Judicial Activism in Selected Cases Decided by the Supreme Court of Canada

Abstract

There have long been widely differing views in the Canadian legal community as to whether judicial activism characterizes judicial decision-making in Canada and, if it does, then to what extent and in what form. Judicial activism, as mentioned in the opening chapter in this work, has come in some circles to be viewed as a thing to be avoided at all costs, and as undermining the integrity of the judicial system. At the same time certain constitutional legal experts have expressed concern that “the debate on judicial activism in Canada has begun to produce excessive judicial deference that allows legislatures and officials to act without scrutiny by the judiciary concerning the effects of state action on vulnerable minorities.”