Welcome to the Centre for Constitutional Studies

30^th Anniversary of the Constitution Act, 1982 

 April 17, 2012, marks the 30th anniversary of the Constitution Act, 1982. The proclamation of a new Constitution for Canada is a landmark for three significant events in Canadian history: 

• a formula for amending the Constitution;
• the patriation of the Canadian Constitution from Britain;
• the inclusion of a Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms in the Constitution.

 The Proclamation of the Constitution Act, 1982 was signed by then Prime Minister Pierre Elliott Trudeau and Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II on April 17, 1982. It entrenched Canada's ability to amend its own Constitution without any further recourse to the Parliament of the United Kingdom. And perhaps most significantly, it included a Charter of Rights and Freedoms which defines the kind of country in which we wish to live and guarantees the basic rights and freedoms which each of us shall enjoy as citizens of Canada.

The negotiations between provincial premiers and Prime Minister Trudeau that led to an agreement about an amending formula and a Charter of Rights and Freedoms were intense and fractious in 1981. To read about the conference hosted by the Centre for Constitutional Studies in November 2011 which brought together those who had been part of this tumultuous process see Patriation Negotiations Conference.

The past 30 years have allowed us to breathe life into our Charter. Newspapers and journals this week are rife with articles both extolling and condemning the impact of this constitutional instrument on our Canadian way of life.

In Memoriam – Professor Gerald Gall

We deeply regret the death of Gerald Gall on March 18, 2012. A professor of law at the University of Alberta for over 35 years, he was also one of the founders of the Centre for Constitutional Studies (CCS). Gerry, as he was known to all his friends and colleagues, devoted his professional life to teaching and advancing the public understanding of Canada’s Constitution and human rights law. He served on the management board of CCS for many years, and was named an honorary Centre Director on leaving the Board in 2007. Gerry was responsible for many Centre initiatives and will be remembered for the enthusiastic support he provided to Centre staff and students. For more information on his many achievements, please see http://www.law.ualberta.ca/news_events/PassingOfGeraldGall.php

WHAT'S NEW at the Centre

Our Publications

SPECIAL ISSUE OF REVIEW OF CONSTITUTIONAL STUDIES -  Volume 16, Issue 2 - March 2012

9/11 Ten years After: Re-Writing the Rights and Security Balance?
This special issue of the Review of Constitutional Studies, critically examines whether, which and how diverse rights regimes have been affected by security laws, policies, discourses and practices that have emerged in the aftermath of September 11.

 Table of Contents (PDF)

  Subscribe today!  

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  THE PATRIATION MINUTES written by  Howard Leeson

In November 1981, at the height of the nation's constitutional crisis, the First  Ministers assembled in Ottawa to seek an agreement. Their private debates have never been published. These are the minutes not taken.

Published by the Centre for Constitutional Studies, The Patriation Minutes, a book authored by Dr. Howard Leeson, Professor of Political Science at the University of Regina was officially launched at the opening proceedings of the Patriation Negotiations Conference on November 3, 2011.

This book is a record of the minutes taken by Professor Howard Leeson during the patriation negotiations when he was Deputy Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs for the province of Saskatchewan.  Click here to purchase your copy today!

 

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Our Events

 

PATRIATION NEGOTIATIONS CONFERENCE - November 3-5, 2011 

The Patriation Negotiations Conference was held November 3-5, 2011 at the Fairmont Hotel Macdonald in Edmonton to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the 1981 negotiations that led to the patriation of our Constitution on April 17, 1982.

The conference was a gathering of approximately 140 politicians, public servants, political advisors, government lawyers from both justice and intergovernmental affairs departments, academics in law, political science, sociology, history, students of political science and law as well as members of the public. All engaged in examining the negotiations of November, 1981 that led to a final deal - one that included a Charter of Rights and Freedoms and an amending formula which finally allowed Canada to patriate its constitution from Britain.

Many of the participants in the patriation negotiations process of 1981 participated in the conference to set the record straight - to tell their stories about what actually happened the fateful night of November 4th and in the early morning hours of November 5th, 1981. Attendees heard the ‘real story’ about the ‘night of the long knives’ and the significance of the ‘kitchen accord’. The conference heard from former premiers Hon. Peter Lougheed, Hon. Brian Peckford, Hon. John Buchanan and from Hon. Roy Romanow, former Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs for the Province of Saskatchewan; Deputy Ministers from Alberta, Saskatchewan, Ontario and Quebec; special constitutional advisors to the Government of Canada; drafters of the final document about their recollections and reflections on the process.

