THE OAKES TEST 1. “….protects rights by ensuring that the government cannot limit rights without justification. Also, the Charter’s rights are not absolute and can be infringed if the courts determine that the infringement is reasonably justified…” R. v. Oakes [1986] 1 S.C.R. 103

THE OAKES TEST 2. “…If brought to court, the government must prove that the limitation in place is justified. This is to keep the Charter fair and to take the power from the crown and give it to others…” Case Study Questions:

THE OAKES TEST 3. “…a court may find that the specific law is of no force or effect, or it will be read down (meaning the court will review the legislation considering the Charter right)… 3. “…a court may find that the specific law is of no force or effect, or it will be read down (meaning the court will review the legislation considering the Charter right)… ” Case Study Questions:

THE OAKES TEST 4. “Upon a judge ruling that the law has no effect or force, the court can read down the law, which means the law will be changed for the duration of the court, so that it will follow the charter. If the law has been struck down completely and exempted from court the parliament or legislature can use section 33, the notwithstanding clause, to exempt the government from following the charter of rights and freedoms…” Case Study Questions:

THE OAKES TEST 5. “…significant because it provided the court with an opportunity to interpret the wording of Section 1 of the Charter and explain how Section 1 would apply to a specific case. In addition the case is important so nobody is wrongfully convicted or charged with a crime if the government fails to satisfy Section 1 (i.e the law is not enforced) Case Study Questions:

THE OAKES TEST 6. …the government could use a variety of evidence for each branch of the Oakes Test: a.Prescribed by Law > Must be part of an existing law b.Pressing and Substantial > Must be important to society c.Proportionality -Rational Connection > Be connected to the law it violates -Minimal impairment > Little disruption to society -Proportionate Effect > Balance of probabilities relationship Case Study Questions:

THE OAKES TEST 7. “ Yes (there should be limits) because often Charter rights can/are manipulated to promote negative actions. Ex – Freedom of Speech: to promote hate towards a distinguishable group. It must restrict F.O.S so as to protect the rights of the negatively impacted party.” Case Study Questions:

THE OAKES TEST 8. “….cases where allowing the Charter right to bring about hate, ethnic discrimination or racism a limitation would be beneficial…” Case Study Questions:

THE OAKES TEST 9. Potentially “a situation where an infringement of a Charter right would not be justified is an artist painting one of his [their] paintings and the government disagrees with his [their] ideas and says he [their] not allowed to have it out in public. This would be an infringement of Freedom of Expression..” Case Study Questions:

THE OAKES TEST 10. “…it is a good thing because it means that the case gets many opinions on what is wrong and right. Through this we are able to see more fair, justified and unbiased results…” Case Study Questions: