The Implementation of Economic, Social and Cultural Rights in Canada: Between Utopia and Reality

Miriam Cohen; Martin-Olivier Dagenais

doi:10.31078/consrev712

The Implementation of Economic, Social and Cultural Rights in Canada: Between Utopia and Reality

Miriam Cohen, Martin-Olivier Dagenais

Abstract

Canada has been at the forefront of the recognition of human rights, including economic, social and cultural rights (ESC rights) in the international scene. As a party to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights,1 Canada has, over the years, implemented in legislation and case-law some ESC rights such as the right to health, education and social welfare.While ESC rights were not explicitly identified in the Charter of Rights and Freedoms,2 which forms part of the Canadian Constitution, ESC rights in different forms have received some protection in the Canadian legal order. An analysis of the Canadian record with respect to ESC rights demonstrates the immense gap between a glorified image of Canada as an international human rights proponent (the ‘utopia’) and the actual implementation of internationally recognized human rights in Canada (the ‘reality’). As Canada is bound to face major transformational changes to its economy and social fabric in the years to come, the Courts will have to adapt quickly and efficiently to ensure a smooth transition. This paper overviews the evolution of the case-law on ESC rights in Canada in light of its international obligations, and suggests, the relevant ESC rights jurisprudence signals a disconnect with Canada’s international obligation ‘requiring progressive implementation to the maximum of available resources by all appropriate means.’

Keywords

Canada; Charter of Rights and Freedoms; Comparative Constitutional Law; ESC Rights; International Human Rights

Full Text:

PDF

References

Act to Combat Poverty and Social Exclusion, CQLR c L-7 (2002).

Alston, Philip and Ryan Goodman. International Human Rights, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2013.

Arbour, Louise. “Freedom from Want, From Charity to Entitlement.” (LaFontaine- Baldwin Lecture, Quebec City, 2005).

Auton (Guardian ad litem of) v. British Columbia (Attorney General), 3 SCR 657 (2004).

Baker v. Canada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration), 2 SCR 817 (1999).

Brun, Henri, Guy Tremblay, and Eugénie Brouillet. Droit Constitutionnel [Constitutional Rights] 6th edition (Cowansville: Editions Yvon Blais, 2008).

Canada (Attorney General) v. PHS Community Services Society, SCC 44 (2011).

Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, Part I of the Constitution Act, (1982), being Schedule B to the Canada Act of 1982 (UK), (1982), c. 11.

Canadian Doctors for Refugee Care v. Canada (Attorney General), FC 651, (2014). Carter v. Canada (Attorney General), 1 SCR 331 (2015).

Chaoulli v. Quebec (Attorney General), SCC 35 (2005).

Chaoulli v. Quebec (Attorney General), 1 SCR 791 (2005).

Constitution Act, (1982), sec. 35, being Schedule B to the Canada Act 1982 (UK), (1982), c. 11, sec. 52.

Currie, John H. et al. International Law: Doctrine, Practice and Theory, 2nd ed., Toronto: Irwin Law, 2014.

Dartmouth/Halifax County Regional Housing Authority v. Carvery, NSJ No 96 (NCSA), (1993).

Eldridge v. British Columbia (Attorney General), 3 SCR 624 (1997).

Falkiner v. Ontario (Ministry of Community and Social Services), OJ No 1771 (ONCA), (2002).

Gosselin v. Quebec (Attorney General), SCC 84 (2002).

Gosselin v. Québec (Procureur général [Attorney General]), R.J.Q. 1647 (C.S. Que.) (1992).

Hirschl, Ran. Towards Juristocracy. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2004.

Hogg, Peter. Constitutional Law of Canada, 4th ed., Scarborough: Carswell, 1997.

International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, Dec. 19 ,1966, 999 UNTS 171 (entered into force March 1976, accession by Canada May 19, 1976).

International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, Dec. 16, 1966, 993 UNTS 3 (entered into force Jan. 3, 1976, accession by Canada May 19, 1976).

Irwin Toy Ltd v. Québec (Attorney General), 1 SCR 927 (1989).

Jackman, Martha and Bruce Porter. Advancing Social Rights in Canada, Introduction. Toronto: Irwin Law, 2014.

