DOCSLIB.ORG

The Contradictory Relationship Between Law and Abortion

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
The Contradictory Relationship Between Law and Abortion Osgoode Hall Law School of York University Osgoode Digital Commons Articles & Book Chapters Faculty Scholarship 1-25-2008 Better Never Than Late, But Why?: The Contradictory Relationship Between Law and Abortion Shelley A. M. Gavigan Osgoode Hall Law School of York University, [email protected] Source Publication: Of What Difference? Reflections on the Judgment and Abortion in Canada Today: 20th Anniversary of Regina v. Morgentaler: Symposium. National Abortion Federation, 2008. Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.osgoode.yorku.ca/scholarly_works Part of the Medical Jurisprudence Commons Recommended Citation Gavigan, Shelley A. M. "Better Never Than Late, But Why?: The Contradictory Relationship Between Law and Abortion." in Of What Difference? Reflections on the Judgment and Abortion in Canada Today: 20th Anniversary of Regina v. Morgentaler: Symposium. National Abortion Federation, 2008. p. 29-34. Print. This Book Chapter is brought to you for free and open access by the Faculty Scholarship at Osgoode Digital Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Articles & Book Chapters by an authorized administrator of Osgoode Digital Commons. 20th Anniversary of Regina v. Morgentaler Of What Difference? Reflections on the Judgment and Abortion in Canada Today SYMPOSIUM Toronto, Ontario January 25, 2008 Co-hosted by the National Abortion Federation and the Faculty of Law, University of Toronto 20th Anniversary of R v. Morgentaler Symposium Of What Difference? Reflections on the Judgment and Abortion in Canada Today On January 25, 2008, in Toronto, Ontario, to representatives from government the Faculty of Law, University of Toronto and women’s advocacy organizations. (U of T) and the National Abortion Examining abortion from a variety of Federation (NAF) co-hosted an perspectives, participants addressed the interdisciplinary symposium to celebrate significance of the event and the difference the 20-year anniversary of Regina v. the R. v. Morgentaler judgment has since Morgentaler, the Supreme Court case in made to women, providers and the politics which the criminal law on abortion in of abortion in Canada. Canada was held unconstitutional. This reader, prepared in collaboration with The symposium brought together more the Women’s Health Research Institute, is than 100 participants, from legal scholars, a compilation of the day’s presentations at abortion providers and journalists this commemorative legal conference. This document is the property of the National Abortion Federation. Permission to reproduce this document is granted for use without fee and without formal request provided it is reproduced accurately and not used in a misleading context. The material must be acknowledged as NAF copyright and the title of the document specified. Copies may not be made or distributed for profit or commercial advantage. An electronic version of this document can be downloaded from the NAF Canada website at: (http://www.prochoice.org/canada). Better Never Than Late, But Why? The Contradictory Relationship Between Law and Abortion Shelley A. M. Gavigan, Osgoode Hall Law School, York University I am honoured to have been invited to be this generation of law students about this a panelist in such distinguished company decision and its importance? One has at this important event. I am particularly to hope that they are not relying on the attracted to the invitation in the title of mainstream media for their introduction— the Symposium to reflect upon the 1988 or misinformation—about the Morgentaler decision of the Supreme Court of Canada case? Clearly this Symposium is an in R. v. Morgentaler.26 In reflecting upon important event, intended as it is to re- the case, its significance and legacy, I want insert abortion and reproductive rights on to talk about the importance of history, our collective agendae. the contradictory nature of law and the I was speaking last week about today’s enduring importance of ideology. Symposium to a friend who graduated I take this liberty of insisting upon the from Law School in 1989. She said her time importance of historical experience and at law school was marked by preoccupation perspective and I do so because I am of the with the issue of abortion law and that view that it is due entirely