The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms

• Author: Norman J. Groot
• Pages: 99-111

CHAPTER

3

THE

CANADIAN

CHARTER

OF

RIGHTS

AND

FREEDOMS

The

Canadian

Charter

of

Rights

and

Freedoms,1

which

befell

Canadians with

the

patriation

of

the

Constitution

in

1982,

has

generated more legal analysis than

any

other legislation

in

recent memory. This chapter will

briefly

canvass such topics

as

* the

liability issues

the

Charter

imposes upon private

investigators;

»

the

authority

of

administrative decision makers

to

adjudicate

Charter

provisions;

* the

Charter's

applicability

to the

admissibility

of

evidence

of

private sector investigators;

and

* an

overview

of the

legal

rights the

Charter

bestows upon

us

all.

3.1

THE

CHARTER

AND

LIABILITY

ISSUES

FOR

PRIVATE

INVESTIGATORS

Private investigators, generally speaking, will

not

face

direct liability

in the

form

of a

Charter

action. This

is

because section

32 of the

Charter

has

been interpreted

to

mean that

the

Charter

was not

intended

to

pertain

to

individuals

in the

private sector.

Notwithstanding this limitation,

the

admissibility

of a

private investigator's evidence

may

still

be

scrutinized

under

the

auspices

of

Charter

"values"

in a

private

litigation

setting.

Section 32(1)

of the

Charter

provides:

32(1)

This Charter applies

(a) to the

Parliament

and

Government

of

Canada

in

respect

of all

matters

with-

in the

authority

of

Parliament including

all

matters relating

to the

Yukon

Territory

and

Northwest Territories;

and

1

Canadian

Charter

of

Rights

and

Freedoms,

Part

I of the

Constitution Act, 1982,

being

Schedule

B to

the

Canada

Act

1982 U.K., 1982,

c. 11

[Charter].

99