43rd PARLIAMENT, 2nd SESSION House of Commons Debates Official Report (Hansard) Volume 150 No. 008 Friday, October 2, 2020 Speaker: The Honourable Anthony Rota CONTENTS (Table of Contents appears at back of this issue.) 467 HOUSE OF COMMONS Friday, October 2, 2020 The House met at 10 a.m. dence that the judge in their case will enforce sexual assault laws fairly and accurately, as Parliament intended. Prayer [English] It has never been more critical that all of us who serve the public GOVERNMENT ORDERS are equipped with the right tools and understanding to ensure that everyone is treated with the respect and dignity that they deserve, ● (1005) no matter what their background or their experiences. This would [English] enhance the confidence of survivors of sexual assault and the Cana‐ dian public, more broadly, in our justice system. There is no room JUDGES ACT in our courts for harmful myths or stereotypes. Hon. David Lametti (Minister of Justice, Lib.) moved that Bill C-3, An Act to amend the Judges Act and the Criminal Code, be read the second time and referred to a committee. I know that our government's determination to tackle this prob‐ lem is shared by parliamentarians from across Canada and of all He said: Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to stand in support of Bill political persuasions. The bill before us today will help ensure that C-3, an act to amend the Judges Act and the Criminal Code, which those appointed to a superior court would undertake to participate is identical to former Bill C-5. in continuing education in relation to sexual assault law and social context. I am delighted to be reintroducing this important piece of legisla‐ tion today. I know we in the House are all anxious to see the work that was started by the Hon. Rona Ambrose in 2017 with the intro‐ As the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada, I duction of Bill C-337 come to fruition with the quick passage of take very seriously my responsibility to uphold judicial indepen‐ this bill in this session of Parliament. dence, a constitutional principle that is a cornerstone of our democ‐ racy. Judicial independence means that judges must be free to de‐ Regrettably, Parliament's consideration of Bill C-5 was abruptly cide each case on its own merits without interference or influence interrupted and the study of the justice committee halted by a health of any kind from any source. For this reason, judicial independence crisis that has created unprecedented challenges to all aspects of requires judicial control of judicial education, and I salute the work Canadian society, including our justice system. The pandemic has that is being done by the Canadian Judicial Council as well as the exposed and exploited underlying conditions that have long National Judicial Institute in Canada in the training they have al‐ plagued our justice system. It brought into stark relief the unaccept‐ ready begun to provide. Applying this principle to the current bill able barriers to accessing justice for the most vulnerable in our so‐ means that our government's efforts to ensure judges participate in ciety. The reintroduction of the bill comes at a time when the need education on matters related to sexual assault law and social con‐ to protect our most vulnerable has never been clearer, nor the im‐ text must not undermine the independence of the judiciary. portance of ensuring a justice system that treats everyone fairly and with respect more critical. In that vein, I would like to describe the key elements of the pro‐ [Translation] posed legislation. Bill C-3, as noted previously, is identical to for‐ Bill C-3 is designed to enhance public confidence in our criminal mer Bill C-5 and essentially the same as former private member's justice system, and in particular the confidence of survivors of sex‐ bill, Bill C-337. Importantly, the bill includes the amendments to ual assault. It is hard to imagine anyone more vulnerable in the Bill C-337 passed unanimously by the House of Commons to in‐ criminal justice system than the women who find the courage to re‐ clude social context education within the requirements of the bill. port sexual assault. This requirement is specifically aimed at providing those who pre‐ side over cases with deeper insights and best practices to help them The bill will ensure that survivors of sexual assault are treated better navigate the social and cultural factors that they will likely with dignity and respect by the courts and will give them confi‐ come across in their time on the bench. 