Law, Politics and the Judicial Process in Canada
Third Edition

Frederick L. Morton, ed.

About the Book

Since the first edition of this popular textbook appeared in 1984, the Charter of Rights and Freedoms has transformed the role of the courts in Canadian politics. The book introduces students to issues raised by the new political role of Canadian judges. The revised and updated third edition features new introductions and new readings that deal with current issues in the realm of Canadian law and politics.

About the Editor

F. L. (Ted) Morton is an associate professor in the Department of Political Science at the University of Calgary.

Contents

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Preface x

1
The Rule of Law in the Canadian Constitution 1
1.1 Roncarelli v. Duplessis 8
1.2 John Locke, “Of the Extent of the Legislative Power” 13
1.3 Thomas Jefferson, “The Declaration of Independence” 15
1.4 A.V.C. Dicey, “The Rule of Law” 16
1.5 W.R. Lederman, “The Independence of the Judiciary” * 19
1.6 Thomas M.J. Bateman, “Liberal versus Post-liberal Constitutionalism: Applying the Charter to Civil Society “ 19
1.7 Key Terms 30

2
Political Jurisprudence 31
2.1 Paul Weiler, “Two Models of Judicial Decision-Making” 38
2.2 Harrison v. Carswell 45
2.3 Michael Mandel, “Re Constitution of Canada, 1981:
The Patriation Reference” 48
2.4 Reference re the Secession of Quebec 56
2.5 Justice Bertha Wilson, “Will Women Judges Really
Make a Difference?”* 85
2.6 Candace C. White, “Gender Differences on the Supreme Court” 85
2.7 Key Terms 91

3
The Canadian Judicial System 93
3.1 Chief Justice Bora Laskin, “The Role and Functions of Final Appellate Courts: The Supreme Court of Canada” 100
3.2 Constitution Act, 1867, Sections 96-101 109
3.3 The Canadian Judicial System 110
3.4 The Criminal and Civil Court Processes 112
3.5 Key Terms 115
vi

4
Judicial Recruitment and Selection 117
4.1 Jeffrey Simpson, “Patronage in Judicial Appointments” 133
4.2 Sir Robert Megarry, “Judicial Appointments in Great Britain” 137
4.3 Peter H. Russell and Jacob S. Ziegel, “Mulroney’s Judicial Appointments and the New Judicial Advisory Committees” 143
4.4 Justice Bertha Wilson “Will Women Judges Really Make a Difference?” 147
4.5 Rob Martin, “A ‘Gender Patronage’ for Judges?” 152
4.6 F.L. Morton, “To Bring Judicial Appointments Out of the Closet” 154
4.7 William Thorsell, “What to Look For, and Guard Against, in a Supreme Court Judge” 157
4.8 Jacob S. Ziegel, “Merit Selection and Democratization of Appointments to the Supreme Court of Canada” 159
4.9 Key Terms 167

5
Judicial Independence, Ethics, and Discipline 169
5.1 W.R. Lederman, “The Independence of the Judiciary” 183
5.2 The Berger Affair 189
5.3 Chief Justice Bora Laskin, “The Meaning and Scope of Judicial Independence” 196
5.4 The McClung Affair 201
5.5 F.L. Morton, “L’Heureux-Dubé Crosses the Line” 206
5.6 Reference re Remuneration of Judges of the Provincial Court (P.E.I.) 212
5.7 Ian Greene et al., “Judicial Independence: The Views of Appellate Judges” 238
5.8 Conor A. Gearty, “What Are Judges For?” 245
5.9 Key Terms 254

6
Access to Judicial Power 255
6.1 Barry Strayer, “Constitutional References” 265
6.2 Minister of Justice of Canada v. Borowski 274
6.3 Borowski v. Attorney-General of Canada 280
6.4 Alan Borovoy, “Interventions and the Public Interest” 289
6.5 Ian Brodie, Intervenors and the Charter 295
6.6 Roy B. Flemming, “Agenda Setting: The Selection of Cases for Judicial Review in the Supreme Court of Canada”* 298
6.7 Key Terms 299

7
Interest Groups and Litigation 301
7.1 Canadian Advisory Council on the Status of Women, “Equality Rights and Legal Action” 309
7.2 Sherene Razack, “The Women’s Legal Education and Action Fund” 316
7.3 Ian Brodie, “The Court Challenges Program” 326
7.4 Christopher P. Manfredi, “Constitutional Rights and Interest Advocacy: Litigating Education Reform in Canada and the United States” 329
7.5 Gregory Hein, “Interest Group Litigation and Canadian Democracy” 343
7.6 Ian Brodie, “Response to Gregory Hein” 360
7.7 Key Terms 362

