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Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms

Constitutionally protected rights in Canada, including the following, are relevant to legal capacity laws

  • Right to life, liberty and security of the person – s. 7
  • Right to equality without discrimination based on mental or physical disability (among other grounds) – s. 15
  • Applies only to government and not to private actors
  • All Canadian laws, including legal capacity laws, must comply with the Charter
  • Eldridge v. British Columbia (Attorney General), Supreme Court of Canada, 1997
    • s.15 right to equality–recognition of importance of sign language interpretation to Deaf people for effective communication