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Social Policy-Making Case Analysis

Decent Essays
Paper Proposal
1.0) Purpose In my paper I will analyze the court’s decision to strike down social policy. Some key considerations will be whether the court is a dispute-resolving, or policy making institution. How much discretion should be given to the Court to interpret/apply the law? I will explore these considerations and how they gain significance through landmark decisions in the past. In particular, I will cite Rodriguez and the narrow 5-4 decision to uphold the illegality of euthanasia. This will develop into a discussion on morals and ethics…who has the right to say what is ethical? Also, how does Public opinion change the Charter?
3.0) Public Opinion In my paper I will express the importance of social policy reflecting current public opinion. This would encourage the judiciary to take a living tree
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Respect for one’s individual autonomy is a hallmark of Canadian liberal democracy, as Downie (2004) notes that countries operating under the common law system have recognized a person’s physical integrity as a fundamental principle for centuries (p. 50). This concern over personal autonomy was a major aspect of the Carter v. Canada case, as one of the plaintiff’s, Gloria Taylor, issued a written statement to the court that read: “What I want is to be able to die in a manner that is consistent with the way that I lived my life. I want to be able to exercise control and die with dignity and with my sense of self and personal integrity intact” (2012, p. 1). 3.2) Quebec Leading by Example. On June 5, 2014, Quebec became the first province to pass right-to-die legislation with its adoption of Bill C 52 (Dougherty, 2014, p.1). This emphasis on personal autonomy reflects the careful considerations taken on behalf of the Parti Québécois in drafting their right-to-die legislation, as the eligibility requirement explicitly states that a person must be “capable of giving consent to end-of-life care” (Hivon, 2013, p. 10).
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