15 Important Charter Cases

Affirmed that section 8 protects an individual's reasonable expectation of privacy from state intrusion

1984

Established that section 2(a) protects religious freedom and prevents state-imposed religious observance

1985

Recognized that section 7 protects substantive principles of fundamental justice, not just procedural fairness

1985

Set out the test for determining when limits on Charter rights are justified under section 1

1986

Recognized that state restrictions on abortion can violate a woman's security of the person under section 7

1988

Established the framework for analyzing equality rights claims under section 15

1989

Defined freedom of expression broadly as protecting any non-violent activity that attempts to convey meaning under section 2(b)

1989

Confirmed that hate speech falls under freedom of expression, but can be justifiably limited under section 1

1990

Affirmed that section 7 protects the rights of accused individuals to know the case against them so that they may defend themselves, requiring broad prosecutorial disclosure

1991

Elucidated the principle of substantive equality as section 15 requires the government to take steps to ensure marginalized groups have equal benefit of the law

1997

Held that exclusion of sexual orientation from human rights protections violates the equality guarantee under section 15

1998

Found that excluding same-sex couples from spousal support provisions violates section 15 equality rights

1999

Held that extradition without assurances against the death penalty generally violates section 7

2001

Confirmed that extending civil marriage to same-sex couples is consistent with section 15 equality rights

2004

Recognized that criminal laws related to sex work violated section 7 by increasing risks to the safety and security of sex workers

2013