OTTAWA – The Liberal government is restoring and modernizing a program that gives financial support to those mounting expensive legal battles to clarify and protect their language and equality rights in court.
The court challenges program is also expanding to include other sections of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, including religion and freedom of expression, democratic participation and the right to life, liberty and security of the person.
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An independent body of experts will now oversee the new version of the program, which the government says will help ensure that decisions over who gets funding — and who doesn’t — remain impartial.
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Last fall, the House of Commons justice committee urged the Liberal government to go further, recommending the program become independent and enshrined in legislation to protect it from the whims of future governments.
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The program was established in 1978 and has played an instrumental role in many major constitutional challenges, including the fight for same-sex marriage, before the previous Conservative government abolished it soon after coming to power.
The Liberals promised to fully reinstate the program during the 2015 election, and then committed about $5 million in annual funding in last year’s federal budget.
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