Constitutional Challengers

Nicole O’Byrne speaks with Adam Dodek about his book Constitutional Challengers. Behind every great constitutional case, there is a person with a fascinating story.

The Supreme Court decides some of the biggest issues in Canadian society: Do Canadians have the right to assisted suicide? Should same-sex couples be allowed to marry? How far does freedom of religion or freedom of expression go?

In Constitutional Challengers, Adam Dodek has gathered together twenty-six of the most significant constitutional cases, including five major decisions concerning Indigenous rights. Behind every one of these cases is a person who had a problem to solve and ended up entangled in the Canadian judicial system.

Some of these people became crusaders — people who campaigned for a cause and set out to change other people’s views and create broader social change. These individuals, such as sex-workers' rights advocate Terri-Jean Bedford and abortion provider Dr. Henry Morgentaler, are villains to some and heroes to others. But most of the people behind the biggest legal decisions weren’t trying to champion a cause; they were just trying to achieve a result that became much bigger than themselves. They were along for the ride — often a long and convoluted one — in the Canadian justice system. It’s within their journeys, often overlooked by the media, that the true victories and life-altering costs of standing up for one’s beliefs can be found

Adam Dodek is a professor and the former dean of the University of Ottawa Common Law Section. He teaches and writes about the Canadian Constitution and the Supreme Court of Canada. He has worked at the supreme Courts of both Canada and Israel, as well as the US Court of Appeals. Adam lives in Ottawa.

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Image Credit: Dundurn Press