Policy Change, Courts, and the Canadian Constitution

Emmett Macfarlane is a professor in the Department of Political Science at the University of Waterloo.

"Why, when, and how courts make policy is not only grist for law faculties and practitioners. Public policy effects change in Canada – and occasionally that change is truly uncharted…The questions posed in this book are fundamental."- Michael Bryant (Literary Review of Canada, Vol 27, no. 2) "The case studies in this text are fascinating and provide insight into how changes in public policy have (or have not) come into effect."- Julie Hetherington-Field, Norton Rose Fulbright Canada (Canadian Law Library Review)

• Introduction: Judicial Policy Impact in CanadaEmmett Macfarlane (University of Waterloo)PART I – Approaches and Theories of Policy ChangeChapter 1: Lessons from Public Policy Theories: Ask About Policy Change First, Courts SecondMinh Do (University of Toronto)Chapter 2: Closing a Door but Opening a Policy Window: Legislating Assisted Dying in CanadaDave Snow (University of Guelph) and Kate Puddister (University of Guelph)Chapter 3: The Supreme Court of Canada, Judicial Remedies, and Punctuated EquilibriumMarc Zanoni (University of Guelph)PART II – Institutional ContextsChapter 4: The Charter, Policy, and Political JudgmentJanet Hiebert (Queen’s University)Chapter 5: Collaborative Federalism and the Role of the Supreme Court of CanadaRobert Schertzer (University of Toronto) Chapter 6: The Impact of Constitutional References on Institutional ReformKate Glover (Western University)Chapter 7: The Desuetude of the Notwithstanding Clause – And How to Revive ItRichard Albert (University of Texas at Austin)PART III – Policy IssuesChapter 8: The Charter Beat: The Impact of Rights Decisions on Canadian PolicingTroy Riddell (University of Guelph) and Dennis Baker (University of Guelph)Chapter 9: Protecting Against Cruel and Unusual Punishment: Section 12 of the Charter and Mandatory Minimum SentencesKate Puddister (University of Guelph)Chapter 10: Third Party Policy and Electoral Participation after Harper v. Canada: A Triumph of Egalitarianism?Erin Crandall (Acadia University) and Andrea Lawlor (Western University)Chapter 11: Section 23 of the Charter and Official-Language Minority Instruction in Canada: The Judiciary’s Impact and Limits in Education PolicymakingStéphanie Chouinard (Royal Military College of Canada)Chapter 12: The Charter of the French Language and the Supreme Court of Canada: Assessing Whether Constitutional Design Can Influence Policy OutcomesJames B. Kelly (Concordia University)Chapter 13: When is a Citizen No Longer a Citizen? Analyzing Constructions of Citizenship in Canada’s Judicial and Legislative ForumsMegan Gaucher (Carleton University)Chapter 14: Taking the Harper Government’s Refugee Policy to CourtChris Anderson (Wilfrid Laurier University) and Dagmar Soennecken (York University)Chapter 15: Carter Conflicts: The Supreme Court of Canada’s Impact on Medical Assistance in Dying PolicyEleni Nicolaides (University of Guelph) and Matthew Hennigar (Brock University)Chapter 16: Canadian Abortion Policy and the Limitations of LitigationRachael Johnstone (Queen’s University)Chapter 17: Contrasting Visions of Indigenous Rights, Recognition, and Territory: Assessing Crown Policy in the Context of Reconciliation and Historic ObligationsMichael McCrossan (University of New Brunswick)Chapter 18: After Marriage Equality: Courting Queer and Trans RightsKyle Kirkup (University of Ottawa)Conclusion: Policy Influence and Its Limits: Assessing the Power of Courts and the ConstitutionEmmett Macfarlane (University of Waterloo)