Constitution Act, 1982 (Part of the Canada Act, 1982)

Main Issues:

• Part of an act which ‘patriated’ Canada’s constitution, due to Pierre E. Trudeau.
• Included a domestic amending formula (7 provinces / 50% of population, sections 38-49 – as proposed by the Government of Alberta) plus a clause which compels the Prime Minister to call a First Minister’s Conference to review this formula by 1997. (The amending formula has been restricted for the federal government by the Constitutional Amendments Act, S.C 1996, c. 1)
• Includes the Charter of Rights and Freedoms (sections 1 to 34).
• Includes the “Notwithstanding clause” allowing governments to suspend the certain parts of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms for renewable 5-year periods (section 33) [Which Quebec has invoked for its language law, Bill 178, from Dec. 88 – 1993].
• Includes a comprehensive schedule (a table) affecting many constitutional documents, including repeals and re-enactments.
• Never signed by the separatist Quebec government of the day, or even since then, but nevertheless is legally binding throughout Canada.
• This is the first time the Constitution of Canada formally mentions the existance of the Prime Minister. No other Act explicitly creates that office, demonstrating that parts of Canada’s Constitution is unwritten.

Constitution of Canada Major Elements Documents Constitution Act of 1982

The Constitution Act of 1982 patriated Canada’s constitution, allowing Canadian lawmakers to amend the constitution without significant involvement by the United Kingdom. It also established procedures that made it somewhat easier to pass constitutional amendments. Before the act was passed, no amendments could be made without the unanimous consent of the provinces. The Constitution Act of 1982 established the so-called 7 and 50 rule, which allows amendments to the Canadian constitution if seven provinces representing at least 50 percent of Canada’s population agree to the changes.

The Constitution Act of 1982 included guarantees of individual and group rights, collectively called the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. The act also recognized the rights of Canada’s indigenous people.

The leaders of the province of Québec refused to endorse the new constitution. They objected to the provisions of the new constitution and the process by which it was drafted. Most of Québec’s residents are descendants of French colonists, and its leaders wanted concessions in the new constitution that recognized and preserved the province’s unique culture. There have been several attempts to amend the constitution to acknowledge Québec’s status as a “distinct society” and to grant it greater authority than other provinces. These changes were formally proposed in the Meech Lake Accord of 1987 and the Charlottetown Accord of 1992. Neither of these proposals resulted in changes to the Canadian constitution, mainly because of opposition from the Canadian public. The Meech Lake Accord was never ratified, and the Canadian public rejected a referendum to enact the Charlottetown Accord. (1)

In this Section

• Constitution
• Constitution Origins
• Constitution Major Elements
• Constitution Documents
• Constitution Act of 1867
• Constitution Act of 1982
• Constitution Conventions
• Constitution Interpretation and Enforcement

Resources

Notes and References

1. Encarta Online Encyclopedia

See Also

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This entry was last updated: February 14, 2017