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As a country founded by England, the fundamental principles of Canadian law are not terribly different from those governing the legal听system of Great Britain, the United States, or any other country with a history of British rule. This English tradition states that laws must be clear and rational, that all accused persons are innocent until proven guilty, that incriminating evidence must听meet very high standards, and that the law’s听power over the individual is limited by听辫谤别肠别诲别苍迟 and the Constitution.

Canadian Legal History

The evolution of Canadian law unfolded in sync with Canada鈥檚 political evolution as a colony of Britain.

In the听early colonial period,听鈥淐anada鈥� didn鈥檛 really exist, legally speaking. The nation was simply an overseas chunk of British territory, governed by听British law. Things began to change in the late 18th century when听Britain allowed its听Canadian colonies to have their own听parliaments, which permitted听Canadian politicians to听write some of their own laws for the first time. In 1867 Britain authorized the creation of the听Constitution of Canada听and Canada gained a great deal of new lawmaking powers. In 1931听Canada officially stopped being a colony of Great Britain and the U.K. parliament lost its powers to pass any laws for Canada. The last cord was cut in听1982, when Britain gave up the power to change Canada鈥檚 constitution.

Canadian Common Law

Though Canada is now completely听independent from Britain, English common law still applies to the country, as it does to the United States and other former British colonies. Common law is basically a collection of precedents, or age-old听understandings, that define many important legal concepts in the English-speaking world 鈥� everything from the definition of 鈥渓ibel鈥� to what it means to say听someone is 鈥渦nfit to stand trial.鈥� These big ideas are supposed to stay largely unchanging over time, though judges in Canada often have to help clarify them when uniquely complicated cases arise (new or clearer precedents arising from specific legal cases are often called case law).听In its most basic form, the听common law idea of precedent means听respecting the logic and definitions other judges have used when faced with听similar situations.

The opposite of the common law system is the civil law system,听which is the French and Spanish tradition of writing very precise and specific laws. In the civil tradition, judges interpret听laws听in a strict and literal way听that only considers the circumstances of the particular case, not historic听辫谤别肠别诲别苍迟.听The province of Quebec, which was colonized by France, still follows the civil law tradition, though the introduction of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms to the Canadian Constitution (see below) has brought common law customs听into the province as well.

The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms

From around 1931 (when Britain听stopped making听laws for Canada) to 1982, Canadian law operated according to a principle known as parliamentary supremacy. According to this concept, there was no authority higher than the Canadian Parliament when it came to deciding what was legal and what was not. Any rule passed by Parliament was听the law, and听that was that.

Parliamentary supremacy ended in 1982, when the Canadian Constitution was reformed and a new section called the was added. The Charter said that some human rights were so important Parliament could not pass听any laws that violated them. So if, say, the Canadian government passed a law saying all听Canadians of Japanese heritage听had to be rounded up and sent to special camps because the country听was at war with Japan 鈥� which is what happened during World War II (1939-1945) 鈥� that law would be unconstitutional, because the Charter forbids parliament from passing laws that discriminate against people on the basis of their 鈥渞ace, national or ethnic origin.鈥�

Since 1982, the rights of Canadians have become much clearer and more easily protected than in previous decades. Parliament no longer attempts to pass laws that threaten certain rights, and if they do citizens can take the government to court to get the law overruled by a judge. This has led to a听growth in judicial power over the lawmaking process, which is听not without controversy.

Different Types of Law

Criminal law听is generally understood to involve any effort to regulate or maintain public safety, social order or morality. This broad category includes all the most sensational and scary crimes, such as theft, murder, kidnapping, assault, and听fraud. The Canadian Constitution听gives the power to make criminal law exclusively to the Parliament of Canada, meaning almost all of Canada鈥檚 most 鈥渟erious鈥� laws are national in scope and apply equally across the entire country. A violation of a criminal law is called a听criminal听offence and often carries imprisonment as maximum punishment.

