Does Canada need a tougher bail system?

In the past 6 months, eight police officers have been killed while carrying out their duties in serving and protecting the public. These tragic killings of police officers have raised serious questions about the Canadian bail system, and whether targeted reforms to the bail system are required in gun-related cases. Recently, 13 Premiers wrote to the Prime Minister asking for reforms that would make it more difficult for individuals charged with gun-related offences to get out on bail.

In this conversation we will provide an overview of the bail system, how it works, the requirements to obtain bail, and some challenges faced within the system. We then discuss whether further targeted reform is necessary. We also discuss different areas of the Charter that are engaged in the way the bail system operates in Canada.

What to do about Digital ID? Surveillance, Privacy, and Risk

Governments across Canada and around the world are implementing Digital ID systems, generally with the public intention of providing more and better government services to its citizens. Some of these systems have produced positive results while others have served as tools for governments to monitor and suppress political dissidents.

Digital ID, like any other technology, can be used at any scale: small scale with minimal risks, or large scale with monumental risks. As Canada continues its experiment with Digital ID, it is worth considering how these technologies, policies, and relationships between government and industry may pose risks to Canadians’ fundamental freedoms. We should consider the experiences of other countries, the history of Digital ID in Canada, and look to the publicly available plans for expanding Digital ID within Canada and around the world.

Protests and Democracy: Perspectives on Canada and Iran

In this conversation, we explore the role of peaceful protests and democracies. Lawyer Sayeh Hassan draws from her 20 years of experience as a human rights advocate in her country of birth, Iran, and years of practice as a criminal defence lawyer and Charter advocate, to discuss the importance of the right to peaceful assembly in free and democratic societies, and how curtailing this right can have a devastating impact on freedom and democracy. Sayeh has spent the past two years defending Charter rights and civil liberties of Canadians and will highlight some of the cases where Covid-19 measures have impacted the right to peaceful assembly across Canada.

La filière française : laïcité de l’État et neutralité religieuse au Canada

Depuis la Révolution tranquille, la province de Québec est devenue de plus en plus hostile aux manifestations de croyances religieuses et d’appartenances confessionnelles. Des arrêts marquants de la Cour suprême concernant la « neutralité religieuse » de l'État et le programme obligatoire d'éthique et de culture religieuse au secondaire sont issues de dossiers québécois. Cette tendance a culminé récemment avec le projet de loi 21 sur la laïcité de l'État, qui interdit les symboles religieux visibles dans de larges pans de la fonction publique provinciale. La Cour supérieure du Québec a confirmé la validité de la plupart des articles de la Loi (maintenant en vigueur) en raison de la clause dérogatoire qui y est insérée ; l'affaire est maintenant devant la Cour d'appel.

The French connection: laicity of the State and religious neutrality in Canada

Since the Quiet Revolution in the 1960s, the province of Québec has become increasingly hostile to displays of religious beliefs and affiliations. Major Supreme Court rulings respecting the "religious neutrality" of the State and mandatory ethics and religious culture program in school have come out of Québec cases. This trend culminated recently with Bill 21 on the Laicity of the State, which bans ostensible religious symbols from large swaths of the provincial public service. The Québec Superior Court upheld the validity of most sections of Bill 21 because of the notwithstanding clause inserted therein; the case is now before the Court of Appeal.

Samuel’s talk will address legal and philosophical issues surrounding Bill 21 and a few high-profile Court cases, and expand on other manifestations of Québec’s growing intolerance to Christianity. He will also comment on the central role of the Catholic church in the history of French Canada, and the impact of the current crisis (scandals, class actions, etc.) on public discourse.