Charter+Cases

=**//THE SUPREME COURT OF CANADA! //**=



===**The Supreme Court of Canada is the highest court in the Canadian judicial system. The decisions made by the supreme court are very important and can have far reaching affects on all Canadians. Today we are going to be looking at some of those decisions and discussing the impact these decisions have on ordinary Canadians. __//Please watch the instructional video to find out what to do and enjoy!//__**===


 * INSTRUCTIONAL VIDEO: **[|Supreme Court Lesson]


 * 1.)** This first video is about the abortion law in Canada. Until 1969, abortion had been a criminal matter punishable by life imprisonment under the Criminal Code of Canada. In 1988, Pierre Trudeau passed a provision in the Criminal Code that allowed abortions to be performed in a hospital with the approval of a three-doctor therapeutic abortion committee. The committee would have to certify that the pregnancy would be likely to endanger the life or health of the pregnant woman. The term health was not defined, and therapeutic abortion committees were free to develop their own theories as to when a likely danger to “health” (which might include psychological health) would justify a therapeutic abortion.

At this time, abortions were also being performed by Dr. Henry Morgentaler in his private clinic, and he was widely known by activists and supporters alike. In 1988, the Supreme Court of Canada ruled the law "unconstitutional", paving the way for the pro-choice movement, allowing abortions to be performed in private clinics.


 * HAVE A LOOK :**


 * Abortion Law ruled unconstitutional :** [|Abortion Law]


 * 2.)** The Charter of the French Language (//**La charte de la langue française**//,) in French, also known as **Bill 101**, is a law in the province of Quebec in Canada defining French, the language of the majority of the people in Quebec, as the only official language of Quebec and framing fundamental language rights of all Quebeckers. It is the most prominent legislative piece in Quebec language policy.

The Supreme Court of Canada has ruled on **Bill 101** a number of times, including this example in 1988 where five Montreal based businesses fought for bilingual signs. As you know, **Bill 101** is a controversial topic that has divided many Quebeckers and will likely continue to do so.


 * HAVE A LOOK:**


 * Bill 101: [|Supreme Court rules on commercial signs]**


 * 3.)** Tobacco companies and the federal government have been battling for years over commercial advertising rights. The federal government has pressed for a ban on tobacco advertising because of the known health risks associated with smoking and other tobacco products. The tobacco companies have argued that this ban on advertising violates their right to "freedom of expression" under the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Decisions made by the supreme court have gone both ways, the most recent coming in 2007 limiting tobacco advertising because of the government's goal of reducing the health risks from smoking. This is a video of a decision made in 1995, where the Supreme Court struck down a ban on advertising by tobacco companies.


 * HAVE A LOOK:** Tobacco: [|Supreme Court strikes down ban]


 * 4.)** The last case we will look at has implications for millions of Canadians. This is the case involving Zoe Childs, a young woman who took her fight all the way to the Supreme Court of Canada. She was fighting to establish liability for party hosts (people having parties in their homes), much like a commercial establishment is liable for their patrons. This was a very significant decision by the supreme court that could have changed the way Canadians interact.


 * //READ THE STORY AND FIND OUT://** Zoe Childs Case: [|Party Host Liability]

**__DISCUSSION__** __**Mr. Fraser - Social Studies 11**__

After you have studied these cases, consider the following questions and write down your own thoughts in the discussion section of this page. If you are a little unsure, you can view what everyone else is writing to get a better idea. We will use your comments to follow up in class and make sure we understand the impact that the Supreme Court of Canada has.