Some of the best and brightest constitutional scholars from across Canada analysed the road to patriation, Trudeau's constitutional vision and Quebec's perspective on not signing the deal. Interesting and new stories were told from the perspectives of those who were excluded from the negotiations - First Nations people and women. Attendees learned about the 'Constitutional Express', a train that travelled across the country gathering Aboriginal peoples who then lobbied against patriation in Ottawa, and about their efforts in London to block the deal because they had not been consulted in Canada's bid to change its Constitution. They learned about the women's lobby for an effective equality provision in the Charter and about the fight between Hon. Judy Erola and then Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau for inclusion of section 28.

The conference was a fundamentally Canadian event. It was an opportunity, 30 years later to the day, for those who had brokered a deal that was acceptable to most provinces and Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau but that left Quebec out, to explain what happened and why. And it was an opportunity for those from Quebec to speak frankly about the impact of that decision. Overall, it was a gathering of those who participated in one of the most tumultuous and significant constitutional moments in Canadian history. An historical documentary which captures the presentations and interviews with key participants is currently being produced and will be released later this year. -Patricia Paradis    

     

Featured Articles

• Citizenship Primer: Background and Issues
  
  
• Citizenship and the Canadian Constitution
  
   
• Securities Regulation and the Division of Powers
  
  
• R v Withler: Case Summary
  
  

  Featured Constitutional Keywords 

  • Positive and Negative Rights
     
  • Constitutional Rights
    
    
  • Double Aspect 
     
  • Interjurisdictional Immunity
     
  • Pith and Substance

    

  Announcements

  • Constitutional Forum constitutionnel is now available online as an open access and online journal with this link: 
    http://ejournals.library.ualberta.ca/index.php/constitutional_forum/
     
  • SPECIAL ISSUE - Constitutional Forum constutionnel - Insights on Insite - VOL 19, Issue 3
     CLICK HERE to purchase a copy of our last print issue of the Forum
     

  Webcasts

   Webcast: "Aboriginal Citizenship: Looking Back, Looking Forward" - March 30th, 2011
  with Mary Eberts, Ariel F. Sallows Chair in Human Rights for 2011, University of Saskatchewan
  
  

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  Webcast: Big Love and Small Reasons: Considering Polygamy - January 27th, 2011
  with Carissima Mathen, Visiting Professor, University of Ottawa
  Running time approx. 52 minutes

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  Newly posted Headline Review:

  A Flurry of Responses to Saskatchewan Marriage Commissioners Reference

  Featured Court Ruling:

  The Saskatchewan Marriage Commissioner’s Reference

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  Listen: QR77 - The World Tonight, January 26, 2011:

  Considering Polygamy — interview with Carissima Mathen

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  Podcast:

  Marking 25 years of equality jurisprudence: Section 15 of the Charter - has it been all we hoped it would be? November 26, 2010

  CCS - 2010-11-30

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  Webcast: Insights on INSITE:

  Legal and Policy Dimensions of the Supervised Drug Injection Site, November 2, 2010

  Running time approx 60 mins.

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  Webcast: The 22nd Annual McDonald Lecture in Constitutional Studies, October 14, 2010

  Canada's Response to Terrorism

  The Honourable Frank Iacobucci, Former Justice of the Supreme Court of Canada
  Running time approx 90 mins.
   

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  Webcast: Civil Liberties for the 21st Century: Nathalie DesRosiers

  October 12, 2010

  Running time approx 46 mins.

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  Webcast: The Supreme Court's Charter Summer

  October 4, 2010

  Running time approx 45 mins.

   

   

  Participants: Professor Eric Adams, Professor Barbara Billingsley & Professor Steven Penney

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  Webcast: "Arguing the Omar Khadr Appeal"

  A lecture and discussion with Omar Khadr's lawyers, Dennis Edney & Nathan Whitling

  Play the Webcast: Running time approximately 90 minutes

  • Ontario (Public Safety and Security) v. Criminal Lawyers' Association
  • R. v. National Post
  • Toronto Star Newspapers Ltd. v. Canada