Introduction: The Legacy of the Reference Re Secession of Quebec

Abstract

The aim of this collection of essays is to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the Reference Re Secession of Quebec, delivered by the Canadian Supreme Court in 1998. The readers could wonder why two non-Canadian scholars have decided to engage in an enterprise like this. There are several reasons of course, let us recall just three of them. First of all, the recent revival of secessionist movements in Europe and elsewhere has definitely given new lifeblood to a long-standing debate, gathering the attention of scholars from all around the world. Second, the Canadian Reference contains incredible anti-populist potential, since it resulted in giving a series of guidelines that are very useful to govern the relationship between referendum and representative democracy and because it embraced a complex notion of democracy. Third, the fear of secession is a typical concern in federal orders and poses a formidable intellectual and political challenge to their stability. The Reference was a turning point in framing the internal balance of a multinational federation which is also a well-established constitutional democracy.