In Carter v Canada (Attorney General), 2016 SCC 4 (Carter 2016) the Supreme Court of Canada (SCC) granted an interesting constitutional remedy – a constitutional exemption during an extension of the suspended declaration of invalidity – which has an uncertain foundation in the text of the Constitution Act 1982. This case provides an opportunity to further explore the remedy of constitutional exemptions. In this post, I will be looking at the history of this remedy, its sources, how it operates, issues related to its unpredictable invocation and its availability in the context of present case.
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