C.P v. Her Majesty the Queen is a critical case about the rights of young people in the criminal justice system. The Court will determine whether the Youth Criminal Justice Act violates the Charter by denying young people an automatic right … Read More
Legal Cases
These pages list the legal documents for the cases.
In a 4:1 opinion, the BC Court of Appeal ruled that breaches of recognizance (i.e. breaches of bail conditions) under section 145(3) of the Criminal Code require an objective, as opposed to a subjective, mental fault element (mens rea). An … Read More
On November 12, 2019, the Supreme Court of Canada will hear two appeals concerning freedom of expression on matters of public interest and lawsuits that aim to stifle that expression. These lawsuits are sometimes called Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation … Read More
The BCCLA intervened in this important case, in which the victim surcharge (s. 737 of the Criminal Code) was successfully struck down. The surcharge was introduced in 1988 with the intention of providing financial assistance to victims of crime, and … Read More
The BCCLA is intervening in this case at the Supreme Court of Canada, which deals with the fine in lieu of forfeiture provisions of the Criminal Code. These laws trigger significant additional jail time – on top of the sentence … Read More
This case concerns when a sentencing judge may deviate from a joint sentencing submission agreed to by both the Crown and the defence. The case arose out of a tragic death on February 9, 2013. Mr. Anthony-Cook had been at … Read More
On September 26, 2016, the BCCLA and Canadian Association of Refugee Lawyers (CARL) launched a legal challenge to protect the rights of Canadians facing revocation of their Canadian citizenship due to allegations of misrepresentation. The organizations argue that any Canadian … Read More
This case concerns whether a provincial government can pass legislation making itself immune from claims for damages under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. The BCCLA is intervening at the Supreme Court of Canada to argue that governments cannot … Read More
The BC Civil Liberties Association was an intervener at the Supreme Court of Canada in KRJ v. Her Majesty the Queen. At issue in this case is whether an absolute ban on using the Internet, imposed as a consequence of … Read More
The issue in World Bank Group v. Kevin Wallace et al is whether an international organization such as the World Bank — having conducted an investigation that resulted in domestic criminal charges in Canada— can place its investigative files beyond … Read More