The Founding Of The Constitution Act - 1373 Words

The inception of the Constitution Act, 1982 is inarguably a highly significant event in Canada’s political history, and has impacted the political and legal landscape in numerous ways. The Charter of Rights and Freedoms regulates interaction and communication between the government and individuals, granting them with much needed protection of their rights and freedoms. Needless to say, these rights and freedoms are a critical part of the democratic political system and it is believed by many that the Charter is one of the most important legislations in Canada, as it allows laws that infringe the rights and freedoms of individuals to come under scrutiny and removed if necessary. Despite these protections that are guaranteed by the Charter†¦show more content†¦Specifically, the reasonable limits clause in section 1 as well as the highly controversial notwithstanding clause in section 33 allow the government to pass legislation even if it conflicts with the Charter, with certain exceptions. The notwithstanding clause was added to the Charter during negotiations in order to alleviate the tension between elected legislatures and appointed courts—a valid concern considering the fact that the judiciary would have the power to interpret a very broad set of citizen’s rights whether it be democratic and rights, as well was the fundamental freedoms and make final decisions on highly politicized issues. Careful analysis is used to determine whether or not section 1 can be applied and if said legislation fails to satisfy the requirements to be a reasonable limit, the court may order the law to be struck down, or redrafted so that law so that it complies with the Charter. However, if the government decides to invoke section 33 of the Charter, the notwithstanding clause, it would exempt the government from following the court’s directions, an aspect which makes it highly controversial and generally has a very negative public perception sin ce overriding charter rights is not seen as a good thing. Despite the great deal of negative criticism surround the it, the notwithstanding clause can be beneficial in numerous ways and does not necessarily interfere