Joseph Arvay
| Joe Arvay QC |
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Joe Arvay
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March 18, 1949 Welland, Ontario |
Joseph Arvay, QC (born March 18, 1949) is a Canadian lawyer who has argued numerous landmark cases involving civil liberties and constitutional rights.
Born in Welland, Ontario, he graduated from the University of Western Ontario with a Bachelor of Laws in 1974. He then attained a Master of Laws from Harvard Law School.
In 2000 he was awarded the Walter S. Tarnopolsky Human Rights Award; described by Madam Justice Michèle Rivet as "one of Canada's most tireless civil rights and human rights lawyers ... He has made a exceptional commitment to human rights in this country." He was voted one of Canadian Lawyer’s Top 25 Most Influential in 2010, 2011 & 2012 by Canadian Lawyer Magazine.Peter Gzowski puts it as follows "[Arvay] has had a remarkable role in shaping how our Constitution is interpreted".
In 2011, he argued the case for the Insite safe injection site and whether it falls under provincial or federal jurisdiction. "Insite is a life-raft for the people in the Downtown Eastside," Arvay told the court. "A life-raft in a sea of misery.". On Sept 30th 2011 Canada's Supreme Court ruled that North America's only legal drug injection facility can stay open. The top court issued its 9-0 unanimous decision in a case that has drawn international attention. "The battle for other sites across Canada remains to be fought," Arvay said, adding the ruling will give those cities hope. "Insite is going to remain open no matter what."
Arvay worked with the BC Civil Liberties Association in a successful fight to decriminalize assisted suicide. At the British Columbia Supreme Court, he contended the law removes a person’s right to make decisions about their body and also restricts physicians’ freedom to administer compassionate end-of-life care. On June 15, 2012, the British Columbia Supreme Court declared a section of the Criminal Code that prohibits physician-assisted death invalid. Madam Justice Lynn Smith says the Criminal Code provisions “unjustifiably infringe the equality rights” of the plaintiffs in the case, including Gloria Taylor, who suffers from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).
Arvay recently represented the plaintiff in a landmark case granting children of sperm donors the same rights regarding access to information about their birth parents as adopted children. Joseph Arvay stated that “this case represents a monumental victory for our client, Olivia Pratten, and all the donor offspring she represents who have for too long been disadvantaged by their exclusion from the legislative landscape which has promoted and perpetuated prejudice and stereotyping and caused them grave harm.”
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