Five More Minutes: Representing Public Interest Interveners Thirty-Five Years after the Charter

AuthorSusan Ursel, Kristen Allen, & Alec Stromdahl
Pages596-617

FiveMoreMinutes
REPRESENTINGPUBLICINTEREST
INTERVENERSTHIRTYFIVEYEARS
AFTERTHECHARTER
Susan Ursel, Kristen Allen, & Alec Stromdahl*
A. INTRODUCTION
OnalegaltimescaletheCanadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms could
besaidtobeinitslateadolescencehoveringonthebrinkofadulthood
anappropriatetimetoreviewandtakestocktoconsiderpastdevelop
mentsa nd to looka headT he evolutionof the involvement ofpublic
interestintervenersinthiscontextparticularlyintheSupremeCourtof
CanadaisthefocusofthispaperInitweconsidersomeoftheissues
facingtheCourtwithrespecttothefullandmeaningfulparticipationof
intervenersinthecontextofCharterlitigation
TodayitiswellacceptedthattheCourtwhendisposingofCharter
cases is engaging in an exercis e that is deeply integral to our demo
cratic institutionsandprocessesandthatmeritsalegalprocessthatis
enhancedandrenderedmoretransparentbytheparticipationofpublic
interestintervenersThiswasnotalwaysthecaseWhentheCharterwas
 UrselPhillipsFellowsHopkinsonLLPSusanUrselisapartnerKristenAllenisan
associateandAlecStromdahlisanarticlingstudent
 Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedom sPartIoftheConstitutionActbeing
ScheduleBtotheCanadaActUKc
 Bythiswemeantheclassicbranchesofdemocraticgovernmentlegislativeexecu
tiveandjudicialalthoughitispossibletoconceiveofmanyotherinstitutionsthat
arebothnecessaryandintegraltoafunctioningdemocracysuchaseducational
policingandbureaucraticinstitutions
Five More Minutes
rstintroducedtheCourtwasextremelyhesitanttoinviteelementsof
publicdiscourseintothecourtroom
HoweverbythelatestheCourtbegantorecognizetheuse
ful role that interveners could playas it created the bu ilding blocks
uponwh ich the Charter of Rights and Freedomswouldbeinterpreted
Intervenerswerevaluedfortheirrelativeobjectivityandembracedfor
theirabilitytorepresentinterestsreectiveofthebroadersociopolitical
dynamicsthatunderliethelawsbeinginterpretedbytheCourt
HoweverinrecentyearstheCourthasfacedanincreasinglyam
bitiousdocketandithassoughtoutnewwaystobalancecompeting
demandsforitstimeWhiletheCourtremainspermissiveaboutgrant
ingleavetointervenesincetherehasbeenaurryofamendments
to the Rules of the Supreme Court of Canadat hat haveimposed sig ni
cantconstraintsonthescopeofinterventionInaspanoftenyearsthe
lengthofintervenersfactahavebeencutinhalfthescopeoftheirfacta
havebeensignicantlycurtailedandintervenersndtheirallotment
oftimefororalargumentwhenindeeditisgrantedatalltoamount
toveminutes
Thischapterrevisitsthesociopoliticalandinstitutionalarguments
justifyingthebroadparticipationofpublicinterestintervenersinCharter
casesandquerieswhetherthelatestrulesoninterventionjeopardizethe
abilityofintervenerstofulllthesefunctionsThechapterisbrokeninto
foursectionsSectionBoutlinesthesociopoliticalandinstitutionaljusti
cationssupportingthebroadparticipationofintervenersinCharter cases
 IanBrodieFriendsoftheCourtThePrivilegingofInterestGroupLitigantsinCanada
AlbanyStateUniversityofNewYorkPressJohnKochMakingRoom
NewDirectionsinThirdPartyInterventionUniversity of Toronto Faculty of
Law Reviewat
 JusticeFrankIacobuccia squotedinanintervieww ithThe Globe and MailSeeKirk
MakinIntervenersHowManyareTooManyThe Globe and M ailMarch
A
 SupremeCourtofCanadaSt atisticstoFebruaryonline
wwwscccsccacasedossierstatcatengaspxcata
 BenjaminAla rieAndrewGreenInterve ntionsattheSupremeCourtofCanada
AccuracyAliationandAcceptanceOsgoode Hall Law Journal
 Rules of the Supreme Court of CanadaSORasamendedbySOR
SORSORSORRules
 IbidSOR
 IbidSOR
 SupremeCourtofCanadaNoticestotheProfessionMarchAlloingTime
forOralArgumentMarchonlinewwwscccsccaarlrnoticesavis
engaspxSCCAlloingTimeforOralArgument

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