Comparative Constitutional Law
Fall 2008
Professor Fischer
Constitutional Crisis
September 3, 2008
Canadian Artist: Emily Carr
(Kispiax Village)
Canadian Artist: Emily Carr
(Autumn Wods)
Wrap-Up
• Federalism in Canada:
• 2 list system
• Broad reading of provincial powers,
narrow reading of POGG residuary power
in A. 91 by both Privy Council and
Supreme Court
What is
• Distributive federalism?
• Identity-based federalism?
• Which more accurately describes the
Canadian system?
• Is canadian federalism asymmetrical? If
so, how? See p. 16 RR, See Re Quebec
Objection to A Resolution to Amend the
Constitution [1982] 2 SCR 793
Crisis Management by the
Supreme Court of Canada
• Reference Jurisdiction
Manitoba Language Reference
(1985)
Patriation Reference (1981)
Secession Reference (1998)
• Followed Quebec
referendum in 1995:
vote to secede failed
by margin of 50.4%49.4%
• Could Quebec
constitutionally
unilaterally secede
from Canada?
Terrorism in Canada
• The FLQ
• October Crisis of 1970
(kidnapping of James
Cross, Pierre Laporte)
• Trudeau response: the
War Measures Act
• Invoked 3 times in
Canadian history (First
World War, Second World
War (Japanese Candian
internment), October
Crisis)
• Replaced by
Emergencies Act 1988
September 11, 2001
Security Certificates
• Charkaoui v. Minister
of Citizenship and
Immigration [2007] 1
S.C.R. 350 -
2008: Amendment of IRPA – Bill C3
Charkaoui v. Canada [2008] SCC
38
• Charkaoui round 2: destruction of notes by
CSIS
David Fontana article
• Do you agree with David Fontana’s
comparative critique of the U.S. Supreme
Court in Dissent? [Handout packet p. 72]
Why or why not?