to my historical, for her and women law students of her as opposed to current, engagement with the generation, the 1988 Morgentaler decision critically important issues of abortion and was a defining moment of victory. I law that I have been honoured with this remember it so well, and so personally. invitation. On the early evening of January 28, 1988, almost two weeks after our daughter’s first Reflections on the Importance birthday celebration, we had bundled her of History into her stroller and joined hundreds of kindred spirits in a spontaneous rally in I was reminded recently of the importance front of the then still standing Morgentaler of history and how quickly something clinic on Harbord Street in Toronto to “becomes” history by my own lapse in celebrate the decision of the Supreme Court precision: I asked my research assistant historic decision. Women, abortion and to pull the Supreme Court’s Morgentaler law had become the issue around which decision for me, which she dutifully did: I politicized when I embraced feminism the Supreme Court’s R v Morgentaler in my twenties, to the great chagrin of 1993 decision.27 Of course, this was my my Irish Roman Catholic father and my fault—I had not been clear enough. But French Roman Catholic mother who was a it then occurred to me that my smart maternity ward nurse. For the next twenty feminist research assistant may not have years my political and academic work known there had been other, indeed, a focused on abortion. As a law student in few other, Morgentaler decisions.28 To my a seminar on Advanced Administrative feminist colleagues in the academy I ask, Law, I tried to research the processes are we confident that we are teaching and practices of therapeutic abortion committees in Saskatchewan hospitals. This 26 [1988] 1 S.C.R. 30; [1988] SCJ No. 1. 27 R v. Morgentaler [1993] 3 S.C.R. 463 proved to be difficult research, as it was 28 e.g. Morgentaler v The Queen (1975) 30 C.R.N.S nigh unto impossible to find any working 209. 29 committees. Like many Canadian feminists The historical record of coercive and of my class and generation, I marched in restrictive abortion law in the Anglo- countless International Women’s Day and Canadian context is filled with relatively pro-choice demonstrations. Who can forget few criminal prosecutions and far more how cold our feet got in those frosty March expression of women’s resistance. One 8 marches on Women’s Day before the need think no further in our recent history arrival of global warming? We marched and than of an ordinary young woman, Chantal carried signs that demanded the state get Daigle, thrust unwillingly into the national its laws off our bodies, repeal abortion law news in 1989 when her former boyfriend and drop the charges, again and again and attempted to prevent her from terminating again. her pregnancy—neither the first nor last I studied the legal history and context of the man to attempt to do so, neither the first 31 criminalization of English abortion law, the nor last man to fail in the Canadian courts. genesis of the statutory prohibition in 1803, During that summer, under the watchful the demise of the relevance of quickening eyes of an entire nation, Daigle resisted and the ousting of the jury of matrons, and her former boyfriend, the Canadian anti- the extension of the criminal law’s scope choice movement, the courts, among over the entire period of pregnancy.29 I others. Daigle reminded us that “women’s studied the issue of the criminal liability individual and collective struggles for of the non-pregnant woman attempting choice and self-determination may have the self-induce a miscarriage of a non- been constrained, but have never been existing pregnancy which took me into the wholly confined nor determined by the snakes and ladders of the law of impossible legal and judicial processes.”32 attempts. But, there was not much ‘action’ in the criminal cases—one encountered The Contradictory Nature of Law abortion in criminal legal history principally in homicide, where a woman It was also in this work into the social had died, and her lover, friend, doctor, and legal history of abortion that I began midwife was prosecuted for willful murder. to develop an understanding of the contradictory nature of law, including When I turned to social history and criminal law, and what I later characterized women’s history, I found a different story. as the “fragile, incomplete and Indeed, it was in the course of this research contradictory” nature of legal victories,33 that I learned my most profound political including the decision we are invited to and intellectual lessons: to appreciate the reflect upon today. As but one illustration, importance of women’s agency and self- determination, and the ways in which in bringing on the menses’: The Criminal Liability the abortion context they had defied the of Women and the Therapeutic Exception in law and medical men: I found the voices Canadian Abortion Law” (1986) 1 C.J.W.L. 279. 