On the 30th anniversary of the adoption of the UN Convention against Torture and other forms of Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, we joined dozens of other human rights organizations, legal groups, women’s equality organizations, ethno-cultural groups and many more calling on the federal government to ratify the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture, … Read more Letter urging Canada to take action on torture
Case summary Vancouver Area Network of Drug Users (VANDU) v Downtown Vancouver Business Improvement Association (DVBIA) started as a human rights complaint against the DVBIA for their treatment of people who are homeless in the downtown core of Vancouver. In particular, it was concerned with the “removals” of this population from sidewalks and city parks by … Read more VANDU v DVBIA [2014]
We wrote to BC’s five Senators calling on them to pass Bill C-279 urgently and without amendment to ensure that the Canadian Human Rights Act and Criminal Code offer protection to trans people in Canada. Canada’s trans community faces extreme levels of violence, stigma and discrimination. Bill C-279 offers transgender Canadians protection from hate crimes under the Criminal Code and assured … Read more Letter on Bill C-279: An Act to amend the Criminal Code and the Canada Human Rights Act (Gender Identity)
Initiated by Justice for Girls, we wrote a joint letter to the Special Committee to Review the Independent Investigations Office describing the need for independent and accountable reviews of police-perpetrated sexual assaults, as well as our concerns that the Independent Investigations Office has not proven itself capable of carrying out these complex and sensitive investigations. … Read more Letter on the Mandate of the Independent Investigations Office
The project aims to identify strategies to reduce barriers in the justice system for sexual assault survivors through dialogue among key…
Case summary This case began as Vilardell v Dunham, a family law case that addressed the constitutionality of daily hearing fees. In family law, the party who files the proceedings is charged a fee for every day of hearing after the first three days. In this case, the mother applied to have her fees waived. In the … Read more Trial Lawyers Association of BC v BC [2014]
In September 2014, we released a new report entitled Able Mothers: The intersection of parenting, disability, and the law. The report was the result of our project on Mothering with Disabilities. Publications
In June 2014, we released a report entitled #CyberMisogyny: Using and strengthening Canadian legal responses to gendered hate and harassment online. This report was part of our Legal Responses to Cyber Misogyny project. Publications
As part of our work on Cyber Misogyny, we made a submission to the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Justice and Human Rights regarding Bill C-13, the Protecting Canadians from Online Crime Act. We urged the Committee to recommend splitting the Bill in order to pass the provisions that address hate and misogyny online, while subjecting the majority … Read more Submission on Bill C-13: the Protecting Canadians from Online Crime Act
We prepared this Briefing Note for provincial legislators calling for an amendment to BC’s residential tenancy legislation that would allow victims of violence to break their fixed term leases without penalty in order to flee domestic abuse. Read the submission. (PDF, 888 KB) Submissions