The Constitution of Canada is the supreme law in Canada. It outlines Canada's system of government and the civil and human rights of those who are citizens of Canada and non-citizens in Canada. Its contents are an amalgamation of various codified acts, treaties between the Crown and Indigenous Peoples, uncodified traditions and conventions. Canada is one of the oldest constitutional monarchies in the world.
The British North America Acts, 1867–1975 are a series of Acts of Parliament that were at the core of the constitution of Canada. Most were enacted by the Parliament of the United Kingdom and some by the Parliament of Canada. Some of the acts were repealed in Canada by the Constitution Act, 1982. The rest were renamed the Constitution Acts and amended, with those changes only having effect in Canada. The Canadian versions of the Constitution Acts make up the Constitution of Canada, and can only be amended in Canada.
Canadian federalism involves the current nature and historical development of the federal system in Canada.
The Constitution Act, 1867, originally enacted as the British North America Act, 1867, is a major part of the Constitution of Canada. The act created a federal dominion and defines much of the operation of the Government of Canada, including its federal structure, the House of Commons, the Senate, the justice system, and the taxation system. In 1982, with the patriation of the Constitution, the British North America Acts which were originally enacted by the British Parliament, including this Act, were renamed. However, the acts are still known by their original names in records of the United Kingdom. Amendments were also made at this time: section 92A was added, giving provinces greater control over non-renewable natural resources.
Pith and substance is a legal doctrine in Canadian constitutional interpretation used to determine under which head of power a given piece of legislation falls. The doctrine is primarily used when a law is challenged on the basis that one level of government has encroached upon the exclusive jurisdiction of another level of government.
In many Commonwealth jurisdictions, the phrase "peace, order, and good government" (POGG) is an expression used in law to express the legitimate objects of legislative powers conferred by statute. The phrase appears in many Imperial Acts of Parliament and Letters Patent, most notably the constitutions of Barbados, Canada, Australia and formerly New Zealand and South Africa.
Before 1982, modifying the Constitution of Canada primarily meant amending the British North America Act, 1867. Unlike most other constitutions, however, the Act had no amending formula; instead, changes were enacted through Acts of the Parliament of the United Kingdom called the British North America Acts.
Citizens Insurance Co of Canada v Parsons is a major Canadian constitutional case decided by the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council, at that time the highest court of appeal for the British Empire. The case decided a significant issue of the division of powers between the federal Parliament and the provincial legislatures. The approach taken to provincial power, as advocated by Premier Oliver Mowat of Ontario, began to set the constitutional framework for broad provincial powers and a reduction in the centralist vision of Confederation espoused by Prime Minister John A. Macdonald.
Canada (AG) v Ontario (AG), also known as In re the Regulation and Control of Aeronautics in Canada and the Aeronautics Reference, is a decision of the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council on the interpretation of the Canadian Constitution. Lord Sankey decided in the case that the federal government has the authority to govern the subject of aeronautics, including licensing of pilots, aircraft, and commercial services and regulations for navigation and safety.
Section 92 of the Constitution Act, 1867 is a provision in the Constitution of Canada that sets out the legislative powers of the legislatures of the provinces of Canada. The provincial powers in section 92 are balanced by the list of federal legislative powers set out in section 91 of the Constitution Act, 1867. The dynamic tension between these two sets of legislative authority is generally known as the "division of powers". The interplay between the two lists of powers have been the source of much constitutional litigation since Confederation of Canada in 1867.
Section 125 of the Constitution Act, 1867 is a provision of the Constitution of Canada relating to taxation immunities of the federal and provincial governments. The section provides that the property of the provincial and federal governments are not subject to taxation.
The Preamble to the Constitution Act, 1867 is a provision of the Constitution of Canada, setting out some of the general goals and principles of the Act. Although not itself a substantive provision, the courts have used it as a guide to the interpretation of the Constitution of Canada, particularly unwritten constitutional principles which inform the history and meaning of the Constitution.
Section 96 of the Constitution Act, 1867 is a provision of the Constitution of Canada relating to the appointment of judges of the provincial superior, district and county courts. It provides that the judges of those courts are appointed by the Governor General of Canada. By constitutional convention, the Governor General exercises that power on the advice of the federal Cabinet
Section 93 of the Constitution Act, 1867 is a provision of the Constitution of Canada relating to education. It gives the provinces a broad legislative jurisdiction over education. Section 93 also contains guarantees of publicly funded denominational and separate schools for Catholic or Protestant minorities in some provinces.
Section 94 of the Constitution Act, 1867 is a provision of the Constitution of Canada allowing the federal Parliament to implement uniform laws relating to property and civil rights, and procedure in the civil courts, in three of the original provinces: New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and Ontario. The power under section 94 cannot be used without the consent of those provinces, as those subject matters are normally within exclusive provincial jurisdiction. The power has never been used.
Section 94A of the Constitution Act, 1867 is a provision of the Constitution of Canada relating to old age pensions and supplemental benefits. It was originally added to the Constitution Act, 1867 in 1951, dealing with old age pensions. It was expanded by a further constitutional amendment in 1964 to include supplemental benefits, such as disability benefits and benefits for young survivors of pensioners.
Section 95 of the Constitution Act, 1867 is a provision of the Constitution of Canada relating to federal and provincial legislative jurisdiction over agriculture and immigration.
Section 101 of the Constitution Act, 1867 is a provision of the Constitution of Canada giving the federal Parliament the power to create the Supreme Court of Canada and the federal courts. Although Parliament created the Supreme Court by an ordinary federal statute in 1875, the Court is partially entrenched by the amending formula set out in the Constitution Act, 1982. The composition of the Court can only be changed by a unanimous constitutional amendment, passed by the two houses of Parliament, and all of the provincial legislative assemblies.
Section 69 of the Constitution Act, 1867 is a provision of the Constitution of Canada creating the Legislature of the province of Ontario, which did not exist prior to 1867. The Constitution Act, 1867 created Ontario, including the institutions of the new provincial government, such as the Legislature.
Section 52 of the Constitution Act, 1867 is a provision of the Constitution of Canada which gives the federal Parliament the power to increase the number of members in the House of Commons, provided any increase respects the principle of proportionate provincial representation in the House of Commons.