31 Daigle v. Tremblay [1989] 2 S.C.R. 530; for of women who said to doctors, “Nonsense, earlier unsuccessful ‘father’s rights’ injunction doctor, there is no life yet…” and “Doctor, I applications in Canada, see Whalley v. Whalley et al do not believe it is a crime.”30 (1981), 122 D.L.R. (3d) 717 (B.C.Co.Ct); Medhurst v. Medhurst et al (1984), 9 D.L.R.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Countering Opponents
    COUNTERING OPPONENTS H I S T O R Y Canada's anti-abortion movement formed in response to the 1969 Omnibus Bill C-150 – the same law that inspired the 1970 Abortion Caravan. The Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops began working to ensure that abortion remained illegal in Canada, as well as national organizations such as Birthright and Alliance for Life formed around this time to champion the "pro-life" cause. The movement gained momentum in the 1970s, after the US Supreme Court legalized abortion in 1973, and as Dr. Henry Morgentaler and feminist activists began opening illegal clinics in Quebec. When Morgentaler opened a clinic in Toronto in 1983, Ken Campbell of the organization Choose Life urged evangelical Christians to engage in pro- life work, which many did by aggressively picketing outside the clinic. Following the decriminalization of abortion in Canada via R v. Morgentaler (1988), pro-life organizing in this country escalated. Opponents brought two cases before the same court in 1989—Tremblay v Daigle and Borowski v Canada—to establish fathers' and fetal rights in relation to abortion - both of which failed. That year, Brian Mulroney's Progressive Conservatives also attempted to recriminalize abortion by introducing Bill C-43. While the bill was defeated in the Senate, a young woman named Yvonne Jurewicz died soon after, from self-inducing because she believed abortion was illegal once again. Around this time, physical violence PHOTO CREDIT: against abortion providers escalated. The Toronto Maclean's Morgentaler Clinic was firebombed in 1992 (leading the building to be demolished and the clinic relocated) and between 1994 and 2000 three providers were shot and stabbed in their homes and outside their clinics.
    [Show full text]
  • Abortion and Democracy for Women: a Critique of Tremblay V
    Abortion and Democracy for Women: A Critique of Tremblay v. Daigle Donna Greschner Chantal Daigle's ordeal before the courts in La d6cision de la Cour supreme dans Tremblay the summer of 1989 culminated in the c. Daigle marqua la fin d'un 6t6 de peines et Supreme Court of Canada decision of d'angoisse pour Chantal Daigle. Cette d6cision Tremblay v. Daigle. This decision, along with se range aux c6t6s de Morgentaleret Borowski the Court's prior decisions in Morgentalerand et force nos reprsentants politiques Aadresser Borowski, has forced politicians to address the Ia question de l'avortement. abortion issue. L'auteur soutient que l'issue du d6bat sur The author argues that the exclusion of women l'avortement a 6t6 ddtermin~e d'avance car les in framing the terms and the vocabulary of the femmes n'ont pas choisi ses termes, nile Ian- abortion debate predetermines its outcome. gage dans lequel il se d~roulera. Les tribunaux She believes that courts must recognize the doivent, selon elle, reconnaitre les forces en power relations at play and address the lack of jeu et tenir compte du manque de d~mocratie democracy for women. Courts must not only pour et par les femmes. Ils doivent non seule- encourage women to speak, but must also ment encourager les femmes s'exprimer, encourage the speech of women. mais surtout encourager l'expression des The author urges the Court to state unequivo- femmes. cally that foetuses have no constitutional L'auteur affirme que la Cour doit prendre posi- rights. She argues that such a decision is nec- tion et d6clarer clairement qu'un foetus n'a pas essary to bring women into the public debate de droit constitutionnel.
