Attorney General of Canada v. Lavell Flashcards
What does this case indicate?
The limited scope of the Bill of Rights legislation when it came to rights protection and the interpretation of equality rights.
What did Jeannette Corbiere Lavell do?
Challenged the validity of s. 12.1 (b) of the Indian Act.
What did this section of the Indian Act provide?
That a status Indian woman who married a non-status man would lose her Indian status.
Why was the situation different for a status Indian man?
He didn’t lose his status by marrying a non-status woman.
What happened when Lavell married a non-Indian?
Her name was stuck from the Indian Register; her subsequent appeal was rejected at the Ontario Court of Appeal.
What happened on appeal to the Federal Court?
Declared that the Indian Act was discriminatory on the basis of gender, as an Indian man did not lose his status if he married a non-Indian woman.
What was this section of the Indian Act declared?
Inconsistent with the Canadian Bill of Rights
What happened when the case was appealed to the Supreme Court of Canada?
The court held that there was no violation of the equality provision under the Bill of Rights.
What was the meaning given to the term “equality” to be consistent with?
The time period of the enactment of the bill, which was defined in terms of the equal administration of the law.
What was the definition of “equality” as it applied to the Lavell case?
Meant that all Indian women were to be treated the same and all Indian men were to be treated the same.
What was not used to override the Indian Act?
The Canadian Bill of Rights
What was the outcome of the case?
Lavell lost her case.
