Judicial Power and the Charter: Canada and the Paradox of Liberal Constitutionalism

by Christopher P. Manfredi

Book Overview

'Elevation to a nation's highest court does not transform any individual into a moral philosopher, ' writes political scientist Christopher Manfredi. Yet the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, hailed as a significant step towards both the realization of human rights and the limitation of government power and control when it became part of Canada's constitution in 1982, has frequently placed Canada's courts, and the justices of the Supreme...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0195415043
• ISBN13: 9780195415049
• Release Date: October 2000
• Publisher: Oxford University Press Canada
• Length: 294 Pages
• Weight: 0.90 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 6.1" x 9.0"

Customer Reviews

Destined to be a Canadian Classic

McGill University Professor of Political Science Christopher Manfredi has written a superb book about the place of judicial review in democracy. While focussing on Canada, Judicial Power and the Charter should be of interest to those students of both law and political science who are interested in the balance between the courts and the legislature. Manfredi's probing analysis delves deeply into the relationship between the courts and the people's elected representatives. He argues both that the courts should defer more to the will of the people and that elected representatives must be more assertive in promoting and protecting rights.The "paradox" of liberal constitutionalism according to Manfredi, is that courts, the very bodies designed to protect rights, may become the greatest threats to our constitutional rights.Published in 1993, this book continues to be one of the premier books in its field and is a must read for constitutional law scholars.