    [Show full text]
  • Availability of Abortion in Canada and Elsewhere Vanier Institute of the Family, 2017
    Availability of Abortion in Canada and Elsewhere Vanier Institute of the Family, 2017 History of Criminalization • At common law, abortions could be induced before “quickening”. • The 1892 CCC included the offense of “procuring an abortion” • 1969-1988 Partial decriminalization. TAC regime. “Life or health in danger” • TAC regime struck down in 1988: Morgenthaler • PMB to introduce some from of criminalization • Medically Unnecessary Abortion Referendum Act • An Act to amend the Criminal Code (injuring or causing the death of an unborn child while committing an offence) Case Law on Fetal Status • Tremblay v. Daigle (1989) SCC • Borowski v. Canada (1989) SCC • R v Sullivan (1991) SCC • Dobson v. Dobson (1999) SCC • CFS v. G (1997) SCC 5 (1) No person shall knowingly … (e) for the purpose of creating a human being, perform any procedure or provide, prescribe or administer any thing that would ensure or increase the probability that an embryo will be of a particular sex, or that would identify the sex of an in vitro embryo, except to prevent, diagnose or treat a sex- linked disorder or disease; Assisted Human Reproduction Act Urquia et al, 2011 assessed variations in the male-female infant ratios among births to Canadian-born and Indian-born mothers according to year of birth, province and country of birth of each parent. METHODS: In this population-based register study, we analyzed birth certificates of 5 853 970 singleton live births to Canadian-born and 177 990 singleton live births to Indian-born mothers giving birth in Canada from 1990 to 2011. …. RESULTS: Among Canadian-born mothers, male-female ratios were about 1.05, with negligible fluctuations by birth order, year and province.
    [Show full text]
  • Foetal Rights and the Regulation of Abortion Martha Shaffer*
    Foetal Rights and the Regulation of Abortion Martha Shaffer* In.this article, the author discusses the legal L'auteure dtudie le statut juridique du foetus status of the foetus in the wake of the Supreme A la lumi~re de l'affaire Tremblay c. Daigle. Court of Canada decision in Tremblay v. Dai- Elle analyse d'abord un des aspects de la ddci- gle. She examines the Court's finding that the sion de ]a Cour supreme du Canada selon foetus has no rights in the civil or common law lequel le fetus n'a aucun droit autant en droit and exposes the resulting difficulties with the civil qu'en common law. Elle fait ensuite res- assertion of foetal rights under the Charter.By sortir les difficult~s que pr6sente le fait de sou- drawing upon factums submitted by the parties tenir que ]a Charte confire des droits au foetus. and by anti-abortion intervenors in Daigle and En faisant appel aux m~moires que les parties Borowski v. Canada (A.G.), the author ana- et les intervenants opposds i l'avortement ont lyzes the scientific and moral claims pro- soumis lors des affaires Daigle et Borowski c. pounded by opponents of abortion in support Canada (P.G.), 'auteure dfmontre que leurs of foetal rights but finds them insufficient to arguments moraux et scientifiques ne suffisent establish a normative argument for the recog- pas i 6tablir une norme selon laquelle on pour- nition of such rights under the Charter. rait baser la reconnaissance des droits en The determination of foetal rights under the faveur du fetus en vertu de ]a Charte.
    [Show full text]
  • Abortion Judicial Activism and Constitutional Crossroads
    ABORTION JUDICIAL ACTIVISM AND CONSTITUTIONAL CROSSROADS Beverly Baines* 1. Introduction In 1984 Bruce A. Ackerman and Robert E. Chamey maintained Canada was still “at the constitutional crossroads.”1 Describing the issue as one of parliamentary versus popular sovereignty, they urged us to follow the lead of our American neighbours by adopting the latter. Appearances to the contrary notwithstanding, since Ackerman and Chamey had already acknowledged Canada’s status as a federal state, theirs was not a metaphor asking whether we accepted the division of powers. Rather their “constitutional crossroads” questioned our commitment to the separation of powers. The Supreme Court of Canada’s abortion jurisprudence provides a unique opportunity for determining whether we remain “at the constitutional crossroads” that Ackerman and Chamey identified. Since 1984 the Court has decided four abortion cases, striking down the impugned abortion laws in two of these cases by invoking the Canadian Charter o f Rights and Freedoms2 in one3 and federalism in the other.4 Scholars have subjected the Charter decision known as the 1988 Morgentaler case to considerable comment. Not only have conservative political scientists criticized the outcome, feminist law professors have also challenged the judges’ reasoning. The distinctiveness of their concerns suggests conservatives and feminists may differ more about the identity than about the existence of any “constitutional crossroads” that confront Canada. Conservatives contend the 1988 Morgentaler decision exemplifies the Court taking the wrong side in the controversy over judicial activism versus deference. They claim the judges should have chosen the latter. Comparing their depiction with that of Ackerman and Chamey, it * Associate Professor of Law, Queen’s University.
