R. v. Morgentaler (1993)
| R v Morgentaler | |
|---|---|
|
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| Hearing: February 4, 1993 Judgment: September 30, 1993 |
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| Full case name | Her Majesty The Queen v Henry Morgentaler |
| Citations | [1993] 3 S.C.R. 463, 125 N.S.R. (2d) 81, 107 D.L.R. (4th) 537, 85 C.C.C. (3d) 118, 25 C.R. (4th) 179 |
| Docket No. | 22578 |
| Prior history | Judgment for the defendant in the Nova Scotia Supreme Court. |
| Ruling | appeal dismissed |
| Holding | |
| Nova Scotia regulations regarding abortion were ultra vires the legislature of the province as criminal law. | |
| Court Membership | |
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Chief Justice: Antonio Lamer Puisne Justices: Gérard La Forest, Claire L'Heureux-Dubé, John Sopinka, Charles Gonthier, Peter Cory, Beverley McLachlin, Frank Iacobucci, John C. Major |
|
| Reasons given | |
| Unanimous reasons by | Sopinka J. |
R v Morgentaler was a decision by the Supreme Court of Canada invalidating a provincial attempt to regulate abortions in Canada. This followed the 1988 decision R. v. Morgentaler, which had struck down the federal abortion law as a breach of section 7 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. In 1993, the provincial regulations were ruled to be a criminal law, which would violate the Constitution Act, 1867. That Act assigns criminal law exclusively to the federal Parliament.
Having won his case in R v Morgentaler, abortion rights activist Henry Morgentaler planned to open an abortion clinic in Nova Scotia. The provincial government responded by passing legislation that would outlaw such clinics (as a provincial offence) and limit abortions to recognized hospitals. This regulation was not limited to abortion but also covered liposuction and other procedures; indeed, the provincial government claimed it was merely fighting the privatization of the health care system (since Morgentaler's clinics were private). The penalty set out in the legislation would be a fine of between $10,000 to $50,000. Undaunted, Morgentaler went ahead and opened his clinic, supposedly to receive potential patients for his other clinics outside Nova Scotia. Eventually, however, Morgentaler informed the press that he had indeed carried out abortions in his Nova Scotia clinic. The government charged him for this, but Morgentaler challenged the constitutionality of the law.
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