Tag: Charlie Feldman
Unfinished Business: A Snapshot of Recent Government Bill Practice
Unfinished Business: A Snapshot of Recent Government Bill Practice
Charlie Feldman is the President of the Canadian Study of Parliament Group and a member of the Law Society of Ontario. Any views expressed in this piece are his own and not those of any employer.
Continue reading “Unfinished Business: A Snapshot of Recent Government Bill Practice”A Counting Conundrum: How Many Amendments?
A Counting Conundrum: How Many Amendments?
Charlie Feldman is a Member of the Law Society of Ontario.
There’s more than one way to count amendments depending on how you define the term. In this article, the author explores a myriad of possibilities using hypothetical examples. However, he concludes by noting that counting the number of amendments is not necessarily the best metric to assess the extent of change in legislation.
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An Update from the Canadian Study of Parliament Group
An Update from the Canadian Study of Parliament Group
Finding a silver-lining in the COVID-19 pandemic is difficult, but not impossible. The necessity of moving conferences and seminars to digital platforms has opened up new possibilities for participation. In this article, the author explains how the CSPG’s recent virtual offerings have expanded the range of presenters able to participate and created some exciting and informative events.
The Canadian Study of Parliament Group (CSPG) has begun hosting virtual events in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. In October, our annual conference entitled “Perspectives on Legislatures and Legislative Power: Past, Present, Future” brought together presenters from five continents to share their experiences and insights on various aspects of parliamentary institutions. It was the largest and most ambitious CSPG program yet – and the CSPG hopes to build on this with its upcoming seminar programs.
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CSPG Seminar: The #MeToo Movement and Parliament
CSPG Seminar: The #MeToo Movement and Parliament
The #MeToo movement has been a watershed moment for changes to workplace culture, particularly for women in fields traditionally dominated by men. On March 29, 2019, the Canadian Study of Parliament Group held a seminar to explore the impact of the #MeToo on parties, politics, and Parliament Hill.
Charlie Feldman
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Parliamentary Business Seminar on Parliamentary Diplomacy
Parliamentary Business Seminar on Parliamentary Diplomacy
On Friday, November 16, 2018, the Canadian Study of Parliament Group held a Parliamentary Business Seminar on Parliamentary Diplomacy, inviting experts to discuss various aspects of parliamentary involvement in foreign affairs. One panel explored how parliamentary diplomacy occurs in Canada while a second panel gathered current and former parliamentarians who participated in parliamentary diplomacy to offer their personal and professional reflections.
Paul EJ Thomas and Charlie Feldman
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All Together Now: Government Bill Bundling in the 42nd Parliament
All Together Now: Government Bill Bundling in the 42nd Parliament
Bill bundling – the reintroduction of all the substantive provisions of a bill without any modification in another bill – has been used on several occasions by the government during the 42nd Parliament, 1st Session. In this article, the author notes that this method of packaging a legislative agenda is somewhat unusual and warrants further consideration from a legislative planning perspective. He explains that while combining or consolidating related matters into one bill maximizes efficiency, the introduction of government legislation carries with it a myriad of legal and practical consequences beyond the Senate and House of Commons, some of which are heightened when bills are bundled. The author suggests that the recent trend of bill bundling is linked to recognition of the limited time in the legislative calendar before the next scheduled election. However, if bill bundling becomes a more common practice in future parliaments, some questions about predictability and consistency of a legislative agenda should be considered.
Introduction
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Parliamentary Timing and Federal Legislation Referred to Courts: Reconsidering C-14
Parliamentary Timing and Federal Legislation Referred to Courts: Reconsidering C-14
Parliamentarians often express the desire to obtain the opinion of the Supreme Court on the constitutionality of bills. For example, parliamentarians thought of asking for the Supreme Court’s opinion in the recent Bill C-14 on medical aid to die. In this article, the author analyzes six contexts of hypothetical referral of Bill C-14: pre-filing, simultaneous referral to filing, post-filing referral, post-adoption referral, adoption Conditional on removal and referral to provincial courts. The conclusion is that while legislators want a court decision on the constitutionality of a bill, complications arise because the executive controls the current referral powers. Therefore,