Charter and Human Rights

Governments have an increasingly significant impact on our everyday lives. Laws which purport to serve the greater public good can have a disproportionately adverse or discriminatory impact on certain segments of the public. When this happens, it is often left to courts and tribunals to remedy the resulting injustices. Government excesses can be held in check through applications for judicial review, proceedings based on the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms and human rights legislation.

While the Charter applies only to governments, human rights codes apply to governments, employers, landlords and other service providers, and prohibit discrimination and harassment on the basis of race, ancestry, place of origin, colour, ethnic origin, citizenship, creed, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, age, marital status, family status and disability.

The firm’s approach to Charter litigation and human rights is to take a long-term view, selecting causes such as the integration of housing for people with disabilities, the enhancement of autonomy for persons with mental disabilities and the reversal of ingrained patterns of workplace discrimination. Our firm works doggedly to advance such causes over multiple cases, in some cases, with many years of effort.

To speak with a lawyer respecting a case involving the Charter or human rights, please call us at (416) 362-1234.

Representative Cases

• Bell v. R., [1979] 2 SCR 212
• Kafato v. Halton Condominium Corp. No. 4, B.O.I. 1991-001
• Thompson and Empowerment Council v. Ontario, 2013 ONSC 6357
• P.S. v. Ontario, 2014 ONCA 900
• Ontario (Community Safety and Correctional Services) v De Lottinville, 2015 ONSC 3085
• Sandhu v. Regional Municipality of Peel (Police Services Board), 2017 HRTO 1221
• G. v. Ontario (Attorney General), 2020 SCC 38

Please note that if you need help with bringing or pursuing a human rights application in Ontario and have limited resources, assistance may be available through the Human Rights Legal Support Centre at 1 (866) 625-5179.