Outline
POLITICAL SCIENCE 3605.03(W) Section A
 PUBLIC LAW II


 THE CHARTER OF RIGHTS AND FREEDOMS
and the Limits of Public Administration
 WINTER TERM 2003-2004









Lectures:  Tues., 8:30 - 10:30, and Thurs., 8:30a.m. to 9:30 a.m.
Stedman Lecture Hall F

Course Director:  Ian Greene; igreene@yorku.ca
Office: 124 McLaughlin College, Ph: 736-5128, ext. 77055
Office Hours:
Mondays, 10:30 to 11:30.
Tuesdays 10:30 - 12:00 noon; or by appointment

Teaching Assistants:
 •For writing assignment:  Kristopher Crawford-Dickinson; kris.dickinson@sympatico.ca
 Usual office hours:  Wednesdays 11:30 to 1:30, 611 South Ross.
 •For exams:  Kristin Skinner; email kskinner@yorku.ca.

Class web page: www.yorku/ca/igreene/publaw2.htm

This course examines key provisions of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms as they have been interpreted by the courts. This includes freedoms of expression and association; right to life, liberty and security of the persons; equality rights and non-discrimination; and the rights of aboriginal peoples. In addition, a section of the course is devoted to judicial review of public administration.  Useful prerequisites: AS/POLS 2100.06 or AS/POLS 2610.06 and AS/POLS 3600.03, or permission of the instructor.

DEGREE CREDIT EXCLUSION:
This course is equivalent to AK/POLS 3405.06:  "Politics and Law," and SOSC 3360 6.0, "The Charter of Rights."   Students who are taking or have taken AK/POLS 3405.06/SOCI 3900C, "Politics and Law," or SOSC 3360 6.0, "The Charter of Rights" may NOT also obtain credit for AS/POLS 3605.03.

Purpose of Course:  This course will examine the influence of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms both on jurisprudence and politics in general.  Principles of legal interpretation and the practical political implications of Charter decisions will be discussed.  The object of the course is to review a number of aspects of human rights legislation and case law in Canada that are relevant to those who may work in the public sector in the future, or in the private sector in areas that interact with government.

Format:  There will be a two  hour class each Tuesday, and a one-hour class each Thursday. Both classes will be in the lecture format, and in both classes questions and comments from students will be encouraged.

Relation between POLS 3600.03 and POLS 3605.03  Both of these courses are required for PPA majors, and most students take both courses during the same fall-winter term.  (PPA students may take (although AK/POLS 3405.06 or AS/SOSC 3360 6.0 instead of POLS 3605 3.0.)  About half of Peter Hogg's text is recommended reading in POLS 3600.03, and the other half is recommended reading in POLS 3605.03.

TEXTS

Required:

•Course Kit--A kit of required readings has been prepared and can be purchased from York University Bookstore.

•Ian Greene, The Charter of Rights (Toronto: Lorimer, 1989).

Recommended:  Peter W. Hogg,  Constitutional Law of Canada.  2002 Student Edition.  (Earlier editions are also useful.)

Other Books of Interest:

Bakan, Just Words: Constitutional Rights and Social Wrongs
Beatty, Constitutional Law in Theory and Practice
Cairns, The Charter versus Federalism
Hutchinson, Waiting for CORAF: A Critique of Law and Rights
Knopff and Morton, Charter Politics
Mandel, The Canadian Charter of Rights and the Legalization of Politics, 2nd ed.
Monahan, Politics and the Constitution
Manfredi, Judicial Power and the Charter: Canada and the Paradox of Liberal Constitutionalism
 
 

Assignments and Grading

Skeleton Argument of Case Commentary (due Feb. 5)      10%
Midterm Exam (Thurs., Feb. 12)                                       30%
Writing Assignment (due April 1)                                        30%
Final Exam (during final exam period)                                 30%
                                                                                       100%
NOTE:  For the purpose of averaging grades on assignments to arrive at final course grade, the following numerical equivalents for letter grades will apply:

A+ 90-100   A 80-89.9   B+ 75-79.9   B 70-74.9   C+ 65-69.9
C 60-64.9   D+ 55-59.9  D 50-54.9    E 40-49.9   F  0-39.9

In the midterm examination, all of the examination questions will be objective (for example, "fill in the blanks," matching, or multiple choice).  Objective examination questions will be selected from materials in the required readings, and from topics covered in the lectures.

The final examination will consist of two parts.  The first part will consist of objective questions. The second is an essay-type question.  There will be a choice of questions, and one is to be answered.  Each choice will give students the opportunity to utilize what they have learned in the course. The suggested readings will assist students in gaining higher marks in examination essay questions.

The writing assignments is described in a separate handout.

*Please note that the last day for withdrawal from Winter term courses is March 7, 2003.
 
 

 Class Schedule







Jan 6:  Course Introduction
   Objectives of the course.  Conceptualizing civil liberties.
 Suggested Reading: Greene, Foreword and Preface.

Jan. 8:  Pre-Charter Protection of Civil Liberties:  Legal protection of civil liberties before the Charter, and the events leading to the entrenchment of the Charter.

 Required Reading: Greene, Ch. 1
 Suggested Reading:  Hogg, ch. 31

Jan. 13:    The Advent of the Charter
 Required Reading: Greene, Ch. 2
 Suggested Reading:  Hogg, ch. 32.

Jan. 15:  The Charter and its Critics:  Outline of the Charter. Criticisms of Charter politics.