Jackman, Martha. “One Step Forward and Two Steps Back Poverty, the Charter and the Legacy of Gosselin.” NJCL 39, no. 85 (2019).

Jackman, Martha. “Poor Rights: Using the Charter to Support Social Welfare Claims.” Queens Law Journal 19, no. 65 (1993).

Jackman, Martha. “The Protection of Welfare Rights Under the Charter”, Ottawa Law Review 20 (1988).

Jackman, Martha and Bruce Porter. “International Human Rights and Strategies to Address Homelessness and Poverty in Canada: Making the Connection.” Working paper, Faculty of Law and Legal Studies, University of Ottawa, Ontario, 2013.

Jackman, Martha and Bruce Porter. “Socio-Economic Rights Under the Canadian Charter.” In Social Rights Jurisprudence: Emerging Trends in International and Comparative Law, edited by Malcolm Langford. Cambridge, New York: Cambridge University Press, 2008.

Jackman, Martha and Bruce Porter. “Social and Economic Rights.” In The Oxford Handbook of the Canadian Constitution, edited by Oliver, Peter, Macklem, Patrick and Des Rosiers, Nathalie. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2017.

Kwadrans, Ania. “Socioeconomic Rights Adjudication in Canada: Can the Minimum Core Help in Adjudicating the Rights to Life and Security of the Person under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms?” Journal of Law and Social Policy 25 (2016): 83.

Lamarche, Lucie “The ‘Made in Québec’ Act to Combat Poverty and Social Exclusion The Complex Relationship between Poverty and Human Rights.” In Poverty: Rights, Social Citizenship, and Legal Activism, edited by Young, Margot, Boyd, Susan B., Brodsky, Gwen and Day, Shelagh. Vancouver: UBC Press, 2007.

Langford, Malcolm. “The Justiciability of Social Rights: From Practice to Theory.” In Social Right Jurisprudence: Emerging Trends in International and Comparative Law, edited by Malcolm Langford. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2008.

O’Connell, Paul. “The Death of Socio-Economic Rights.” Modern Law Review 74, no. 4 (July 2011).

Philipps, Lisa. “Taxing the Market Citizen: Fiscal Policy and Inequality in an Age of Privatization.” Law and Contemporary Problems 63 (2000).

Pothier, Dianne. “The Sounds of Silence: Charter Application When the Legislature Declines to Speak.” Constitutional Forum 7 (1996).

R v. Morgentaler, 1 SCR 30 (1988).

R v. Smith, 2 SCR 602 (2015).

Regulation Respecting Social Aid, R.R.Q., c. A-16, r. 1, s 29 a).

Schabas, William A. and Stéphane Beaulac. International Human Rights Law: Legal Commitment, Implementation and the Charter, 3rd ed. Toronto: Thomson Carswell, 2007.

Schachter v. Canada, 2 SCR 679 (1992).

Schneiderman, David. Constitutionalizing Economic Globalization. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2007.

Scott, Craig and Patrick Macklem. “Constitutional Ropes of Sand or Justiciable Guarantees? Social Rights in a New South African Constitution.” University of Pennsylvania Law Review 141, no. 1 (1992).

Scott, Francis R. “Expanding Concepts of Human Rights.” In Essays on the Constitution. Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1977.

Strong Communities through Affordable Housing Act, SO C-6 (2011).

Sunstein, Cass R. “Social and Economic Rights? Lessons from South Africa.” Constitutional Forum 123, (2001).

Tanudjaja v. Canada (Attorney General), ONSC 5410 (2013).

Tanudjaja v. Canada (Attorney General), ONCA 852 (2014).

Toussaint v. Canada, FC 810 (2010).

UN Doc. E/CN.4/1998/84/Add.

Young, Katharine. Constituting Economic and Social Rights: The Path to Transformation, Abstract. London: Oxford University Press, 2012. Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2419986.

Young, Katharine. The Future of Economic and Social Rights. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2019.

Young, Margot. “Charter Eviction: Litigating Out of House and Home.” Journal of Law and Social Policy 24, no. 46. (2015).

DOI: https://doi.org/10.31078/consrev712