468 COMMONS DEBATES October 2, 2020 Government Orders Bill C-3 also includes the amendments recommended by the Sen‐ We are working with our provincial and territorial counterparts and ate Standing Committee on Legal and Constitutional Affairs in its justice sector stakeholders toward more comprehensive efforts. study of Bill C-337. However, the pivotal public and determinative role judges play must also be taken into account. ● (1010) The first key element of the bill is that it proposes to amend the [Translation] Judges Act to require candidates for superior court judicial appoint‐ ments to commit to undertaking training in matters related to sexual assault law and social context. This becomes part of the application The third key component of the bill will require the Canadian Ju‐ process. This commitment will become an eligibility requirement dicial Council to submit to the justice minister an annual report to for appointment to a superior court. be tabled in this Parliament about the training on sexual assault law that has been provided and the number of judges who attended. It is no easy task to bolster public confidence, in particular the This requirement is designed to enhance accountability in the train‐ confidence of sexual assault survivors, that our criminal justice sys‐ ing of sitting judges on these matters while still acting as an incen‐ tem will treat victims with dignity, fairness and respect. This is a tive to encourage their participation. particularly acute challenge when there are reports in the media of judges doing exactly the opposite. We hear of highly publicized [English] cases in which judges have relied on stereotypes or myths about how a victim of sexual assault should have behaved and have mis‐ applied the carefully crafted law intended to prevent this. The final element of the bill would amend the Criminal Code to require judges to provide reasons for decisions under sexual assault The undertaking to commit to training is aimed at ensuring that provisions of the Criminal Code. This amendment is intended to Canada's highly developed law and jurisprudence on sexual assault enhance the transparency of judicial decisions made in sexual as‐ are appropriately applied in the courtroom. It will also ensure that sault proceedings by rendering them accessible, either in writing or newly appointed judges receive the education and training neces‐ on the record of the proceedings. I would like to mention that this sary to understand and appreciate the social context within which proposed amendment to require judges to provide reasons in the de‐ they perform their functions, so that personal or societal biases or termination of sexual assault matters specifically is complementary myths and stereotypes do not have any bearing on their decisions. to three existing requirements. Over the past three decades the criminal law has undergone sig‐ nificant reform to encourage reporting of sexual assaults, to im‐ ● (1015) prove the criminal justice system's response to sexualized violence and to counter discriminatory views of survivors that stem from The requirement to provide reasons will be placed in the other myths and stereotypes about how a true victim is expected to be‐ sexual assault provisions in the Criminal Code. This will help en‐ have. As a result, the Criminal Code prohibits all forms of non-con‐ sure that all provisions related to sexual offending are clear and ac‐ sensual sexual activity, provides a clear definition of consent, iden‐ cessible to those applying them. This is part of the effort to prevent tifies when consent cannot be obtained and sets out rules for the ad‐ the misapplication of sexual assault law by helping to ensure that missibility of certain types of evidence to deter the introduction of decisions in sexual assault matters are not influenced by myths or these harmful myths and stereotypes. stereotypes about sexual assault victims and how they ought to be‐ have. This is consistent with the Supreme Court of Canada's finding Canada's sexual assault law is robust, but is necessarily complex. that such myths and stereotypes distort the truth-seeking function of It applies to the most intimate of human interactions, so to be effec‐ the court. tive it must be properly understood and applied. This is why judi‐ cial education in this area is so significant and Bill C-3 so impor‐ tant. [Translation] [Translation] Being a judge comes with great responsibility. I would like to The second key element is to require that the Canadian Judicial quote the Hon. Justice Charles Gonthier, former justice of the Council develop this sexual-assault training only after it consults Supreme Court of Canada: with groups and individuals that it considers appropriate, including sexual assault survivors and the groups that support them. This will The judge is the pillar of our entire justice system, and of the rights and free‐ give the council the opportunity to gather different perspectives on doms which that system is designed to promote and protect. Thus, to the public, judges not only swear by taking their oath to serve the ideals of Justice and Truth on sexual assault informed by the experiences and knowledge of the which the rule of law in Canada and the foundations of our democracy are built, but community.