Browse "Types of Law"

Traditional Christian concepts of marriage dominated Canadian society since the founding of the country. Since the end of the Second World War, however, these customs and norms have changed considerably.

International homicide statistics are generally unreliable and always outdated, but Canada usually ranks at the lower end among similar nations. In 1996, for example, Canada's rate of 2.1 per 100 000 population ranked above Japan (1.0), Sweden (1.1) and England (1.

Human rights are rights that we all have by virtue of our shared humanity. Depending on the nature of the right, both individuals and groups can assert human rights. The realization of human rights is a constant struggle on the part of people who suffer injustices and who seek redress.

Impaired driving, also known as drunken driving, driving while impaired (DWI) and driving under the influence (DUI), has been a serious social problem as far back as the beginning of this century, when social scientists took note of the often deadly combination of alcohol and motor vehicles.

Owing to Canada's complex social and constitutional history, the special legal rights of Canada's First peoples vary from one part of the country to another and in their application to different groups.

This term is used to describe rights which protect the results of intellectual and creative activity: items such as a new product, a book or painting, or a marketing slogan.

International law is the body of rules that governs the conduct of STATES and other international associations, such as the UN, although in the human rights area international law, in some instances, may be directly applicable to individuals as well as to states.

Labour law governs COLLECTIVE BARGAINING and industrial relations among employers, their unionized employees and trade unions.

Landlord and tenant law, governed by provincial statutes and judge-made law, varies considerably from province to province. Essentially, a landlord and tenant relationship is contractual (see CONTRACT LAW).

It began with equal French and English lettering on a store sign, escalated with a $75 fine under Quebec's language laws - and ended with a court victory for Gwen Simpson and Wally Hoffmann.

Law of evidence, the body of regulations governing the proof of the existence of a fact before a court. It falls under federal and provincial legislation. In matters governed by the former, provisions of the Canada Evidence Act must be applied. Common law must also be applied.

In Canadian law, fiduciary obligation refers to a relationship in which one party (the fiduciary) is responsible for looking after the best interests of another party (the beneficiary). The courts have determined that a fiduciary obligation exists where the fiduciary can exercise some discretion or power, and they do so in a way that affects the interests of the beneficiary. In these relationships, the beneficiary is in a position of vulnerability at the hands of the fiduciary.

Law of the Sea, for about 300 years, was to a large extent determined by principles of customary law. Coastal states claimed sovereignty over a narrow belt of territorial sea; on the rest of the seas (the "high seas"), the basic principle of freedom of the seas reigned.

Law reform is the process of ensuring that law meets the needs of the society it is designed to serve. The process may involve updating by repealing old and obsolete enactments, consolidating or rationalizing an area of law, or even proposing entirely new concepts.

Malpractice is intentional or negligent failure by any professional, eg, doctor, lawyer, accountant, to meet the standards of reasonable competence in his field. These standards are set taking into account the circumstances in which the professional is acting.

Marriage remains one of the most important social institutions in Canada, but overall the marriage rate is declining and the traditional portrait of a family is being transformed. In 2016, 65.8 per cent of Canadian families were headed by married couples — down from 70.5 per cent in 2001, according to Statistics Canada. In 2011, for the first time in Canadian history, there were also more single-person households than couple households with children, a trend that was again reflected in the 2016 census.

The media are the means by which we receive information we want and need. Over time, town criers and clay tablets have given way to printed text. Now, a wide variety of aural and visual information is conveyed to us in bits and bytes through a number of intermediaries.

Medical ethics are concerned with moral questions raised by the practice of medicine and, more generally, by health care.

In 1987, Prime Minister Brian Mulroney attempted to win Quebec’s consent to the revised Canadian Constitution. The result was the Meech Lake Accord. It was an agreement between the federaland provincial governments to amend (change) the Constitution. The Accord proposed strengthening provincial powersand declaring Quebec a “distinct society.” The Accord was never put into effect. Political support for it unravelled in 1990. Many Québécois saw the Accord’s failure in English Canada as a rejection of Quebec. Support for separatism soared in Quebec and led to the 1995 Quebec Referendum.