SLAPP).