Reference Re Amendment of the Constitution of Canada the Patriation Reference Essay

 Reference Re Amendment of the Constitution of Canada The Patriation Reference

Background and Quick Summary 
The case analyses the role of the provinces in the amending process. Their position was unclear: there was no consistent practice by the federal government of obtaining the consent of the provinces before requesting an amendment, although unanimous provincial consent has been obtained for all amendments affecting provinces
PM Trudeau proposed the amendments which ultimately became the Constitution Act 1982 and asserted that, if provincial consent was not obtained, the federal government would proceed unilaterally and to requires the enactments of the amendments by the UK Parliament. These amendments had substantial effects on the power of the provinces
Three provinces directed references to their Court of Appeal, asking whether there was a requirement of law that provincial consent be obtained and whether there was a requirement of convention that provincial consents be obtained.
On appeal from a variety of answers, the Supreme Court held that the consent was not required as “matter of law”, but that a substantial degree of provincial consent was required as “a matter of convention”

Case: 
Martland, Ritchie, Dickson, Beetz, Chouinard and Lamer 

THE NATURE OF CONSTITUTIONAL CONVENTIONS: 
A substantial part of the rules of Canadian Constitution are written while another part consists of the rulers of the common law. Those parts are referred to as the law of the constitution
But important parts of the constitution are nowhere to be found in the law od the constitution. They are called the “conventions of the constitution” and refer to the principles and rules of responsible government. These rules were developed in Great Britain by way of custom and precedent during the nineteenth century and were exported to such British colonies as were granted self-government
The main purpose of constitutional conventions is to ensure that the legal...