 Required Readings:
 -Michael Mandel, The Charter of Rights and the Legalization of Politics in Canada, 60- 74. (Kit)
 -Rainer Knopff and F.L. Morton, Charter Politics, 169-196. (Kit)

 Suggested reading:   -Hogg, ch. 33; F.L. Morton and Rainer Knopff, The Charter Revolution and the Court Party System (Peterborough:  Broadview, 1999).

Jan 20, 22:  Application of the Charter and Democratic Rights
   How is the Charter applied? What are our democratic rights?

 Required Reading:  Greene, Ch. 3, 70-90; Ch. 5, 150-152, and 136-139; and Ch. 4.
 Cases:  Operation Dismantle Inc. v. the Queen, 1985; The Queen v. Big M Drug Mart Ltd., 1985; The Queen v. Oakes, 1986; Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union v. Dolphin Delivery, 1986; Edwards Book and Art Ltd., v. the Queen, 1986; McKinney v. University of Guelph, 1990. (All cases are in Kit.)

 Suggested reading:  Hogg, chs. 34-36.

Jan 27, 29, Feb. 3: Fundamental Freedoms: Freedom of Expression; Language Rights
   Cases involving Sec. 2(b) of the Charter; language rights cases.

***Skeleton Argument due February 5***

 Required Readings: Greene, Ch. 7.
 Cases:  R. v. Keegstra, 1990; R. v. Zundel, 1992; R. v. Butler, 1992;  R. v. Sharpe, 2001; Quebec v. Ford et al, 1988; Devine et al. v. A.-G. of Quebec; RJR-MacDonald Inc. v. Attorney General of Canada, 1995. (All cases are in Kit.)

 Suggested reading:  Hogg, ch. 40.

Feb. 5, 10:  Legal Rights
   Leading Cases involving Sections 7-14 of the Charter.

 Required Readings:  Greene, Ch. 5, 126-136; 139-150.
 -Michael Edelson, "Rape Shield Law `Two-Tier Justice,'" The Lawyers Weekly,  (Kit)
 Cases:  Singh v. Minister of Employment and Immigration, 1985; Reference re B.C. Motor Vehicle Act, 1985; Askov v. The Queen, 1990; Rodriguez v. Attorney-General of British Columbia, 1993; R. v. Mills, 1999. (All cases are in the Kit.)

 Suggested readings:  Hogg, ch. 44.

***

Feb 12: mid-term examination

***

Feb. 17 & 19: Reading Week

Feb.  24, 26: Equality Rights  Cases involving Sec. 15 of the Charter.

 Required Readings:  Greene, Ch. 6.
 Cases:  Andrews v. Law Society of British Columbia, 1989; Schachter v. Canada, 1992; Symes v. Canada, 1993; Re Thibaudeau and the Queen, 1995; Egan et al. v. the Queen, 1995; Vriend v. Alberta, 1998; Eldridge v. British Columbia (Attorney General), 1997; M. v. H., 1999. (All cases are in the Kit.)

 Suggested reading:  Hogg, ch. 52.
 

Mar. 2 & 4:  Women and the Charter
   Litigating women's issues in the age of the Charter.

 Required Readings:
 -Shelley Gavigan, "Morgentaler and Beyond: Abortion, Reproduction, and the Courts," in Janine Brodie et al, eds., The Politics of Abortion, 117-146. (Kit)
 -Greene, Ch. 5, 152-162.
 Cases:  Morgentaler v. the Queen, 1988; Borowski v. Minister of Justice of Canada, 1988; Winnipeg Child and Family Services v. G. (D.F.) 1997.  (All cases are in the Kit.)

Mar. 9 & 11: Aboriginal People and the Charter
   Litigating Aboriginal issues in the age of the Charter.

 Required Readings:

 Cases:  R. v. Sparrow, 1990; Van der Peet v. The Queen, 1996, Delgamuukw v. British Columbia, 1997; R. v. Marshall, 1999; R. v. Marshall (motion for Rehearing and Stay) 1999.  (All cases are in the Kit.)

"After Delgamuukw," article on B.C. Treaty Commission web site: http://www.bctreaty.net/index.html (click on "search," then "After Delgamukkw," then go to item No. 3, or just click on the link on the previous line)

Mar. 16:  Labour and the Charter
   Litigating trade union rights in the age of the Charter.

 Required Readings:
 -Leo Panitch and Donald Swartz, The Assault on Trade Union Freedoms: From Wage Controls to Social Contract (Toronto: Garamond Press, 1993), 45-78. (Kit)
 Cases:  Lavigne v. Ontario Public Service Employees Union, 1991. (Kit)

Mar. 18:  Social Inequality and the Charter
   Social inequality and the limits of the Charter.

 Required Readings:
 -Joel Bakan, Just Words: Constitutional Rights and Social Wrongs, 45-62. (Kit)

Mar. 23 & 25: Charter Critics Revisited
   Another look at left- and right-wing criticisms of the Charter.

 Required Reading:
 -Richard Sigurdson, "Left- and Right-Wing Charterphobia in Canada: A Critique of the Critics," International Journal of Canadian Studies, 7-8 (Spring/Fall, 1993), 95-115. (Kit)
 -Peter Hogg & Allison Bushell, "The Charter Dialogue Between Courts and Legislatures," Osgoode Hall Law Journal 35:1 (1997), 75-124. (Kit)
 -Ian Greene, Carl Baar, Peter McCormick, George Szablowski & Martin Thomas, Final Appeal: Decision-Making in Canadian Courts of Appeal, 199-211. (Kit)

March 30 & Apr. 1:   The future of the Charter; Review for Exam

 Required Reading: Greene, Ch. 8.