The inaugural event of the David Asper Centre for Constitutional Rights was a colloquium where leading constitutional scholars and litigators discussed current challenges and possibilities in constitutional theory and practice.  

A special panel discussion with leading constitutional scholars to discuss the Governor General's decision to prorogue Parliament. Read presentations on the Faculty Blog.

PARLIAMENTARY DEMOCRACY IN CRISIS: The Dilemmas, Choices and Future of Parliamentary Government in Canada Edited by Lorne Sossin and Peter Russell, published by University of Toronto Press Faculty of Law, Flavelle House, Rowell Room Our distinguished panelists discussed the future of Canada’s democracy: lessons learned and where to we go from here. This is the ... Read More

Monday, June 15, 2009, at 4:00 PM Deadline for upper year students to submit their application for the fall 2009 term of the Asper Centre Clinical Legal Education Course.

U. of T. law students are invited to attend an information session on the various working groups of the Asper Centre. Volunteers are needed to participate in the following groups over the course of the school year: • Emerging Constitutional Issues • The Charter and Canadian Citizens Abroad • The Internet Surveillance Working Group • ... Read More

Grant, Harrison, Shepherd & Suberu: The Supreme Court Decisions of the Summer of 2009 Watch the Webcast On July 17, 2009, the Supreme Court of Canada handed down its long awaited decisions in R. v. Grant, R. v. Harrison, R. v. Shepherd and R. v. Suberu clarifying the law in respect of the exclusion of ... Read More

David Asper Centre for Constitutional Rights and the International Human Rights Program Present Michael Fordham, QC Human Rights at the UK Supreme Court   A light lunch will be served. Michael Fordham QC is a leading public law and human rights barrister in London (www.blackstonechambers.com). His awards have included Human Rights Lawyer of the Year ... Read More

Students and Faculty are welcome to come and watch the live webcast of the argument at the Supreme Court of Canada in Prime Minister of Canada, et al. v. Omar Khadr. The Asper Centre and the International Human Rights Program (IHRP) have been granted standing in the case as interveners with Human Rights Watch. Professor ... Read More

What duties does the Canadian government owe to Canadian citizens when they are outside of the country? Is there such a thing as a legal duty to protect citizens from harm, or seek their repatriation when they have suffered harm? What are the rules, post Hape and Khadr, governing the extraterritorial application of the Charter, ... Read More

Albie Sachs: The Strange Alchemy of Life and Law (Oxford University Press, 2009) Friday, January 15, 2010 3:00 – 4:00 (to be followed by a reception) Faculty of Law, Flavelle House, Room FLB   Should a judge be an instrument of pure, detached reason, or a person imbued with human empathy? Albie Sachs, appointed by ... Read More

Nicholas Aroney - TC Beirne School of Law, U. of Queensland This paper utilizes the Australian experience of federation, 1890–1901, as a vehicle for the discussion of the leading conceptions of federalism extant in the late nineteenth-century English-speaking world. In particular, the paper examines the federal theories of James Madison, James Bryce, Edward Freeman, Albert Dicey and ... Read More

The Supreme Court of Canada released its unanimous decision in Prime Minister of Canada et al. v. Omar Khadr on Friday, January 29, 2010. It declared that the Canadian government is violating Omar Khadr's right to life, liberty and security under the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. The court denounced the use of torture in ... Read More

As rapidly advancing communication technology transforms so many aspects of human interaction it is crucial for public safety that investigative powers remain relevant to the rapidly evolving methods of crime. However, these methods must not too broadly infringe on the rights and liberties of Canadian Citizens. In 2009, two bills, C- 46 and C-47, were ... Read More

Hugo Cyr - Université du Québec à Montréal ABSTRACT: With the increased mobility and interdependence brought on by globalisation, governments can no longer deal effectively with what were traditionally regarded as «domestic issues» unless they cooperate among themselves. International law may once have been a sort of inter-state law concerned mostly with relations between states, ... Read More

Information session on clinical opportunities Please join all the clinics for a joint information session about for-credit clinical opportunities in second and third year. Presenters will include: Asper Centre, DLS, Health Law and Equity Clinic, and the IHRP. Each clinic will review the type of cases/projects pursued, admission requirements and application details. For more information, ... Read More