8
Fact Finding in the Courts 363
8.1 Donald C. Horowitz, “Fact Finding in Adjudication” 370
8.2 Carl Baar, “Social Facts, Court Delay and the Charter” 375
8.3 Peter H. Russell, “The Anti-Inflation Case: The Anatomy of a Constitutional Decision”* 384
8.4 Key Terms 385

9
Prcedents, Statutes, and Legal Reasoning 387
9.1 G. Gordon Post, “Stare Decisis: The Use of Precedents” 395
9.2 A.V.C. Dicey, “The Duty of a Court” 398
9.3 Paul Weiler, “Architect of the Common Law” 398
9.4 Boucher v. The King 405
9.5 David Greener, “The Transformative Power of the Legal Narrative” 409
9.6 Troy Riddell, “The Influence of Legal Commentary on Judicial Interpretation of the Charter” 414
9.7 Key Terms 422

10
Judicial Review and Federalism 423
10.1 Jennifer Smith, “The Origins of Judicial Review in Canada” 433
10.2 Lord Sankey, “The ‘Living Tree’ Approach to Interpreting the BNA Act” 442
10.3 Lord Atkin, “The ‘Watertight Compartments’ Approach to Interpreting the BNA Act” 443
10.4 Peter H. Russell, “The Anti-Inflation Case: The Anatomy of a Constitutional Decision” 443
10.5 Patrick Monahan, “Does Federalism Review Matter?” 467
10.6 Michael Mandel, “Re Constitution of Canada, 1981: The Patriation Reference” * 477
10.7 Reference re the Secession of Quebec * 477
10.8 Key Terms 478

11
Judicial Review and Civil Liberties 479
11.1 John Locke, “Of the Extent of the Legislative Power”* 495
11.2 A.V.C. Dicey, “The Rule of Law”* 495
11.3 Roncarelli v. Duplessis* 496
11.4 Boucher v. The King* 496
11.5 James B. Kelly, “The Supreme Court of Canada’s Charter of Rights Decisions, 1982–1999: A Statistical Analysis” 496
11.6 Thomas M.J. Bateman, “Liberal versus Post-liberal Constitutionalism: Applying the Charter to Civil Society”* 512
11.7 Charles Epp, “Do Bills of Rights Matter?” 512
11.8 Gregory Hein, “Interest Group Litigation and Canadian Democracy”* 531
11.9 Key Terms 532

12
Judicial Decision-Making 533
12.1 Justice Bertha Wilson, “Decision-making in the Supreme Court of Canada” 543
12.2 Roy B. Flemming, “Agenda Setting: The Selection of Cases for Judicial Review in the Supreme Court of Canada 546
12.3 F.L. Morton and Rainer Knopff, “The Role of Clerks in the Supreme Court of Canada” 555
12.4 James B. Kelly, “Judging the Judges: The Decline of Dissent in the Supreme Court’s Charter Decisions” 560
12.5 Key Terms 570

13
Reconciling Judicial Review and
Constitutional Democracy 571
13.1 Donald Smiley, “Courts, Legislatures, and the Protection of Human Rights” 575
13.2 John D. Whyte, “On Not Standing for Notwithstanding” 577
13.3 Peter H. Russell, “Standing Up for Notwithstanding” 584
13.4 Scott Reid, “A Better Way of Saying ‘Notwithstanding’” 596
13.5 Gregory Hein,”Interest Group Litigation and Canadian Democracy”* 598
13.6 Ian Greene et al., “Judicial Independence: The Views of Appellate Judges”* 599
13.7 Dialogue or Monologue? Hogg versus Morton
13.8 Justice Claire L’Heureux-Dubé, “Judicial Independence and Judicial Activism” 609
13.9 Chief Justice Beverley McLachlin, “Courts, Legislatures, and Executives in the Post-Charter Era” 617
13.10 Key Terms 626

Appendices 627
A Constitution Act, 1867, ss. 91-95, 133 627
B Canadian Bill of Rights, 1960 633
C Constitution Act, 1982 Sections 1-34. Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms 636
Section 35. Rights of the Aboriginal Peoples of Canada 642
Sections 38-49. Procedure for Amending the Constitution of Canada 643
Section 52. Supremacy Clause 646
D Chief Justices of the Supreme Court of Canada 647
E Puisne Justices of the Supreme Court of Canada 649
F Useful Websites 652

Index 653

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