Regina v Edwards Books and Art Ltd: 18 Dec 1986

Supreme Court of Canada – the limitation of the protected right must be one that ‘it was reasonable for the legislature to impose’, and that the courts were ‘not called upon to substitute judicial opinions for legislative ones as to the place at which to draw a precise line’.
‘a business corporation cannot possess religious beliefs’. And
‘In interpreting and applying the Charter I believe that the courts must be cautious to ensure that it does not simply become an instrument of better situated individuals to roll back legislation which has as its object the improvement of the condition of less advantaged persons’
Legislative drafting is a difficult art and Parliament cannot be held to a standard of perfection.

Judges:

Dickson CJ

Citations:

[1986] 2 SCR 713, (1986) 35 DLR (4th) 1, 30 CCC (3d) 385, 86 CLLC 14, 55 CR (3d) 193

Links:

Canlii

Statutes:

Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms to life, liberty and security

Jurisdiction:

Canada

Cited by:

CitedBank Mellat v Her Majesty’s Treasury (No 2) SC 19-Jun-2013
The bank challenged measures taken by HM Treasury to restrict access to the United Kingdom’s financial markets by a major Iranian commercial bank, Bank Mellat, on the account of its alleged connection with Iran’s nuclear weapons and ballistic . .
CitedAli and Bibi, Regina (on The Applications of) v Secretary of State for The Home Department SC 18-Nov-2015
At the claimants alleged that the rules requiring a foreign spouse or partner of a British citizen or a person settled in this country to pass a test of competence in the English language before coming to live here were an unjustifiable interference . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.

Commonwealth, Human Rights

Updated: 26 July 2022; Ref: scu.535119