Federal laws, also known as federal acts,听are laws passed by the Parliament of Canada that regulate or control something under the constitutional authority of Canada’s national government, such as national security, the military, currency, airports, and any business or industry that operates nation-wide or internationally. Provincial laws (or acts) are laws passed by Canada’s 10 provincial governments to regulate or control matters under provincial constitutional authority, which听includes property rights, natural resources, education, social services, housing, health law, and family law. Municipal or city governments can pass laws too, sometimes called bylaws, that regulate minor matters like garbage collection or pet licenses.听Though most laws are passed by elected politicians, these days a lot of law also originates from听some level of the federal, provincial, or municipal听bureaucracy听who politicians have voted to听give that authority.

A violation of a federal or provincial law is known as a regulatory or quasi-criminal offence. Punishments usually involve fines, forced compliance, or the shutting down or seizure of businesses or property.听It鈥檚 rare to go to prison for听breaking these kinds of laws.

Federal and provincial laws that affect private matters, rather than public interests, are known as civil laws (not to be confused with the civil law system, see above). Unlike criminal laws, which seek to protect all Canadians from general danger, civil laws govern relationships between individuals or businesses. Civil laws generally regulate things like employment contracts, building leases, marriages, divorces,听wills, and听child custody agreements, and seek to protect individuals from abusing or exploiting each other. When one Canadian sues another 鈥� which they often do, usually for committing a tort, or act of harmful negligence 鈥� they are dealing with civil law. The constitution splits up authority for different types of civil law between the federal government and the provincial governments.

Law Enforcement

Police officers in Canada are the men and women who enforce the laws passed by the government. They supervise the public and arrest those who break the law, bringing them to court to be judged.

The (also known as the听RCMP, or “Mounties“), with their red coats and wide-brimmed hats, are one of the most iconic emblems听of Canada, but not all Canadian law enforcement is handled by them. It鈥檚 actually up to individual provinces or cities to decide what听specific police force听they want to hire to handle their law enforcement. The听RCMP, who are trained by the federal government, are one option, while other听provinces may听choose to employ听a听provincial police force听or let听each individual city have听their own municipal police force.

The RCMP hold jurisdiction over criminal activity that transcends multiple provinces, or听criminal activity deemed to be a matter of national security. National security responsibilities are also held听by the听听(CSIS),听often called Canada’s “national spy agency,” who covertly monitor things like terrorist threats, internet-based crimes, and foreign espionage.

Prosecution and Punishment

Every province in Canada employs a听politician known as the attorney general, picked by the provincial premier (the head of the provincial government),听who leads a team of Crown attorneys. These Crown attorneys are tasked with representing听the interests of the government and public, and work with police to determine how听an arrested person should听be charged and punished for听breaking a law.

For minor crimes, known as听summary offences,听the Crown will simply require the听accused person to听face a short hearing before a judge听and, if found guilty, face a minor punishment. For more serious or complicated crimes, known as indictable offences, the Crown will demand a full trial听be held between the Crown’s attorneys and the accused criminal and his lawyers (the defense). Guilt will be determined by a judge, and often a jury of 12 randomly-selected citizens as well. Sometimes a law will state whether breaking it is a summary or indictable offence, other times it’s left up to the prosecution to decide.

The most serious punishment a Canadian can face for breaking a law is time in听prison. Like the rest of the justice system, Canadian prisons are jointly managed by the federal and provincial governments. If you are sentenced to less听than two years in prison, and you go to a provincially-run jail. More than two, and it鈥檚 federal. Judicial punishments in Canada tend to operate on an escalating scale, with first-time offenders receiving lighter sentences. Going听to prison听is mostly reserved for those who repeatedly re-offend. Only the most serious crimes, like murder, have long听mandatory prison sentences, with听life in prison听being听the single longest sentence a Canadian can receive. Prison stays can be听ended early as a reward for personal reform and good prison behavior, as determined by the local branch of the . Technically, even people with a life sentence can appeal for parole, though it鈥檚 almost always denied.听Canada has had no death penalty since 1976.