    [Show full text]
  • An Equality Approach to Reproductive Choice: R. V. Sullivan
    An Equality Approach to Reproductive Choice: R. v. Sullivan Lynn Smith I. INTRODUCTION The regulation of women's sexuality and reproduction is best approachedas a fundamental arena of gender conflict in which women and men have competedfor the control of women's bodies. Reproduction of the species has traditionally been seen as women's primary function, to be exercised for the benefit of men or for society as a whole, as defined by men. The legal treatment of women with respect to reproductive issues has both reflected and perpetuated that traditional view. One approach that challenges the hegemony of the traditional view is based on an individual woman's "right to choose," whether the choice relates to termination of pregnancy or to medical treatment and personal habits during pregnancy. This approach is founded upon considerations of liberty and privacy. Another approach is based on women's right to equality, founded on considerations of the economic, political, social and overarching cultural contexts in which women become pregnant, are pregnant, require termination of pregnancies, carry pregnancies to term, give birth and raise children. This approach may challenge the hegemony of the traditional view in more fundamental ways than does the liberty approach, and therefore may be more effective. For the same reason, it may be more difficult to argue successfully in a society which places strong emphasis on individual liberty and less emphasis on social equality. In Canadian Supreme Court reproductive rights cases, arguments based on equality have been presented with some measure of success. R. v. Sullivan2 is one such case.
    [Show full text]
  • Pre-Born Children Are Politically Toxic to Many Parliamentarians
    "[T]he child, by reason of his physical and mental immaturity, needs special safeguards and care, including appropriate legal protection, before as well as after birth."1 - United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child Pre-born children are politically toxic to many Parliamentarians. Yet nowhere is the current state of Canadian law more disconnected from human rights, scientific fact, Supreme Court rulings, international standards, and public opinion. Consider the facts: European Gestational Restrictions for ➢ Canadian criminal law provides no legal protection for pre- Abortion on Request2 born children. The Criminal Code holds that a “child” becomes a “human being” worthy of protection only after it Country Gestational Limit has fully proceeded from the body of its mother.3 Science unequivocally contradicts this outdated legal definition.4 Austria 12 weeks ➢ Every country in the world except Canada has legal Finland 0 weeks protections for pre-born children.5 In Canada, a child can be aborted for any reason, at any stage of development. And they France 12 weeks are aborted in massive numbers. The Abortion Rights Germany 12 weeks Coalition of Canada estimates that at least 104,158 abortions occurred in Canada in 2015.6 The Canadian Institute of Italy 12 weeks Health Information reports that 12.7% of abortions occur at 13 weeks or later, and 2.4% of abortions occur after 20 Netherlands 13 weeks weeks.7 This accounts for about 12,500 abortions per year after 13 weeks of which approximately 2,500 occur after 20 Poland 0 weeks weeks
    [Show full text]
  • Decriminalising Abortion in the Uk the in Abortion Poli Sally Sheldon and Kaye Wellings Kaye and Sheldon Sally
    “Abortion plays a fundamental Available Open Access under Decriminalising Abortion UK the in role in women’s health but is CC-BY-NC licence. often shrouded in myth and hyperbole. This lucid and The public and parliamentary accessible text provides robust debate about UK abortion law and reliable evidence on this reform is often diverted away important issue.” from key moral and political Professor Dame Lesley Regan questions by disputes regarding DBE, MD DSc, Royal College of basic questions of fact. And all Obstetricians and Gynaecologists too often, claims of scientific ‘fact’ are ideologically driven. “This excellent book steps aside from the heat of debate What effect would Edited by Sally Sheldon and Kaye Wellings in order to provide an accurate decriminalisation be likely to account of the evidence about have on women’s health? What clinical safety, public opinion and would be the impact on the legal regulation. It provides an incidence of abortions? Would essential reference point for all decriminalisation equate to those seeking to approach the deregulation, sweeping away reform of abortion law with moral necessary restrictions on integrity.’’ dangerous or malicious conduct? Professor Sir Jonathan Montgomery, University College With each chapter written by London leading experts in the fields of medicine, law, reproductive health and social science, this book offers a concise and Sally Sheldon is Professor of authoritative account of the Law at the University of Kent and University of Technology, Sydney. evidence regarding the likely impact of decriminalisation of POLICY PRESSPOLICY & PRACT ICE Kaye Wellings is Professor of abortion in the UK. Sexual and Reproductive Health Research at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.
