POL 2107 Lecture Notes - Lecture 15: Canadian Judicial Council, Precedent, Judicial Independence
14 Dec 2016
School
Department
Course
Professor
The Judiciary
Role of the judiciary
Its evolution in Canada
Canadian legal tradition
The role of the judiciary
Interpret laws
Settle disputes
Pass judgments based on existing laws
impartiality, judicial independence, is guaranteed by security of tenure. this is done because
public attention is bad.
embody the coercive aspects of the state in an adversarial system.
*The role of the judiciary in canadian politics*
historically it has been hailed in high esteem.
the general royal commissions were headed by judges.
historically, there has been a lot of competence.
the idea of supremacy of parliament and of the charter of rights is false because the judicial
review of laws has been done since the founding fathers.
what`s changed is that the charter has expanded judicial review. ultra byers, intra byers.
Constitutional law has the most significant impact on Canadian politics
judges should stay away from making political speeches. Which could compromise their
impartiality.
federally appointed judges can serve until 75 years of age. and provincially appointed judges
serve between 65 and 70.
judges can serve during good behavior.
the removal of judges is difficult. the canadian judicial council deal with bad judges.
*Legal systems in Canada*
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Common law
in Anglo and bilingual provinces (New Brunswick)
stare decisis: highest court prevails.
precedence provide a legal framework despite the presence of written laws, which are not as
clear practice as they are paper.
Judges rule on the argument represented before them.
Civil Law (only in quebec)
present in the quebec act 1774
Judges are much more active. The elaborate written legal codes are to guide decisions.
judges play a fact-finding role to see what law applies
types of law are civil and criminal. this regulates the relationship between private powers.
all civil matters go to the provincial courts. they are decided on the balance of probability.
civil law vary from province to province
criminal law is a federal responsibility and it is therefore uniform across the country.
criminal code
any criminal act is considered an act against society as a whole. which is why it`s alway R. vs.
defendant.
the onus is on the state to prove that the accused committed a crime.
section 92(14) is provincial hands. cases can have both criminal and civil elements. e.g.
impaired driving.
Public law refers to law related to government, i.e. constitutional law, administrative law and tax
law.
private law refers to laws governing private interests, ie wills family law and torts
*problems of law in canada*
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find more resources at oneclass.com
