The Return of Mandatory Minimums: C-16’s Charter Safety Valve and the Return of the Inflationary Floor
Parliament has put mandatory minimum penalties back at the center of Canadian sentencing policy after a decade of court decisions striking down minimums that produce grossly disproportionate outcomes. In the latest iteration, Bill C-16 keeps mandatory minimums in place for offences that carry a minimum term of imprisonment.[i] It also adds a Charter safety valve that lets judges go below the floor when the minimum would amount to cruel and unusual punishment for the offender
Hate, Law, and Limits: Constitutional Boundaries for Bill C-9’s Hate Crime Reforms
Each year, thousands of hate-motivated incidents are reported to police in Canada.[i] Bill C-9 responds to this reality and raises a familiar constitutional question: how far can Parliament go in restricting hate symbols while still respecting freedom of expression under the Charter of Rights and Freedoms?