    [Show full text]
  • Travel to Access Abortion Services in Canada Christabelle Sethna
    University of Ottawa Summer 2012 World SOCIAL SCIENCES RESEARCH AT THE of IDEAS UNIVERSITY OF OTTAWA Travel to Access Abortion Services in Canada Christabelle Sethna On April 26, 2012, Conservative Party Member individual must be paramount and take precedence of Parliament Stephen Woodward introduced a over that of the state ... I do not want women to go motion asking for a special committee to consider back to the previous era where some were forced the legal beginnings of human life. Woodward’s to obtain abortions from illegal and medically action revived fears that the Conservative dangerous sources. This should never happen in a Government has a “hidden agenda” regarding civilized society.1 changes to the status of abortion in Canada even though Prime Minister Stephen Harper stated Abortion is recognized globally as a vital he opposed the motion and Party whip Gordon component of sexual and reproductive health O’Connor made the following statement: care for women. It is a commonplace, albeit time- sensitive medical procedure that has good health The decision of whether or not to terminate a outcomes for women when trained personnel pregnancy is essentially a moral decision and, in a perform it under sanitary conditions within the first free and democratic society, the conscience of the trimester. Yet abortion has become a stigmatized 1 Gordon O’Connor quoted in Warren Kinsella, “Harper proves true to his word,” Toronto Sun, April 30, 2012 http://www.torontosun.com/2012/04/30/harper-proves-true-to-his-word, Retrieved May 2, 2012 Faculty of Social Sciences www.socialsciences.uOttawa.ca World of IDEAS - Travel to Access Abortion Services in Canada Since 1988 access to abortion services throughout the country remains patchy because of numerous extra-legal obstacles, thereby making travel a necessity for many women.
    [Show full text]
  • THE IMPACT of the ABORTION LAW CONTROVERSY on NORTH AMERICAN HUMAN EMBRYO RESEARCH Pollcy
    THE IMPACT OF THE ABORTION LAW CONTROVERSY ON NORTH AMERICAN HUMAN EMBRYO RESEARCH POLlCY David M. Kaplan A thesis submitted in conformity with the requirements for the degree of Master of Science Graduate Department of Community Health (Health Administration) Joint Centre for Bioethics University of Toronto O Copyright by David M. Kaplan (1 997) Acquisitions and Acquisitions et Bibliographie Services services bibliographiques 395 Wellington Street 395, rue Wellington Ottawa ON KIA ON4 Ottawa ON K1A ON4 Canada Canada Your hie Volre réference Our hle Nolre r%l~rencs The author has granted a non- L'auteur a accordé une licence non exclusive licence allowing the exclusive permettant à la National Library of Canada to Bibliothèque nationale du Canada de reproduce, loan, distribute or sel1 reproduire, prêter, distribuer ou copies of this thesis in microform, vendre des copies de cette thèse sous paper or electronic formats. la forme de microfiche/b, de reproduction sur papier ou sur format électronique. The author retains ownership of the L'auteur conserve la propriété du copyright in tbis thesis. Neither the droit d'auteur qui protège cette thèse. thesis nor substantial extracts fiom it Ni la thèse ni des extraits substantiels may be printed or othenvise de celle-ci ne doivent être imprimés reproduced without the author's ou autrement reproduits sans son permission. autorisation. ABSTRACT THE IMPACT OF THE ABORTION LAW CONTROVERSY ON NORTH AMERICAN HUMAN EMBRYO RESEARCH POLlCY Master of Science, 1997, David M. Kaplan, Graduate Department of Community Health (Health Administration), University of Toronto This exploratory study examines why Canada and the United States of America have adopted different policies regarding research on human emb~yos.One possibIe explanation may rest in an examination of the hstory and the values eupressed in the respective landmark abortion decisions.
