Resources
Resources have been developed for teachers teaching law, and for judges, lawyers and other justice sector volunteers when speaking with students. This section also includes reference materials such as selected speeches and articles relating to the justice system, which can be used as educational tools.
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Featured Resource(s)
Landmark Cases: Sexual Orientation and the Charter: Vriend v. Alberta
Delwin Vriend was employed as a laboratory coordinator at a Christian college in Edmonton, Alberta. He had received positive evaluations, salary increases and promotions for his work performance. In January 1991, Mr. Vriend was fired by the college. The only reason given by the college was that he did not comply with its policy on homosexual practice: Mr. Vriend was fired because the college had become aware that he was a gay man.
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Cases That Have Changed Society
Many cases are started by individuals or groups, to respond to a particular event or to change a situation. The outcomes of these cases will often lead to changes in certain areas of the law which impact on all Canadians. The short summaries below are some of the decisions that have changed Canadian society in the last 25 years. The full text of each of these decisions is available at www.ojen.ca on the Links page.
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Making the Case: Mock Hearing Toolkit
This OJEN Mock Hearings Toolkit has been developed to provide ideas and assistance to teachers or justice sector representatives thinking of coordinating a mock hearing for Ontario students.
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Landmark Cases: Dagenais v. Canadian Broadcasting Corp (Freedom of Expression, the Right to a Fair Trial, and the Charter)
Dagenais, Monette, Dugas and Radford were four members of a Catholic order, the Christian Brothers, who were charged with sexually assaulting young boys while they were teachers at an Ontario Catholic school. Following the arrests of the four men, but before the completion of their trials, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) and the National Film Board (NFB) attempted to air a docudrama, entitled "The Boys of St. Vincent", which was inspired by events in Newfoundland similar to those allegedly committed by the Brothers.
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Landmark Cases: Eldridge v. British Columbia (Attorney General): Equality Rights
Robin Eldridge and John and Linda Warren live in British Columbia. They are deaf and prefer to communicate through sign language. After a not-for-profit agency stopped providing free medical interpretation in 1990, they were unable to receive a similar service from the government. They started a court process by filing an application in the Supreme Court of British Columbia. They sought a declaration that the failure to provide sign language interpreters under the Medical Services Plan violates s. 15(1) of the Charter.
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Landmark Cases: The Parental Rights Case: Trociuk v. British Columbia (Attorney General)
Mr. Darrell Wayne Trociuk and Ms. Reni Ernst are from British Columbia. They are the parents of triplets born on January 29, 1996. They are not married to each other. Shortly after the triplets were born, the mother, Ms. Ernst, filled out their birth registration forms on her own. On the forms, she listed the father of the children as "unacknowledged by the mother."
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Equality - The Heart of a Just Society
Ten edited video clips and lesson plans address Section 15 of the Charter. The material is designed to stimulate class reflection, discussion and debate on the Charter and the development of s. 15, the Equality provision.
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Handout: The Courts of Ontario - Flowchart
Handout: The Courts of Ontario - Flowchart
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Handout: The Jurisdiction of Ontario Courts
Handout: The Jurisdiction of Ontario Courts
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Handout: Roles in the Criminal Justice System
Handout: Roles in the Criminal Justice System
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Handout: Structure of the Courts in Canada
Handout: Structure of the Courts in Canada
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Handout: Traditions of the Courts
Handout: Traditions of the Courts
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Handout: Mens Rea / Actus Reus
Explanations of Mens Rea and Actus Reus with related worksheets and teacher's key.
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Landmark Cases: Mandatory Minimum Sentence for Murder: R. v. Latimer
Tracy Latimer was quadriplegic and suffered from five to six epileptic seizures daily. She also had cerebral palsy that rendered her immobile. Twelve-year-old Tracy was assessed as having the mental capacity of a four-month-old baby and was completely dependent on others for her care. Tracy underwent repeated surgeries, however her life was not in its final stages. On November 19, 1993, Tracy was scheduled to undergo surgery to deal with her dislocated hip. After learning about the surgery, Tracy's father, Mr. Robert Latimer, decided to take his daughter's life to avoid the resulting pain. On October 24, 1993, approximately one month prior to the scheduled surgery, Mr. Latimer carried Tracy to his pickup truck where she died from intoxication by carbon monoxide. The police found carbon monoxide in Tracy's blood and Mr. Latimer confessed to having taken her life.
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Justice and the Media
This OJEN resource has been developed to provide a foundation for students' understanding of the relationship between the media and the justice system and to develop critical thinking skills to consider issues of accessibility to the courts and confidence in media reporting.
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Landmark Cases: The Ipperwash Inquiry
On September 4, 1995, Chippewas from the Stoney Point Reserve began an occupation of Ipperwash Provincial Park, located in Grand Bend, ON. Two days later, an Aboriginal occupier, Anthony O'Brien George, also know as Dudley George, was killed during a confrontation between the Aboriginal occupiers and the Ontario Provincial Police. The Ipperwash Inquiry was established in 2003 by the government of Ontario to inquire and report on the events surrounding the death of Dudley George, and make recommendations on how to avoid violence under similar circumstances in the future.
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Landmark Cases: Freedom of Expression, Wilful Promotion of Hatred, and the Charter: R. v. Keegstra
Mr. Keegstra was charged under section 319(2) of the Criminal Code with wilfully promoting hatred against an identifiable group by communicating anti-semitic statements to his students.
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Handout: Section 1 of the Charter & the Oakes Test
Explanation of Section 1 of the Charter & the Oakes Test with related worksheets.
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The Top Five: Annual Summaries of Compelling Cases 2008
Summaries of important legal cases from 2008.
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Civil Law Mock Trial Scenario: Fadey v. Ketkluane High School
Marcus Fadey slipped and fell in a puddle of water left over in the gymnasium of Ketkluane High School after a championship basketball game. After the accident, Marcus sued Ketkluane High School for negligence for leaving the unsafe situation in the gym.
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Civil Law Mock Trial Scenario: Opolsky v. Jaswal and Pasha
Grade 12 student Bruce Opolsky was the subject of a Facebook group called " Bruce is a Cheater " that was created by fellow students, Tahiya Jaswal and Jordan Pasha. As a result of the discussion postings on the group's site, Bruce was benched from his high school wrestling team and denied a job as a summer camp counsellor. In response, Bruce Opolsky sued Tahiya Jaswal and Jordan Pasha for defamation.
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Family Law Mock Trial Scenario: Pilon v. Tremblay
Stella Tremblay has brought an application for child support against Alexandre Tremblay, father of their eighteen year old daughter, Amélie. Stella wants Alexandre to continue to pay child support while Amélie is in university. However, Alexandre thinks that now that Amélie is eighteen, he should not have to pay child support any longer. He also believes that Amélie ended the relationship with him when she sent him a letter telling him that she never wanted to hear from him or see him again.
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