Freedom Through Federalism (2022)
Life after COVID (2021)
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Grading our Leaders:
Respect for the constitution during the COVID-19 crisis (2020)
By CCF Law Intern Josh Dehaas, CCF Executive Director Joanna Baron and CCF Litigation Director Christine Van Geyn
In the Summer of 2020, the Canadian Constitution Foundation released a report grading the COVID-19 policy responses by Canada’s leaders. The report assigns a letter grade to each of the provincial premiers and the prime minister, and analyzes select mayors.
Marks were assigned based on how well Canada’s political leaders respected six dimensions of constitutional norms; (1) democracy and rules of law; (2) freedom of assembly and speech; (3) mobility rights; (4) freedom of religion and conscience; (5) life, liberty and security of person, and; (6) privacy rights.
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Canadian Vaping: Overview and Constitutional Issues (2020)
By Dr. Leonid Sirota, Auckland University of Technology Law School
The Canadian Constitution Foundation released on February 20, 2020 a report by Dr. Leonid Sirota, professor of law at the Auckland University of Technology Law School, that outlines possible avenues for a constitutional challenge to current and proposed vaping legislation in Canada. The report highlights the rights of a specific but important—and vulnerable— group: current smokers who are looking to quit.
The report analyzes various constitutional concerns about the regulation of vaping, both in terms of the laws falling outside of federal jurisdiction as well as running afoul of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
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Not Admitted Free:
Interprovincial trade barriers in alcohol (2018)
By CCF Intern Gianfranco Terrazzano
Published on June 29, 2018, this report takes a critical look at Canada’s interprovincial barriers to trade in alcohol.
Comparing and ranking the provinces, the report considers factors such as: price relative to other goods, openness to interprovincial trade, range of products available, whether provincial regulations favour local products, freedom to transport alcohol into the province, public control of sales, and marketing restrictions.
The report also makes the legal and economic case for free trade within Canada for a general audience and summarizes existing studies showing the high cost of interprovincial trade barriers generally, and also specifically with alcohol.
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Vaping and the Law (2017)
By CCF Staff Lawyer Derek From and CCF Law Intern Lauren Millar
On February 23, 2017, the CCF released its report “Vaping and the Law,” the first ever comprehensive study of e-cigarette regulations in Canada.
Our general recommendation is that Canadian jurisdictions look to the United Kingdom for guidance in developing and implementing e-cigarette laws and regulations. The U.K. government has accepted that e-cigarettes are a much less harmful alternative to cigarette smoking, especially for those unable or unwilling to quit their nicotine habit altogether. Since 2000, the number of cigarette-smoking adults in England has fallen by one-third and smoking by youth has fallen by two-thirds.
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Civil Forfeiture in Canada (2016)
By CCF Staff Lawyer Derek From and CCF Law Intern Ellen Bolger
Released on March 7, 2016, “Civil Forfeiture in Canada” was released by the Canadian Constitution Foundation and the Institute for Liberal Studies as the first comprehensive look at Canada’s provincial civil forfeiture laws.
Our research shows that Canada has a serious and growing problem with civil forfeiture. It has become an abuse of power that treats innocent property owners worse than criminals. For the reasons we discuss in our report, this should be a significant concern for Canadians of all political stripes.
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