THE SUPREME COURT OF CANADA: THE FIRST ONE HUNDRED YEARS A CAPSULE INSTITUTIONAL HISTORY

Authors

  • BORA LASKIN

Abstract

This brief summary introduces an entire issue devoted to the Supreme Court of Canada’s centennial year. Its purpose is to illustrate how the Court gained independence from the Privy Council to become the official highest court in Canada. It describes the Court’s first sitting and dinners given in celebration and discusses the 1975 amendments to the Supreme Court Act, which gave it unconditional authority to decide what non-criminal cases it would hear on the merits. It explores aspects of the Court’s institutional characteristics and considers how emancipation and an increased workload have caused delay in hearing cases. The author discusses the implications of this reality and makes suggestions to remedy the result.

Keywords:

Supreme Court

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Published

1975-09-01

Issue

Section

Legal Commentary