Transcript The Queen v. Big M Drug Mart Ltd., 1985

The Queen v. Big M Drug Mart
Ltd., 1985
Big M Drug Mart was charged under the Lord’s Day Act
(1906) for carrying on the sale of goods on a Sunday
Issues were the division of powers; whether or not the Act
was contrary to section 7 of the Charter; and if so, was it
saved under section 1?
Lord’s Day Act was challenged under the Bill of Rights in
1963. Courts looked at the effect of the law rather then the
purpose and therefore ruled the Act constitutional.
SCC, however, examined the purpose and the effect of the
Act to determine its constitutional validity
SCC ruled the law violated section 2, and section 27 of the
Charter, and could not be saved under section 1
Questions
• How do you interpret “freedom of
religion”?
• Do you think the drafters of the Charter
anticipated that the right to freedom of
religion would deliver against
mainstream religious practices?