    [Show full text]
  • The Lawyer's Role in Civil Disobedience in Canada
    Defying the Law of the Land: The Lawyer’s Role in Civil Disobedience in Canada Ellen Bolger* Abstract A lawyer’s role in relation to the issue of civil disobedience is far from settled. Lawyers advocate for values such as “truth” and “justice;” however, they are also instructed to respect the rule of law and the legislature’s role in creating laws and policy. Due to the tension between values and law, lawyers must choose which clients to represent as well as determine what constitutes effective counsel. The Charter of Rights and Freedoms adds another complex dimension to this dilemma because of the fine line between “civil disobedience” and the assertion of Charter rights through test case litigation. It is easy to look back at historical moments, such as the civil rights movement, and recognize when civil disobedience is justified. However, we do not always have the luxury of hindsight, and we must not deny that there are legitimate reasons to practice civil disobedience today. The legal history of Dr. Henry Morgentaler is an example of the juxtaposition between advocacy and policy. Throughout his legal battles, Dr. Morgentaler was labelled a criminal who performed civil disobedience, but who is now highly regarded as someone who fought for Charter rights. Therefore, with competing obligations to one’s client, fellow lawyers, and the public in general, lawyers must chart their own ethical course in these matters. Keywords: Charter of Rights and Freedoms, legal ethics, reproductive rights, Henry Morgentaler, test case litigation Introduction creates for judges, because it involves a “flaunting of the law” which often leads to “the repression of activists and agitators for change.”1 According to MacPherson, “the Lawyers have a number of duties attached to their role – to dissident must be given some room for manoeuvre, while their clients, to the court, to each other, and to the public at the status quo is to be defended.”2 The Charter adds large.
    [Show full text]
  • Of What Difference? ISBN 978-0-9812493-0-8 20Th Anniversary of Regina V
    Of What Difference? ISBN 978-0-9812493-0-8 20th Anniversary of Regina v. Morgentaler Of What Difference? Reflections on the Judgment and Abortion in Canada Today SYMPOSIUM Toronto, Ontario January 25, 2008 Co-hosted by the National Abortion Federation and the Faculty of Law, University of Toronto 20th Anniversary of R v. Morgentaler Symposium Of What Difference? Reflections on the Judgment and Abortion in Canada Today On January 25, 2008, in Toronto, Ontario, to representatives from government the Faculty of Law, University of Toronto and women’s advocacy organizations. (U of T) and the National Abortion Examining abortion from a variety of Federation (NAF) co-hosted an perspectives, participants addressed the interdisciplinary symposium to celebrate significance of the event and the difference the 20-year anniversary of Regina v. the R. v. Morgentaler judgment has since Morgentaler, the Supreme Court case in made to women, providers and the politics which the criminal law on abortion in of abortion in Canada. Canada was held unconstitutional. This reader, prepared in collaboration with The symposium brought together more the Women’s Health Research Institute, is than 100 participants, from legal scholars, a compilation of the day’s presentations at abortion providers and journalists this commemorative legal conference. This document is the property of the National Abortion Federation. Permission to reproduce this document is granted for use without fee and without formal request provided it is reproduced accurately and not used in a misleading context. The material must be acknowledged as NAF copyright and the title of the document specified. Copies may not be made or distributed for profit or commercial advantage.
    [Show full text]