Regina v Big M Drug Mart: 1985

Supreme Court of Canada – A company was charged with unlawfully carrying on the sale of goods on a Sunday contrary to the Lord’s Day Act. It challenged the legislation. The freedom affected was that of persons prevented by the Act from working on a Sunday.
Held: This was a relevant restriction on the company.
Dickson J said: ‘Freedom can primarily be characterized by the absence of coercion or constraint. If a person is compelled by the state or the will of another to a course of action or inaction which he would not otherwise have chosen, he is not acting of his own volition and he cannot be said to be truly free. One of the major purposes of the Charter is to protect, within reason, from compulsion or restraint. Coercion includes not only such blatant forms of compulsion as direct commands to act or refrain from acting on pain of sanction, coercion includes indirect forms of control which determine or limit alternative courses of conduct available to others.’

Judges:

Dickson J

Citations:

(1985) 1 RCS 295

Jurisdiction:

Canada

Cited by:

CitedCommodore Royal Bahamas Defence Force and Others v Laramore PC 8-May-2017
Soldier’s right not to attend religious service
(The Bahamas) Parties challenged the removal of the right of service members to be excused attendance of the religious elements of force parades.
Held: The Muslim petty officer had been hindered in the exercise of his constitutional right to . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.

Constitutional

Updated: 06 May 2022; Ref: scu.582139