Reference re Secession of Quebec, 1998

Case 48

Teodora Pop

Two conditions set by the Liberal Government of Quebec:

• Distinct Society status• Veto power

There were two attempts to achieve these rights:

• Meech Lake Accord 1987• Charlottetown Accord 1992

Secession

“Do you agree that Quebec should become sovereign after having made a formal offer to Canada for a new economic and political partnership within the scope of the bill respecting the future of Quebec and of the agreement signed on June 12, 1995?”

49.42 percent of Quebecers voted YES

The Government had three questions for the Court:

• Is it constitutional for Quebec to secede unilaterally from Canada?

• Is there an international law that would give Quebec the right to self determination?

• If there is a conflict between domestic and international law, which would have precedence?

4 key constitutional principles

• Federalism• Democracy• Rule of law and Constitutionalism and • The protection of minority rights

The Court advised that “it would be a grave mistake to equate legitimacy with the ‘sovereign will’ or majority rule alone, to the exclusion of other constitutional values”.

Questions:

• Should Quebec have the right to secede from Canada?

• Should the federal government have resorted to the courts in this secession matter? Should the role of the courts be limited?